V I c 



VIC 



ten men had much ado to mafter, of hi« own accord followed 

 an old prieftefs to the altar. To the Sun fometimes honey ; 

 but the Armenians and Maflagetes facrificed to him horfes. 

 To Apollo (for frequently he was diftinguifhed from the 

 Sun ) they offered the ram, the rtie-goat, the ewe, and the 

 he -goat ; and when they confounded him with the Sun, a 

 young bullock, with gilded horns, as an emblem of his 

 beams : they offered to lum likewife a raven. To Mars, 

 the horfe, the bull, the boar, and the ram. The Lufita- 

 nians facrificed to him he-goats, (he-goats, and fometimes 

 their enemies ; the Scythians offered to him affes ; and the 

 Carians, dogs. We learn from Homer, that the viftims moft 

 grateful to Minerva were the bull and the lamb ; or, ac- 

 cording to Fulgentius Planciades, oxen which had never 

 known the yoke. To Diana, flags, fbe-goats, more efpe- 

 cially among the Athenians ; and, in fome places, cows. 

 To the Dii Lares, a bullock, or an ewe-lamb, according 

 to the ability of thofe who offered. To them they alfo fa- 

 crificed cocks and fwallows, and the hog, whence they got 

 the name of Grundiles. 



In fine, every god had his favourite animal, tree, or plant. 

 Among the animal kind, the lion was confecrated to Vul- 

 can ; the wolf to Apollo and Mars ; the dog to the Lares and 

 to Mars ; the dragon to Bacchus and Minerva ; the griffins 

 to Apollo ; the ferpents to Efculapius ; the ftag to Her- 

 cules ; the lamb to Juno ; the horfe to Mars ; the heifer to 

 Ids. Among the birds, the eagle was facred to Jupiter : 

 the peacock to Juno ; the owl to Minerva ; the vulture and 

 the wood-pecker to Mars ; the cock likewife to Mars, to 

 Efculapius, Apollo, and Minerva ; the dove and fparrow 

 to Venus ; the king's-fifher to Tethys ; the phoenix to the 

 Sun ; and the cicada, a fort of flying infeft, to Apollo. 

 Among the fi(hes, which belonged all to Neptune, the con- 

 cha marina, and the fmall fi(h named apua, which Feffus fays 

 is produced by the rain, were acceptable to Venus, and the 

 barbel to Diana. Among the trees and plants, the pine 

 was confecrated to Cybele, for the fake of Atys ; the beech 

 to Jupiter ; the oak, and its different fpecies, to Rhea ; the 

 olive to Minerva ; the laurel to Apollo, from his amour 

 with Daphne ; and the reed to Pan, from the (lory of Sy- 

 rinx : the lotos and the myrtle were hkewife confecrated 

 to Apollo and Venus ; the cyprefs to Pluto ; the narciffus 

 and the maiden-hair, termed likewife capilli veneris, to Pro- 

 ferpinc ; the a(h-trce and dog's-grafs to Mars ; purdanc to 

 Mercury ; the myrtle and the poppy to Ceres ; the vine, 

 and its leaves, to Bacchus ; the poplar to Hercules ; dittany 

 and the poppy to L\icina ; garlick to the Dii Penates ; the 

 alder-tree, the cedar, the narciffus, and the juniper-tree, to 

 the Furies ; the palm to the Mufes ; the plane-tree to the 

 Genii ; the alder to the god Sylvanus ; the pine to Pan, 

 kc. The Greeks offered Iphigcnia, at Aulis, for a viftim 

 to obtain a favourable wind. 



As there were different forts of viAiras, the mode of 

 offering them was alfo different. Some were wholly burnt, 

 and others confumcd only in part : and it belonged to the 

 diviners among the Greeks, and to the arufpices among the 

 Romans, to order the time, form, and manner of the facri- 

 fices. We may further remark with Lucian, that the fa- 

 crifices differed according to the quality of the perfons. 

 " The hufbandman," fays he, " offers up an ox ; the (hep. 

 herd, a lamb ; the goat-herd, a goat : there are fome who 

 make only a fimplc- offering of cakes or incenfe ; and he 

 that has nothing, makes his facrifice by killing his right 

 hand." 



