CHAP. XIV. WOLVES OF LYCOPOLIS. 147 



Diodorus*, after saying "that some suppose the 

 wolf to have been honoured on account of the af- 

 finity observed between it and the dog," states that 

 ** they give another, but more fabulous reason," 

 which is similar to that mentioned by Eusebius. 

 '* They pretend," says the historian, " that Osiris 

 came from Hades in the shape of a wolf, to assist 

 Isis and her son Horus,when preparing to give battle 

 to Typho ; and the latter being defeated, the 

 conquerors paid rehgious respect to the animal to 

 whose appearance they attributed the victory. 

 Others affirm that during an invasion of the Ethio- 

 pians, a large body of w^olves having routed the 

 enemy, and driven them out of Egypt, beyond the 

 city of Elephantina, their worship became esta- 

 blished in that part of the country, which received 

 the name of the Lycopolite Nome." With this 

 fable may be connected the statement of Macro- 

 biust, that "the Thebaic city LycopoUs venerates 

 Apollo (Horus) and the wolf with similar honours ;" 

 though his etymological suggestions abound with 

 tlie combined fancies of the Romans and tlie 

 Greeks. 



Fabulous as are these tales, they tend to show 

 that the worship of this animal had reference to 

 some of the festivals of Isis ; and future researches 

 at Lycopolis may enable us to discover the relation 

 between the Goddess and the sacred animal of 

 that city. According to Herodotus t the bodies 

 of wolves which died in different parts of Egypt 



* Diodor. i. 88. and 83. f Macrob. Saturn, i. 19. 



J Herodot. ii. G7. 



L 2 



