St. Augustine, Of the citie of God vvith the learned comments of Io. Lod. Viues. Englished by I.H.

L. VIVES.

SO (a) Late] Lucullus was Consull with Cotta in the Citties DCLXVI. yeare. (b) L•…•…∣cullus] Hee warred against Mithridates, and Pompey entred (vpon his place, contrary to * 1.1 the mindes of the Nobles. Hauing sped well in the warre with this King and Tigranes, hee built this goddesse a Temple. (c) Picus] Saturnes sonne. Aenei. 7. Hee raigned in La•…•… * 1.2 in the time of the Aborigines, and was turned by his wife Circe into a pie, for louing of Po∣mona: and therefore the Romaines held the pie for an holy birde. (d) Faunus] Sonne to * 1.3 Picus, father to the Fawnes and the Satyres and Field-gods, Virg. ibid. Plutarch calleth him Mercuries sonne. Paralell. Hee raigned in Latium in the Aborigines time, and brought his people from barbarisme to a ciuill manner of life: and was the first that gaue names to places, and dedicated certaine Temples and Groues to the gods, from whome they were cal∣led Fana; his Oracle was in Albunea, a wood of the Laurentes: some offered to him yeare∣ly, some monethly, Val. Probus in 1. Georg. his feast was kept at Rome in the Nones of De∣cember. Horat. Car. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. (e) Tiberius] Sonne to Capetus, King of the Albanes, a notable theefe, and beeing drowned in Tyber, gaue it that name by his death, beeing •…•…∣fore * 1.4 called Albula. (f) Lux] The Romaines worshipped Iupiter Luceius, as 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Salii sung, because hee was held Lord of the light, and the cause thereof. Fest. Ta•…•… * 1.5 brought into Rome these godes: Ops or Flora, Diioué, Saturne, Soll, Luna, Uulcan, S•…•…∣manus, Larunda, Terminus, Curinus, Vorrundus, the Lars, Diana, and Lucina. Varro de 〈◊〉〈◊〉 lat. 4. (g) Hostilius] In the warre betweene the Romaines and the Veii, Host•…•…

