742 The superannuation of Zeus
'Nay, strive not,' Themis said,
'But let some mortal bed
Receive her that she may
Behold a son to perish in the fray,
His hands like Ares' own,
His feet like lightning flown.
I counsel you to give
This guerdon that a god might gain
To Peleus, who as Aiakos' son doth reign,
The holiest man of all the men that live
On Iaolkos' plain1.'
Pindar, it will be observed, speaks of two competitors for the hand
of Thetis, Zeus and Poseidon2. Tzetzes adds a third, Apollon3. ™
is, however, probable that the original story recognised but one,
Zeus himself4, and that his mythical association with Thetis arose
eyyvrjaai. TeSpiW-qrai Se r; ioTopi'a irapa re <rvyypa(pevai Kai 7rou)rais, &Kpif3£s 5e /carat k*'
■jrapa Alexia ev HponTjBei AeffpLiirri. J. Resler Ultimae Pindari Isthmiae... <schom*7
Vratislaviae 1847 p. 22 f. pointed out that Ae<jp,wTrj must be a mistake for Ai/o/ifVy, s'nce
nowhere in the extant play are we told that Zeus was prevented from marrying The'15
by Prometheus. The blunder has affected Tzetz. in Lyk. Al. 178 UivBapos Si ^Tel
Uocreibwva' AirbWwva Ata irtpi ydp.ojf ttjs OStlSos tplaai, Kutkvdrjvat. bi avrois Kara rt^g
twv laropLKwv virb Q^/jllSos Kara 5i Alax^011 Hpop.ijde'ios' <pf)<si yap followed by ^
quotation of Aisch. P.v. 766 and Apollod. 3. 13.5 'ivioi Si cpacri, Aids bpp.SivTOi T
ra^Tyjs vvvovfrlav, dpr^K^vat. Hpop.rj&e'a rbv £k t<lijt7]S avrtp ytvvr\d£vTa ovpavov Svva&re
aeiv may be based on Aisch. Xlpop.. \vifi. The same is probably true of later refere ^ ^
such as Hyg. fab. 54, Myth. Vat. 2. 65, 3. ir. 20 (where a Proteo is by confusion
Promethed).
1 Pind. Isthm. 8. 60 ff.
2 So does Apollod. 3. 13. 5, probably following Pindar.
3 Tzetz. in Lyk. Al. 178 (cited supra p. 742 n. o), where E. Scheer rega
word 'AirbWwva. as an interpolation on the part of Tzetzes from the myth of ^ .
(Tzetz. in Lyk. Al. 328 'Tpiei>s KAoWap (xuv yvraiKa dVais iriyxave. irore yovv Z« s ^
"RoaubSiv Kai'A-rrbXhuv rip 'Ypiei tovtui eirQevtliB-qaav Kai 6s (3oDr divas avroiis vreSe^ar^ 1
S' ifyaaav alretv avrbv, & fHovKoiTo. us be iraiblov atrip yeviaSai yrriaaTO, ol rpet-s ^
<T(pay(vTos /3oos [Mpcy ivoiprjaav Kai e| airrjs 'Qplav iyivero, 'ilptuv /cA?;#ei5 "?s eK^ tg,
otpuiv rexBets, 86ev Kai Tplirarpov tovtov Ka\ei, cp. schol. Nik. ther. 15, schol. A,D' ^j,
468, Eustath. in Od. p. 1535, 42 ff., Ov. fast. 5. 495 ff., Hyg.poet. asir. 2. 34'^aaSs,
Serv. in Verg. Aen. 1. 535, 10. 763, Nonn. Dion. 13. 96 ff., Arat. Lat. p- 240 • j_
schol. Caes. Germ. Aratea pp. 386, 2 fif., 413, 11 ff. Eyssenhardt, Lact. Plac
Theb. 3. 27, 7. 256, myth. Vat. 1. 32, 2. 129, 3. 15. 8, et. mag. p. 823, 58 n- qv.
comments of Kiientzle in Roscher Lex. Myth. iii. 1028 ff. and Sir J. G. Frazei
*ast. 5. 494).
For three as a typical plurality see supra ii. 893 n. o. hnif111^
4 Schol. vet. Pind. Isthm. 8. 57 b (ii. 496 f. Abel, iii. 273, 25 ff-^<ti
5ia0wi'erTai 5c rois Aoittois Kai ISiat^bi/rios b TllvSapos Kai TLoaeiS&va (pij(M> a^^cog(iis^
irepl tov y&nov 7) ^-qT-qriov, tIvl Kari]Ko\ov8riaei> 6 Ilivbapos. The vulgate, then, r
Zeus alone: cp. Ov. met. II. 221 ff., Hyg. fab. 54, myth. Vat. 2. 65, 2. 203, - ^v
3. 11. 2of. In the Kypria it is Momos who suggests to Zeus rip QiriSos BvyT
(frag. 1 Kinkel ap. schol. //. 1. 5 f).
