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Lightning as a weapon

attempt to get up to heaven and destroy God. They piled one
mountain on the top of another. So, when God saw that they would
not be quiet, in great wrath He again hurled His lightning at them,
and sent His angels to inform the survivors of their fate, which
was perpetual imprisonment inside a mountain1. E. Schmidt, who
reports this Zakynthian tale, comments on its similarity to the
classical myths of the Giants and the Titans, observing that the role
of the pagan Zeus has been simply transferred to the Christian
God2. He also remarks that the word here used of God's 'thunder-
bolts' is astropelekia3, and adds : 'The common expression for light-
ning that strikes is astropeleki, and this term proves that in the eyes of
the populace the flash travelling downwards from the air appeared as
an axe4.' Rather let us say that the flash was thought to be accom-
panied by a tangible axe. For in Greece the name astropelekia is given
to actual neolithic celts3. Schmidt himself has lately published the
important observation that such celts are called, not only astropelekia,
but also astrapopelckia (Epeiros) and astrapoboida (Parnassos)6—
fuller forms which denote 'lightning-axes,' 'lightning-bolts,' and
explain the otherwise puzzling prefix7. The celts are kept in houses
as a preservative against lightning8; and portions of them are worn
by way of protection from evil spirits or the evil eye. The in-
habitants of Parnassos declare that fragments of these stones are
found in places that have been struck by lightning.

The beliefs of the modern peasantry are of no recent growth.
About the year 1081 A.D. Alexios i Komnenos, emperor of Con-
stantinople, sent a number of presents to Henry iv, emperor of
Germany, and among them an astropelekys set in gold9. Centuries

that God aims his lightning at such trees in order to destroy demons residing in them
(B. Schmidt Das Volksleben der Neugriechen Leipzig 1871 i. 33, J. C. Lawson^/. cit. p. 73).

1 B. Schmidt Griechische Mdrchen, Sagen und Volkslieder Leipzig 1877 p. 131 ('Gott
und die Riesen'), J. C. Lawson op. cit. p. 73 f.

2 B. Schmidt Das Volksleben der iVengriechen Leipzig 1871 i. 33, 202, id. Griechische
Marcken, Sagen und Volkslieder Leipzig 1877 P- -41-

Id. ib. p. 131 n. 1 TcraKiliveL ra aarpoTreXeiaa rov.

4 Id. Das Volksleben der ATeugriechen Leipzig 1871 i. 32 f.

5 Sir J. Evans op. cit." p. 59, C. Blinkenberg op. cit. p. 107.

6 B. Schmidt in the Neue Jahrb. f. klass. Altertum 1913 xxxi. 599 (darpoTreXeKia,
daTpairoireXeKia, dcrrpaTr6(3ovXa).

7 C. Blinkenberg op. cit. p. 107 wrongly translates dcrrpoTreXeKi, 'sky-axe.' 'AcrTpowe-
XeKia is by haplology for darpairoTreXeKia.

8 My friend Prof. R. M. Dawkins has kindly furnished me with the following corrobora-
tion (May 23, 1919) : 'I have seen a man from one of the islands, I think Symi, who told
me that one of his women-folk kept a celt among her wool to prevent the garments from
being destroyed by fire.'

9 Anna Komnen. Alex. 3. 10 (i. 177 Schopen) derpoireXeKW SeSeixevov /xera xpvcracpiov,
on which see Sir J. Evans op. cit." p. 59.
 
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