DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.14699#0024
988
Appendix P
that the river Melas (Mauropotamos), which crosses the site of Lake Kopai's, is
surrounded by black vegetable fens and quotes the peasants of Skripou as
saying 'dass das Land am Mauropotamos schwimme.' He identifies these
patches of unstable ground with the 7rAouSer of Theophrastos and the insulae
fluitantes of Pliny. A. Philippson 'Der Kopais-See in Griechenland und seine
Umgebung' in the Zeitsclirift der Gesellscluift fiir Erdkunde zu Berlin 1894
xxix. 39 and Geiger in Pauly—Wissowa Real-Enc. xi. 1348 follow suit. Frazer
Pausanias v. 120 says: ' The fable was probably told of the islands in the bay
of Tzamali, to the north of Orchomenus, whose banks overhung and quaked
under the tread, as do the banks of the river Melas in some places.'
(12) Some five miles to the north of Sardeis lies the Gygaia Limne, later
called the Koloe Limne, and now known as Mcrmcreh-Gheicl, the ' Marble
Lake' (L. Biirchner in Pauly—Wissowa Real-Enc. vii. 1956, xi. 1107). Its
brackish waters are fringed with dense beds of reeds (W. J. Hamilton Researclies
in Asia Minor, Ponlus, and Armenia London 1842 i. 145), which dry up and
mixing with other detritus form floating islands (G. Radet La Lydie et le monde
grec au temps des Mermnades (6S7—J46) Paris 1893 p. 13). A. H. Sayce, after
a visit to the spot in 1879, writes: 'The foundations of the old temple of
Artemis (?) are very visible on the southern shore of the lake as well as of a
causey thrown out into the lake—The fish caught in it are carp, which are
usually of a wonderfully large size. According to the local superstition every
carp has a bitter stone in its mouth. If this is not removed before the fish is
eaten fever will be the inevitable result. If, however, the stone is removed the
fish is considered innocuous' {Jonrii. Hell. Stud. 1880 i. 87).
It is to this lake that we must attach a whole series of ancient notices about
floating islands, dancing islands, dancing reeds, and poisonous fish. Attempts
to distinguish the floating islands of Koloe from the dancing islands, reeds, etc.
of the Nymphs (H. Oehler Paradoxographi Florentini anonymi opusculum dc
aquis mirabilibus Tubingae J 913 p. 117 ff., cp. L. Biirchner in Pauly—Wissowa
Real-Enc. x. 1532) are in my opinion unsuccessful.
The floating islands of Lydia are composed of light pumice-like stones
(Theophrast. ap. Sen. nat. quaestt. 3. 25. 7 sunt enim multi pumicosi et leves, ex
quibus quae constant insulae in Lydia, natant. Theophrastus est auctor). In
Lydia the floating islands named Calaminae, which are shifted not only by the
winds but by barge-poles in any direction you please, proved a refuge to many
during the Mithridatic war (Plin. nat. hist. 2. 209 quaedam insulae semper
fluctuantur, sicut...in Lydia quae vocantur Calaminae, not) vends solum, sed
etiam contis quo libeat inpulsae, multorum civium Mithridatico bello salus).
Lake Koloe near Sardeis breeds many fish and waterfowl: its floating islands
have a deceptive appearance of stability, for they change their position with the
winds (anon, de aquis mirabilibns {supra p. 975) 39 ') Kara 2«p8ei? Xl/ivr/ Ka\ovfiei>>]
KoXot; Tr'KrjBoS fl€P o\f/0V TTCLpTToXv T(l€(p€i' Se KGtl ClVTl) VT](TOVS OlKOVflCVtlS
■trpos wirdrTjv • €7Tiv7]xol'TaL y(lP ' Kat rll r®v aveixaiv ttvojj (rvpfJ.eroLKOv(Tf irrrjvuiv
Se rwv evvSpuiv rnaovro rpe(peL 7r\r/$o? tocrre Kai rapt^vfcrOm).
