OPPIAN 



Kecrr/aea 8' iv TravreaoLV aXos veTToheaaiv d/couoj 

 (jyep^eLV 7TpT]VTar6v re SiKaLorarov re vorj/xa* 

 fxovvoL yap Kearprjes ivqees ov6^ 6fjb6(f)vXov 

 ovre TLV dAAotT]? yeverjg airo TTrjuaivovaLV 645 



ovoe TTore ipavovaiv vtto crro/xa aapKog ihcohrjg, 

 ovSe <j>6vov XoLTTrovatv, dTnqfMoavvr^ Se vefiovrai, 

 aifiaros a^pavroi /cat aKrjhieg, ayva yeveOXa' 

 tpep^ovrai 8' tj yXwpov dAo? /xvtov r]e koX avrrjv 

 IXvv, dXX^Xoiv re hefxas rrepiXixP'O-^ovaL. 650 



rovveKa Kat tlv €)(ovai pLer Ixdvui rtpiov alSo)' 

 ov yap Tis" K€Lva>v veapov tokov ola /cat dXXwv 

 GLverat, a)po(f)dycov 8e ^Lrjv dTre-)(ovaiv d8dvTa>v. 

 CO? atet /xerd Trdat At/CTyj Trpea^-qta /cetrai 

 aiBoiTjs, TTOvrr] 8e yepdapnov rjparo TLpL-qv. 655 



" In Aristotle Kearpevz is sometimes generic for the Grey 

 Mullets {Mugilidae), including K€<pa\os : A. 534 b 14 dpxoyTai 

 5^ Kveiv Twv Kearpiuv ol fj,iv x^^'^''^^ ''"'''' IlotretSewi'os Kal 6 

 (xdpyos Kal 6 fffjLi'i^wv KaXovfievoi Kal 6 (ce^aXos ; sometimes 

 specific and contrasted with Ki(f)a\os : A. 570 b 14 tLkt€i di 

 TTpQTov tGiv ToiovTiov dOeplvT] . . . Ki(pa\oi di vffraTOS' . . . 

 TiKTei Si Kal Kea-rpfiis iv toTs Trpwrois. As a specific name 

 Ki<f>a\os is perhaps Mugil cephalus, M.G. Ki(pa\os, yofi^iXi at 

 Chalcis ; aTupaSLa the males and yiiTrd^es the females at 

 Missolonghi: they spawn about the month of May, " de 

 leurs ceufs on fait la boutargue " (Apost. p. 20). Kearpeis 

 is perhaps M. capita, M.G. \a-yia5e% at Chalcis, /SeXdntres 

 at Aitolico (Apost. I.e.). But whatever the original dis- 

 tinction, Ki<{>a\os as a name seems to have usurped the 

 place of Kearpfvi (Suid. s. Kearpevs' 6 vvv Xeyofxevos K^ipaXos) 

 and in the Cyclades is now the generic name for all species 

 of Grey Mullet (Erh. p. 89). The making of "boutargue" 

 (Sp. hotargo) — " produit excessivement recherche" — is 

 described by Apostolides, p. 66 : "La boutargue n'est autre 

 chose que les ovaires des poissons, arrives a I'etat de 

 maturite regorgeant deja d'oeufs prets a etre pondus et qui 

 sont prepares par salaison. Une fois que le poisson sorti de 

 I'eau, etant encore frais, on incise son ventre et on enleve 



