— 203 — 



of Celsns, who conteiids that the whole race of bees will 

 never perish, and that it is therefore useless to look for them 

 in the entrails of oxen. Nevertheless Mago, (1) quoted by the 

 sanie Columella, teaches that the paiinch alone of the ox is 

 sufficient for the purpose; Pliny adds that it is necessary to 

 cover it with dung etc. etc. Redi goes on in that style for 

 many pages. As I have already remarked, the diversity of the 

 methods recommended by different anthors seems to prove that 

 actual experiments were tried. If they resulted in anything, it 

 was of course merely in attracting ilies, and not in producing 

 bees, and stili less honey. Later Greek authors of the Roman 

 period repeat the same tale, (Aelian, Galen, Origines etc). An 

 abnndance of other references will be found in Aldrovandi, 

 Bochart and Redi. It wonld be fòreign to my purpose to 

 repeat them here. 



The belief in the Bufjonìa^ like any other myth, grew and 

 developed. It was contended that the « King » or what we 

 now cali the Queen-bee, was produced from the brain of the 

 ox, the ordinary bees from its flesh; (« Aiunt ex cerebro gigni 

 Reges, ex carnibus vero alias apes » Aldrovandi, 1. e. p. 58). 

 Other writers improved njDon the myth stili more by asserting 

 that while bees carne from oxen exclusively, wasps originated 

 from asses, drones from horses, hornets from mules (Servius, 

 ad Virg. Georg. 4). Others again make the wasps come from 

 horses etc. In such a confusion of nndigested assertions it is 

 often difficult to discern what the anthors believed in, and 

 what they merely repeated from hearsay. Here again. Redi 

 makes merry about it (ì. e. p. 64): « Antigonus, Pliny, Plutarch, 

 Nicander, Aelian and Archelaus, quoted by Varrò, teach us 

 that wasps originate from putrid horses. Virgil asserts this 

 not only about the wasps, but also about hornets. Ovid 



(1) Mago is an old autlior on agriciiltvire who livecl in Cartliage; he was mudi 

 esteemed, not only by his cotintrymen, but also by the Romans, even after the 

 destruction of Carthage. (Compare Smith, Dictionary of Biogr. and Mythol. sub 

 voce Mago.) 



