"^78 OLEA EUROP^A. 



heaven and oartli, after the biirstiui; forth of rjod's awful wrath in llic waters of 

 the llood. ll was also the syinhnl of wisdom, abiiiidaiice, and of prosperity of 

 every kind. 'I'he oil hkfwise liccanie the enihlcni of joy and gladness. It 

 appears to have been of great utiliiy to the ancients, since Aristuens, son of 

 Apollo, was regarded as a rnral deity, from having taught maid<ind to extract 

 it, as well as to niakt^ honey, bntter, and cheese. It was also emjiloycd l)y the 

 ancient (Jreeks in ponrnig ont libations to the gods, while the branches formed 

 the wreaths of the victors of the Olympic games. They have a very instructive 

 fable in their mythology, on the origin of the olive. The gods having been 

 called on to settle a dispute between iXeptnne and Minerva, arising from the 

 desire of each to give a name to the new city of Cecrops, determined to give the 

 preference to the one who should produce the most beneficial gift to mankind. 

 Neptune, with his trident, struck the shore, out of which sprang a horse; but 

 Minerva, by causing an olive-tree to spring from the earth, gained her point, and 

 from her was the city called Athcna3, now Athens; since, the olive, the emljlem 

 of peace or agriculture, was much preferred to a horse, the symbol of war and 

 bloodshed. Minerva and the graces are also represented as crowned with olive 

 branches. 



Three statues of Minerva were preserved in the citadel of Athens, which admi- 

 rably exemplified the progress of the art of sculpture. The first, made of olive- 

 wood, and of rude workmanship, was said to have fallen from heaven ; the sec- 

 ond, of bronze, was consecrated after the victory of Marathon ; and the third was 

 made of gold and ivory, which was one of the miracles of the age of Pericles. 



Soil and Situation. The olive flourishes with the most advantage on land that 

 is rather barren, sandy, and dry; and delights in schistous calcareous steeps, not 

 very elevated, nor at a great distance from the sea ; yet it is found in the centre 

 of Spain, and in Mesopotamia, at the distance of a hundred leagues from the shore. 

 The best oil is produced from fruit grown in calcareous soils. 



Pro]Kigntio)i and Culture. The olive may be multiplied by all the modes 

 that are m use for the propagation of trees, and requires but little care in culti- 

 vation. In some parts of Italy it is multiplied by cuttings, and by what are 

 called tiovoli, (little eggs.) and in other parts by seeds. The uovoli are knots, 

 swellings, or timiours in the wood, caused by the sap not returning freely to the 

 roots, but swelling through the bark of the trunk, and thus forming wens or 

 excrescences containing embryo buds. They are separated from the tree by 

 introducing a sharp knife between them and the trunk; but the parent plant 

 suflers no injury from the operation. Sometimes, however, an old tree is cut 

 down, and the ccppo, or stock, is divided into pieces of nearly the size and shape 

 of a mushroom, and which, from that circumstance, are also called uovoli. 

 Care is observed that each uovolo shall contain a small portion of bark. After 

 being dipped in manure, the uovoli are thickly planted in a bed, and covered 

 with earth to the depth of three inches ; they soon throw up shoots, and are 

 transplanted at the end of one year, and in three years more are fit to be finally 

 removed to the plantation. When raised from the seed, the fruit should be 

 treated like that of the hawthorn or the holly; and, though some will come up 

 in October, if sown in spring, yet a greater number will not make their appear- 

 ance till the May of the second year. Seedling plants have the advantage of 

 never throwing up suckers ; and in Tuscany, where this mode of propagation is 

 generally practised, it is said to produce invariably the largest and strongest trees. 



Properties aiid Uses. The wood of the olive is heavy, compact, fine-grained, 

 and brilliant. The sap-wood is white and soft, and the heart- wood hard, brittle, 

 and of a reddish or yellowish tint, with the pith nearly effaced, as in the box. It 

 is employed by cabinet-makers to inlay the finer species of wood, which are con- 

 trasted with it in colour, and to form light articles of ornament, such as dressing;- 