Varro claimed to have seen in Lydia the Islands of the Nymphs, which at the
sound of flutes move out from the bank into the middle of the lake, go circling
round, and return to the shore (Varr. ap. Mart. Cap. 928 in Lydia Nympharum
insulas dici, quas etiam recentior asserentium Varro se vidisse testatur, quae in
medium stagnum a continenti procedentes cantu tibiarum primo in cireulurri
motae dehinc ad litora revertuntur). He further states that, when he sacrificed
on the shore of the lake, fish came crowding towards the flute-player and the
Appendix P
that the river Melas (Mauropotamos), which crosses the site of Lake Kopai's, is
surrounded by black vegetable fens and quotes the peasants of Skripou as
saying 'dass das Land am Mauropotamos schwimme.' He identifies these
patches of unstable ground with the 7rAouSer of Theophrastos and the insulae
fluitantes of Pliny. A. Philippson 'Der Kopais-See in Griechenland und seine
Umgebung' in the Zeitsclirift der Gesellscluift fiir Erdkunde zu Berlin 1894
xxix. 39 and Geiger in Pauly—Wissowa Real-Enc. xi. 1348 follow suit. Frazer
Pausanias v. 120 says: ' The fable was probably told of the islands in the bay
of Tzamali, to the north of Orchomenus, whose banks overhung and quaked
under the tread, as do the banks of the river Melas in some places.'
(12) Some five miles to the north of Sardeis lies the Gygaia Limne, later
called the Koloe Limne, and now known as Mcrmcreh-Gheicl, the ' Marble
Lake' (L. Biirchner in Pauly—Wissowa Real-Enc. vii. 1956, xi. 1107). Its
brackish waters are fringed with dense beds of reeds (W. J. Hamilton Researclies
in Asia Minor, Ponlus, and Armenia London 1842 i. 145), which dry up and
mixing with other detritus form floating islands (G. Radet La Lydie et le monde
grec au temps des Mermnades (6S7—J46) Paris 1893 p. 13). A. H. Sayce, after
a visit to the spot in 1879, writes: 'The foundations of the old temple of
Artemis (?) are very visible on the southern shore of the lake as well as of a
causey thrown out into the lake—The fish caught in it are carp, which are
usually of a wonderfully large size. According to the local superstition every
carp has a bitter stone in its mouth. If this is not removed before the fish is
eaten fever will be the inevitable result. If, however, the stone is removed the
fish is considered innocuous' {Jonrii. Hell. Stud. 1880 i. 87).
It is to this lake that we must attach a whole series of ancient notices about
floating islands, dancing islands, dancing reeds, and poisonous fish. Attempts
to distinguish the floating islands of Koloe from the dancing islands, reeds, etc.
of the Nymphs (H. Oehler Paradoxographi Florentini anonymi opusculum dc
aquis mirabilibus Tubingae J 913 p. 117 ff., cp. L. Biirchner in Pauly—Wissowa
Real-Enc. x. 1532) are in my opinion unsuccessful.
The floating islands of Lydia are composed of light pumice-like stones
(Theophrast. ap. Sen. nat. quaestt. 3. 25. 7 sunt enim multi pumicosi et leves, ex
quibus quae constant insulae in Lydia, natant. Theophrastus est auctor). In
Lydia the floating islands named Calaminae, which are shifted not only by the
winds but by barge-poles in any direction you please, proved a refuge to many
during the Mithridatic war (Plin. nat. hist. 2. 209 quaedam insulae semper
fluctuantur, sicut...in Lydia quae vocantur Calaminae, not) vends solum, sed
etiam contis quo libeat inpulsae, multorum civium Mithridatico bello salus).
Lake Koloe near Sardeis breeds many fish and waterfowl: its floating islands
have a deceptive appearance of stability, for they change their position with the
winds (anon, de aquis mirabilibns {supra p. 975) 39 ') Kara 2«p8ei? Xl/ivr/ Ka\ovfiei>>]
KoXot; Tr'KrjBoS fl€P o\f/0V TTCLpTToXv T(l€(p€i' Se KGtl ClVTl) VT](TOVS OlKOVflCVtlS
■trpos wirdrTjv • €7Tiv7]xol'TaL y(lP ' Kat rll r®v aveixaiv ttvojj (rvpfJ.eroLKOv(Tf irrrjvuiv
Se rwv evvSpuiv rnaovro rpe(peL 7r\r/$o? tocrre Kai rapt^vfcrOm).
Varro claimed to have seen in Lydia the Islands of the Nymphs, which at the
sound of flutes move out from the bank into the middle of the lake, go circling
round, and return to the shore (Varr. ap. Mart. Cap. 928 in Lydia Nympharum
insulas dici, quas etiam recentior asserentium Varro se vidisse testatur, quae in
medium stagnum a continenti procedentes cantu tibiarum primo in cireulurri
motae dehinc ad litora revertuntur). He further states that, when he sacrificed
on the shore of the lake, fish came crowding towards the flute-player and the