3G~ 



KNOWLEDGE. 



[February 1, 1901. 



whole. Agaiu, it is said that mau stamped on his coins 

 images of trade and barter, e.g., sheep, oxen, goats, the 

 siljihinm plant, and so on. But, I fear that if we attempt 

 any general explanation of am-ient coin-types on this 

 principle we shall be landed in great difficulties. We 

 cannot admit a trade in gryphons^and man-headed bulls, 

 in serpents, scor]>ions or eagles. We shall find on early 

 (•oins-ty]ies, as elsewhere, symbolism and imitation ; and if 

 heaven can help us to understand them in some degree, 

 let us not disdain its assistance. 



The use of constellai ion-figures as coin-types has been 

 treated of, to some extent, by M. Svoronos and Prof. 

 D'Arcy Thompson, and also by" myself in a recent worlc.(^' 

 But what has been said is mamly preliminary, and the 

 subject is still almost virgin ground. I propose to 

 illustrate it here by a few examples ; and, before referring 

 to these in detail, would observe that 1 follow the descrip- 

 tions of the subjects of the coins given by the British 

 Museum experts. I would also remind the reader that 

 nearly the whole of the forty-eight ancient constellation- 

 figures of the Greeks were borrowed by them from their 

 Eastern neighbours ; and that very maiiy of these figures 

 api^ear as constellations in the literature and art of the 

 Euphrates Valley.*^) Turning, then, to the particular 

 examples before us, we find*'> : — 



No. 1. SerakJes Jciieeling. ' Herakles bearded, naked, 

 kneeling on one knee, r.' "With club, strung bow and 

 two arrows : behind. Tunny. Cyzicus. Cir. B.C. 500 — 450. 

 Every Sign of the Zodiac, except Aquarius, and other con- 

 stellation-figures, whether as such or not, a[)pear on the 

 coins of this city, which, through Miletus and Lampsacus, 

 is connected with Crete and Ph. influence. We know from 

 Panyasis of Halicarnassus (ob. cir. B.C. 457), that the 

 constellation which Aratus ca.]ls the Kneeler (Engonasin), 

 was called Herakhs=Fh. HareAhal ('the Traveller'). 

 Amongst the names of this constellation are MeUcarlus 

 (=Gk. Melckerfes, Ph. MeJqdiih. ' King-of-the-City '), 

 Malka ( = Ph. MeleJch, 'the King'), Pahmon ( = Gk. 

 PulaiiiioH, Ph. Baal-Uamon, 'the Burning-lord'), and 

 Maccris (=3Likfjr=A[el(/ihth). A good instance of the 

 type is the fine kneelmg Herakles of the Ph. Thasos ;I5) 

 but the prototype is the Euphratean Gilgamesh (Gk. 

 Gilgamos, Aelian, xii. 21), the 'giant-king,' who so fre- 

 quently appears in Euphratean art bearded and kneeling 

 on one knee, contending with a Lion, whose skin, in 

 Hellas, he, as Herakles, wears or carries. In Tab. No. 83 

 — I — 18,6u8 'the constellation of the King' (Sumero- 

 Akkadian Mul Lugal, Bab.-Assyrian Kakkah - Sarm) 

 appears above ' the constellation of the Scorpion,' as on 

 our own Globe. 



No. 2. Hcrakki^ iriiJi Hydra and Oral. 'Herakles 

 striking with club held in r. hand at Hydra which rears 

 up before him, and whose nearest head he trrasps with his 

 1. hand ; at his feet crab ; over his 1. arm, lion's skin.' 

 Phaestus. Cir. b.c. 431-300. The storv of the fight is told 

 by Apollodorus (II. v. 2). A great scholar once said to 

 me that if I had tried to invent a tale to support my view, 

 I could not have hit on anything so perfect. According 

 to Pausauias (II. vi. 3), Phaestus was a son of Herakles 



- Primitice Constellations, i. l')l-2il. 



' Vide Ibid, passim. 



■> As the writers I quote are not uniform in their systems of spellin" 

 proper name?, I do not pretend to uniformitv in the matter in this 

 Taper. IJ.-spite vehement prejudices, it is inuch better in scienti6c 

 works to write proper names in their original forms, e^., not to clotlie 

 a Greek name in a Latin dress, or a Bahvlonian name in a Hebrew or 

 Greek dress. I use the following abbreviations :— Bab = Babvloniau 

 I'h. = Phoenician, Gk. = Greek. 