'Nay, strive not,' Themis said,
'But let some mortal bed
Receive her that she may
Behold a son to perish in the fray,
His hands like Ares' own,
His feet like lightning flown.
I counsel you to give
This guerdon that a god might gain
To Peleus, who as Aiakos' son doth reign,
The holiest man of all the men that live
On Iaolkos' plain1.'
Pindar, it will be observed, speaks of two competitors for the hand
of Thetis, Zeus and Poseidon2. Tzetzes adds a third, Apollon3. ™
is, however, probable that the original story recognised but one,
Zeus himself4, and that his mythical association with Thetis arose
eyyvrjaai. TeSpiW-qrai Se r; ioTopi'a irapa re <rvyypa(pevai Kai 7rou)rais, &Kpif3£s 5e /carat k*'
■jrapa Alexia ev HponTjBei AeffpLiirri. J. Resler Ultimae Pindari Isthmiae... <schom*7
Vratislaviae 1847 p. 22 f. pointed out that Ae<jp,wTrj must be a mistake for Ai/o/ifVy, s'nce
nowhere in the extant play are we told that Zeus was prevented from marrying The'15
by Prometheus. The blunder has affected Tzetz. in Lyk. Al. 178 UivBapos Si ^Tel
Uocreibwva' AirbWwva Ata irtpi ydp.ojf ttjs OStlSos tplaai, Kutkvdrjvat. bi avrois Kara rt^g
twv laropLKwv virb Q^/jllSos Kara 5i Alax^011 Hpop.ijde'ios' <pf)<si yap followed by ^
quotation of Aisch. P.v. 766 and Apollod. 3. 13.5 'ivioi Si cpacri, Aids bpp.SivTOi T
ra^Tyjs vvvovfrlav, dpr^K^vat. Hpop.rj&e'a rbv £k t<lijt7]S avrtp ytvvr\d£vTa ovpavov Svva&re
aeiv may be based on Aisch. Xlpop.. \vifi. The same is probably true of later refere ^ ^
such as Hyg. fab. 54, Myth. Vat. 2. 65, 3. ir. 20 (where a Proteo is by confusion
Promethed).
1 Pind. Isthm. 8. 60 ff.
2 So does Apollod. 3. 13. 5, probably following Pindar.
3 Tzetz. in Lyk. Al. 178 (cited supra p. 742 n. o), where E. Scheer rega
word 'AirbWwva. as an interpolation on the part of Tzetzes from the myth of ^ .
(Tzetz. in Lyk. Al. 328 'Tpiei>s KAoWap (xuv yvraiKa dVais iriyxave. irore yovv Z« s ^
"RoaubSiv Kai'A-rrbXhuv rip 'Ypiei tovtui eirQevtliB-qaav Kai 6s (3oDr divas avroiis vreSe^ar^ 1
S' ifyaaav alretv avrbv, & fHovKoiTo. us be iraiblov atrip yeviaSai yrriaaTO, ol rpet-s ^
<T(pay(vTos /3oos [Mpcy ivoiprjaav Kai e| airrjs 'Qplav iyivero, 'ilptuv /cA?;#ei5 "?s eK^ tg,
otpuiv rexBets, 86ev Kai Tplirarpov tovtov Ka\ei, cp. schol. Nik. ther. 15, schol. A,D' ^j,
468, Eustath. in Od. p. 1535, 42 ff., Ov. fast. 5. 495 ff., Hyg.poet. asir. 2. 34'^aaSs,
Serv. in Verg. Aen. 1. 535, 10. 763, Nonn. Dion. 13. 96 ff., Arat. Lat. p- 240 • j_
schol. Caes. Germ. Aratea pp. 386, 2 fif., 413, 11 ff. Eyssenhardt, Lact. Plac
Theb. 3. 27, 7. 256, myth. Vat. 1. 32, 2. 129, 3. 15. 8, et. mag. p. 823, 58 n- qv.
comments of Kiientzle in Roscher Lex. Myth. iii. 1028 ff. and Sir J. G. Frazei
*ast. 5. 494).
For three as a typical plurality see supra ii. 893 n. o. hnif111^
4 Schol. vet. Pind. Isthm. 8. 57 b (ii. 496 f. Abel, iii. 273, 25 ff-^<ti
5ia0wi'erTai 5c rois Aoittois Kai ISiat^bi/rios b TllvSapos Kai TLoaeiS&va (pij(M> a^^cog(iis^
irepl tov y&nov 7) ^-qT-qriov, tIvl Kari]Ko\ov8riaei> 6 Ilivbapos. The vulgate, then, r
Zeus alone: cp. Ov. met. II. 221 ff., Hyg. fab. 54, myth. Vat. 2. 65, 2. 203, - ^v
3. 11. 2of. In the Kypria it is Momos who suggests to Zeus rip QiriSos BvyT
(frag. 1 Kinkel ap. schol. //. 1. 5 f).