BAG 



*• (Titamvis jEthiopum populis, Avabi.imqti« beatis 

 Gc-ntibus, atqiie Indis unus fit Jupiter Ammon.'' 

 (See Ammon.) Sir Ifaac Newton adds, that when Ariadne, 

 the daughter of Minos, was defcrttd by Thefeus in the 

 ifland Naxos or Dia, and taken up by G'.auciis, an Egyp- 

 tian commander at fca, (he became the milkrefs of tho ^rcat 

 Bacchus, who was at that time returning from India in 

 triumph ; and by him file had two fons, Phlyas and Eunie- 

 don, who were Arg-onauts. Tliis Bnccluis was caught in 

 bed in Phrygia with Venus, the mother of jEneas, accord- 

 ing to Homer (OdyfT. 1. viii. v. 292.), juft before he came 

 over the Hellefpont and invaded Thrace ; and he married 

 Ariadne, the daughter of Minos, according to Hefiod 

 (Theogon, v. 947.); and therefore, by the tcftimony of 

 both Homer and Hefiod, who wrote before the Greeks 

 and Egyptians corrupted their antiquities, this Bacchus was 

 one generation older than tlie Argonauts; and fo being king 

 of Egypt at the fame time with Sefoftris, they mull be one 

 and the fame king. They alfo agree in their actions : Bac- 

 chus invaded India and Greece; and after he was routed by 

 the army of Perfeus, and the war was compofed, the Greeks 

 did him great honours, and built a temple to him at Argos, 

 and called it the temple of the Ctefian Bacchus, becaufe, as 

 Paufanias relates (1. 2. c. 23.), Ariadne was buried in 

 it. 



The dillinftive charafter of this Indian Bacchus was a 

 long beard, whence he was denominated " the bearded 

 Bacchus," or Hcclx-nrmydiv. Some have fuppofed that there 

 was another Bacchus peculiar to Egypt, and the moft an- 

 cient of all ; and, indeed, Diodorus Sic.ilus feems to war- 

 rant this opinion, by mentioning three different deities under 

 this appellation. Accordingly, Bochart (Geog. Sacr. 1. i. 

 c. 18. apud Oper. t.i. col. 439, &c.) faggells, that Bac- 

 chus was the fame with Nimrod the father of Ninus ; and he 

 fuppofes that the worfliip of this deity originated in Affytia, 

 and from thence was tranfmitted to the Syrians and Phoeni- 

 cians ; and that it was communicated by the Phoenicians to 

 the Greeks. Many of his names, attributes, and adtions 

 bear an obvious allufion to the fcripture hiftory, and are 

 moft fatisfaftorily elucidated by it. Amongft thofe who 

 have referred the origin of Bacchus, and the worfhip that 

 was performed in honour of him, to the earlieft antiquity, 

 and very nearly to the difperfion at Babel, we may mention 

 the learned Mr. Bryant, who difcovcrs in the hiftoiy of the 

 exploits of this illulhions perfon, references to the migra- 

 tion of the Cuthite colonies, or of the fons of Chus, who, 

 upon the difperfion, partly betook thcmfelves eallward to 

 the Indus and Ganges, and partly paffcd into Egypt. See 

 C'JTHiTf s, and Dispersion. 



The Theban Bacchus, or Grecian Bacchus, is particularly 

 diftinguiflied by Diodorus Siculus, 1. iii. This hillorian in- 

 forms us, that Orpheus full deified the fon of Semele by 

 the name of Bacchus, and that he appointed his ceremonies 

 in Greece, in order to render the family of Cadmus, the 

 grandfather of the Grecian Bacchus, illuflrious. Semele, 

 it is faid, was ftruck with lightning at the very inllant of 

 her fon's birth ; and the child was probably denominated 

 Bacchus, from the grief which this melancholy accident 

 might have occafioned in the family. Cadmus, with a view 

 of concealing his daughter's difhonour, conveyed away his 

 infant grandion, as it (hould fecm, to fome of his relations 

 in Phoenicia or Egypt. After having been there inftrufted 

 in the myftcries of Ifis and Ofiris, and initiated in all the 

 magical or juggling tricks of the Egyptian priells and hiero- 

 phants, and having attained the maturity of age, he returned 

 to Thebes with the traditional retinue of the original deity 

 of tl»t fame name, and claimed divine honours j which, after 



B A e 



fome oppofition, were allowed hira. To this Grecian Bac. 

 chus tlie aftions of Ofiris were afcribed, together with a 

 v.i'.itty of abfurd and difgractful adventures in which his 

 prototype had no concern. Hence the Theban Bacchus 

 became a monllcr of licentioufnefs and debauchery ; where- 

 as the Egyptiaii was of a very contrary charaflcr. Of 

 conrfe the myileries of the former were attended with the 

 moll (liocking abominations. Sec Bacchasalia. 