^ Vide Svoronos, Ti/pes mon. des anciens, pi. xr. 



who taught the people of Sicyon to sacrifice to his sire, 

 not as a hero but as a god (lb. x. 1). Here we note the 

 introduction of the cult of a foreign divinity. The Hydra, 

 Crab, Lion and King were known as constellations in the 

 planispheres of Babylonia and Phoenicia. As I have 

 shown elsewhere, they originally rejn'esented certain 

 archaic and pre-coustfillational ideas. Phaestus was one 

 of the most ancient cities of Crete ((/. II., ii. 618), and one 

 of the three said to have been founded by Minos. Sacred 

 symbols such as these must have been familiar long ere 

 they were reproduced on coins. Hence, we see here on a 

 coin an archaic legend which had already been transferred 

 to the skies, i.e., we have constellation-figures as coin-types. 

 The Lion, Crab and Water-snake of the modern globe 

 preserve the story. King Herakles could not be placed 

 next them, even in the Bab. Sphere, as he had already been 

 located elsewhere. These obvious instances justify us in 

 presuming a probable, or almost certain, connection 

 between constellation-figure and coin-type where, at first 

 sight, the evidence may not be quite so clear. Herakles is 

 perhaps the most familiar coin-type throughout Hellas. 



No. 3. Herakles u:ifh Boir, Arrotv and Birds. 'Herakles 

 naked, kneeling r. and discharging arrow ; before him two 

 birds.' Lamia (Thessaly), b.c 3l)0 — 100. This scene is 

 stiU better depicted on the familiar gem which shows 

 Herakles naked, kneeling on r. knee. Lion's skin over his 

 1. arm, discharging arrow at three birds fronting hiiu in a 

 row. Here we have actually a combination of five con- 

 stellations, very much as they appear on our globe to-day, 

 i.e^ Herakles, the Man kneeling, discharging his Arroir 

 {Sagitta) at the three birds, the Vulture (Lyra ', the Su-an 

 (Cygnus),a.iid the Eagle (Aqiiila). The ancient little con- 

 stellation the Arrow affords an excellent illustration of the 

 mistaken views which formerly prevailed about these 

 heavenly forms. The great K. 0. Miiller tells us that 

 there is ' nothing mythological ' about it, and that it was 

 named from its figure.' Had he been asked. Why then, 

 was it not callefl the Lance or the SeejAre ! he could have 

 given no answer except that men chose to call it the 

 Arrow, which would be merely to repeat the fact that the 

 ancient Gre.^ks knew it as the Arrow, just as we do. As 

 soon as we know the facts, we see why it was called the 

 Arrow, and not the Lanre or Sceptre, and observe that it 

 was altogether mythological. This contest of Herakles 

 (V'ide No. 4) had its prototype in the fight between the 

 Bab. Merodach and the three demon birds,'''' i.e., the 

 contest between the Sun-god and the Clouds of storm and 

 darkness. The Eagle, the Kite (^Ornis-=Cygnus) and 

 the Laminergeier appear on the Bab. Celestial Sphere in 

 front of the kneeling King. The simple nature-myth had 

 already in the Euphrates Valley been transferred to the 

 starry skies. 



No. 4. Herakles and Bird. Ob. ' Head of young 

 Herakles in lion's skin. Eev. Head and neck of crested 

 water-bird.' Stymphiilus (Arcadia), b.c. 431 — 370. 

 Near this very ancient town ((/. II., ii. COS), the name of 

 which is derived from the Ph. Stemhal, contracted from 

 Mastanabal (' prob. Vlypeus Baalis,' i.e., the 'Boeotian 

 Buckler ' of Herakles), was located the scene of the 

 contest between Herakles-and thedemon birds v I'aus. VIII. 

 xxii. 4). In the mythic pedigree, Stymphalus is said to 

 have Iseen the great-grandson of Areas ('the Bright ' = 

 the Bearuard), son of Callisto ('the Most-beautiful ') = 

 the Crreat-hear. 



No. 5. Bear. ' Bear 1. walking.' Mantiueia (Arcadia). 

 Before B.C. 471. Another coin shows the ' type 1.; counter- 

 mark, star.' The nymjih Callisto ' made into the stars 



' Vide Lajard, Ctilte de Mithra, PI. lii. 7. 