Artificial or faSilious viftim, denotes a viftim made of 

 baked paftcs in the form of an animal, which was offered to 



the gods, when they had no natural viftims or no oppor- 

 tunity of offering them. Thus, according to Porphyry, 

 Pythagoras offered a facrifice of an ox in palle ; Empe- 

 docles is alfo faid by Athenxus to have done the fame. 

 Pythagoras derived the praftice from Egypt, where it was 

 very ancient, and where it was ufed \n the time of Hero- 

 dotus. 



VICTIMARIUS, a minifter, or fervant of the prieft, 

 whofe office was to bind the viftims, and prepare the water, 

 knife, cake, and other things, neceffary for the facrifice. 

 See Sacrifice. 



To the viftimarii it alfo belonged to knock down, and 

 kill, the viftims : iu order to which, they flood clofe by 

 the altar, naked to the wailt, but crowned with laurel ; and 

 holding a hatchet or a knife up, aflved the pried leave to 

 ftrike ; faying, Agone'f Shall IJlrih'^ Whence they were 

 called agones, and cuUelliirn, or cultrarU. 



When the viftim was killed, they opened it ; and, after 

 viewing the entrails, took them away, walhed the carcafe, 

 and fprinkled the flour on it, &c. 



The fame viftimarii alfo lighted the fire in which books 

 were condemned to be burnt. See Liv. Ub. xl. cap. 29. 

 and A. GelHus, Ub. J. cap. i. extr. 12. 



VICTOIRE, or Woody JJlanJ, in Geography, a fmall 

 ifland in the Chinefe fea. N. lat. l°33'. E. long. 106° 18'. 



VICTOPHALL or ViCTOBALl, in Ancient Geography, 

 a people of Dacia, according to Eutropius and Ammianus 

 Marcellinus. This country was fubjugated by Trajan. 



VICTOR L, pope, in Biography, fucceeded Eleuthe- 

 rius in 192. During his pontificate feveral circumftances 

 occurred which render it difficult to maintain his infallibility. 

 He firft appeafed and afterwards anathematized the heretical 

 doftrine taught at Rome by Theodotus of Byzantium con- 

 cerning the perfon of Chrift. Fie alfo recognized a pro- 

 phetic fpirit in Montanus ; and gave to two of his female fol- 

 lowers, Prifca and Maximilla, letters of peace to the 

 churches of Afia and Phrygia, which he afterwards re- 

 voked. As his infalUbihty was impeached, his pontifical 

 authority was alfo vigoroufly oppofedin the controverfy be- 

 tween the Eaftern and Weflern churches concerning the cele- 

 bration of Eaftcr. The former had been accuftomed to ob- 

 fcrve the rule ellaljliflied for the Jcwifh pafchal, whereas the 

 latter difapproved the obfervance of Eafter on any day ex- 

 cept Sunday, and they had, accordingly, adopted a different 

 method of computation. The difpute was of no great im- 

 portance, and had occafioned no difcord and feparation be- 

 tween thefe churches. But Viftor arrogantly interpofed, 

 and enjoined the Afiatic prelates to obferve the cuflom that 

 prevailed among the Weltern Chriflians. Thefe prelates re- 

 fifted his mandate, and Viftor menaced Polycrates, bifliop 

 of Ephefus, who took the lead on this occafion, with exclu- 

 fion from liis communion. The prelate convened 3 council 

 of all the bilhops of Afia Minor, and they were unaniinous 

 in their refolution not to abandon the ancient praftice. The 

 pope was cxafperated, and declared the Afiatic prelates un- 

 worthy of the title of brethren, and excluded them from all 

 fellowfliip with the church of Rome. But his violence was 

 difapproved, and he was regarded as a difturber of the peace 

 and union that lubfifted among Chriflians. Irenxus, bifhop 

 of Lyons, remonftratcd againft hiscondudt in a letter written 

 to him with a fpirit of wifdoni and moderation : and the 

 Afiatics retained their cuflom till the Weflern praftice was 

 autiioritatively eftablidied by the council of Nice. Thefe 

 proceedings lufficicntly fliew that tlie fupremacy of the fee 

 of Rome was not acknowledged at this period. Viftor, 

 after a pontificate of ten years, clofcd his life towards the 

 X a en(Ji 