According to the account of Diodorus Siculus (1. iii. 

 p. 207.) there was no nation upon earth, neither Gra;ciaa 

 nor foreign, that was not indebted to this deity for fom« 

 mark of his munificence and favour. He taught the peo- 

 ple to plant the vine, and to prcferve the juice of the grape, 

 and to lay up the fruits of the earth in proper repofitories. 

 Thofe who poffeffed an harfii and ungenial foil, not adapted 

 to the cultivation of the vine, were (hewn the art of mak- 

 ing a diink from barley, not lefs grateful than that which 

 proceeded from the grape. He adds (1. iv. p. 210), that 

 the perfon, from whom thefc blefCngs were derived, is re- 

 prefcnted of the higheft antiquity, and the greatcft bene- 

 factor ever known by mankind. Such is alio the hiftory 

 given of Ofiris, under which character, fays Biyant (Anc. 

 Myth. vol. iii. p. 445.), we arc to underftand a people who 

 went forth and performed all that has been mentioned. 

 Their religion confifted in the worftiip of the fun under 

 various titles ; accordingly however Dionufus or Bacchus 

 may be diverfified by various names or titles, all of them, 

 as this learned writer imagines, with regard to worfliip, re- 

 late ultimately to the fun. Such was alfo the .opinion of 

 Selden (De Dm Syris, p. 77.) To this worfhip were 

 added, by the ancient people to whom Bryant refers, di- 

 vine honours paid to their anccllors, the Baalim of the fiiil 

 ages_: all which were attended with particular myilcrioiis 

 rites, in which were commemorated the circumllances of 

 the deluge, and the hiftory of the great patriarch by 

 whom mankind was prefcrved. Bacchus waselleemed one of. 

 the founders of medicine. 



Diodorus Siculus further informs us, that it was Bacchus, 

 the fon of Semele, who invented farces and theatres, and 

 who firft eftabliftied a mufic fchool, exempting from all mi- 

 litary funftions fuch muficians as difcovered great abilities 

 in their art ; on which account, fays the fame author, mu- 

 ficians formed into companies have lince frequently enjoyed 

 great privileges. 



Dr. Burney (Hift. Mufic, vol. i. p. 298.) obferves, that 

 the dithyrambics, which gave birth to dramatic reprcfenta- 

 tions, are as ancient as the worftiip of Bacchus in Greece ; 

 and there is little doubt but that the ceremonies of his 

 myfteries gave rife to the pomp and iilufions of the theatre. 

 Many of the moft fplend^d exhibitions upon the ftage for 

 the entertainment of the people at Athens and Rome being 

 performed upon the feftivals of Bacchus, gave occafion to 

 the calling all thofe that were employed in them, whether 

 for finging, dancing, or reciting, " fervants of Bacchus." 

 Paufanias, in his Attics (p. 7. cd. Kuhnii), fpeaks of a place 

 at Athens confecrated to Bacchus l\ie Jinger; thus named, 

 he fays, for the fame reafon as Apollo is called the chief 

 and conduftor of the Mules. Whence it ftiould fcem, fays 

 Burney (ubi fupra), " that Bacchus was regarded by the 

 Athenians not only as the god of wine, but oi Jong ; and 

 it muft be owned, that his followers, in their cups, have been 

 much inclined to finging ever fince» Indeed we are certain, 

 that in none of the orgies, proceffions, triumphs, and fefti- 

 vals, inftituted by the ancients to the honour and memory 

 of this prince of bans •vivans, mufic was forgotten, as may 

 be ftill gathered fr(mi aiici;nt fculpture, where we find not 

 only that ni.vificians, male and female, regaled him with the 



lyre, 