being told that the Albanes were fallen from him, and seeing the Romaines pale and amazed hereat, in this turbulent state vowed a Temple to Feare and Pallor. (h) Piety is] Piety is iustice * 1.6 towards the gods. Cic. de nat. deor. (i) Piety is also reuerence vnto our elders, and kindred, when it hath reference to the gods, it is called religion. There was in Rome a chappell of Piety de∣dicated by Acilius, there where shee dwelt; that fedde her mother being in prison, with the milke of her breasts. Festus. There was also a statue erected that represented this. Valer. lib. * 1.7 5. Obsequens mentioneth a temple of Piety that stood in Flaminius his Theater. (i) Consentes] Twelue of those there were, six of either sexe. Their Images stood gullded in the market-place. Varrorer. rust. lib. 1. Those were Iuno. Vesta, Minerua, Ceres. Diana, Venus, Mars, Mercury, Iupiter, Vulcane, Neptune, Apollo. Enn. They were called Consentes because they all consented what was to bee done. Iupiter vsing them as counsellours in his greatest affaires as Augustine saith heere, and Seneca more plainely Natur. quaest. lib. 2. Pomponius Laetus, an excellent and diligent antiquary obserued (they say) and wrote to Lorenzo Medici, that each of these gods had a peculiar month dedicated to them. Iuno had Ianuarie, Neptune February, Mi∣nerua March, Venus Aprill, Apollo May, Mercury Iune, Iupiter Iulie, Ceres August, Vulcan September, Mars October, Diana Nouember, Uesta December. Diodor saith that the Chal∣des called two and thirty starres the gods consulters, and the twelue signes of the Zodiake which rule ouer each month, they called the principall gods. The Aegiptians had also their twelue chiefe gods, but not them that the Romaines had. (k) Hee was vsed] Numa diuiding the Romaines lands both into priuate possessions and Commons, set bounders at each one: and therevpon erected a chappell to god Terminus on the hill •…•…arpeius: to whome they of∣fered * 1.8 no liuing thing, but onely fourmenty, and the first of the fruites, though afterwards this vse was left, with others. This god was a stone, and all the bounders were stones: which if any man remooued out of the place, it was lawfull to kill him forth-with. But •…•…arquinius Priscus, hauing vowed to build a temple to Ioue, Iuno and Minerua, vpon the hill Tapeius, and laying the foundations of this magnificent worke, hee found many Altars inhumed there, which were dedicated by Tatius, and diuers other Kings: which when he would haue remo∣ued thence that the place might be free for Ioue, he asked the opinion of Actius Naeuius the au∣gur, who hauing beheld the birds of each perticular god, all signified willingnesse of departure, exept the birds of Terminus, and Iuuentas. So Tarquin the proud his Nephew, building the Ca∣pitoll after him, was faine to leaue them two there where they were found before. It was a good signe Accius said and portended stability vnto the confines of the Romaine Empire, and that their youth should bee inuincible. Plut. Dionys. Liuy and Florus say that this remoouall fell out in Tarquin the Proudes time: though their words may be reduced vnto this wee haue already said. If not, I had rather trust them in this matter then the Greekes, that Mars was a third in this obstinacy of the gods, I haue not read: that the other two were, I haue. (l) Terminus] Saturne and his brother Titan agreeing in a league vpon the condition that Saturne should bring vppe no man-childe of his owne, and Saturne beeing againe fore-told by Oracle that his sonne should thrust him from his throne, hee resolued presently to deuoure and make an end of all his male-children: Iupiter beeing borne, and hee comming to dispatch him, they had laid a great stone in the childes place: which stone Iupiter (hauing attained the Kingdome) consecrated vpon Mount Pernassus, and it was called in greeke 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Hesiod. Hesychius. Wherevpon it grew a prouerbe vpon Gluttons. Thou wouldest swallow the stone Batylus. Ba∣tylus * 1.9 (saith Euseb. out of Sanchoniaton) was sonne to Caelus and Rhea, brother to Saturne. Hee was after called 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, in latine Terminus, and would not yeeld to great Iupiter, perhaps (saith Lactant.) because hee had saued him from his fathers chaps. Hee stood alwaies openly at Rome and so was worshipped. Fest. Lactant. (m) Iuuentas] There is Iuuentas and Iuuenta, but Iuuentas saith Acron is the true name. Horace. et parum comis sinéte Iuuentas Mercuriusque. Iuuentas and Mercury are both rustich without thee. In Horace it standeth for youth it selfe * 1.10 else-where. Olim Iuuentas & Patruus Vigor, Once youth and Pristine valour: and againe fugit Iuuentas, & verecundus Color, the youth, and modest red a•…•…e vanisht now, and fled: This goddesse is called Hebe in Greeke, daughter to Iuno alone, without a father, as Mars was her sonne: Though the Greekes make Ioue her father, shee was Hercules wife, and Ioues cup-bearer till Ganymede had her place 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 properly is vigor of youth. Shee had a temple in the Great circuite, dedicated by Lucullus the Duumvir. M. Liuius being Consull had vowed it, 16. yeares before for the conquest of Asdrubal. And being Censor, put it to M. Cornelius

and T. Sempronius Consulls to build, and had plaies at the dedication of it. Liu. lib. 36. shee had a little oratory in the market-place also. (n) Sūmanus] Plato, quasi summus manium, the Prince of spirits. His temple was neare to that of Iuuentas. Plin. His sacrifice was round cakes, Fest. Hee ruled the night thunder, and Ioue the daies, which was therefore called Dia. The thunder that was doubtfull, happining at twi-light or so, they called Prouersa: and offrings was brought vnto both the gods, at those times. So the Romaines had but these two gods to rule all their thunder, but the Tuscanes had nine and eleauen kindes of thunder. Plin. lib. 2. Festus, and the common doctrine of Rome held three kinds of thunder, the Postularian, requiring some sacri∣fices. The Perentalian signifying the other to be well and sufficiently expiated. The Manu∣bian, which were the strokes of the thunderbolts. Seneca also sets downe as many: the first of * 1.11 Iupiter alone, giuing men warning: the 2. from the Consentes, warning, but not without hurt: the third, from the decree of the superiour gods, wholy mischieuous and hurtfull. Thus much of thunder out of Cecinna, Volaterranus, Araldus, Seneca Nat. quaest. lib. 2. and some out of Pliny, but briefly and scattred here & there in him as many other things besides are. (o) Scarce finde] This god was very base, and few knew him. They knew he was one of the gods that rul∣ed the night, but his name was vnknowne. Ouid Fast. 6.

Reddita, quisquis is es, Sunmmano templa feruntur, Tunc cum Romanis Pirrhe timendus eras.

Summanus house (what ere he be) was reared, When Pirrhus of great Rome so much was feared.

His feast was the 13. Cal. of Iuly: his temple neare the great Circuite, and his chappell in the Capitoll.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Lucullus.
• * 1.2

  Picus.
• * 1.3

  Faunu•…•….
• * 1.4

  Tiberinus.
• * 1.5

  •…•…la.
• * 1.6

  Feares and Pallors temple.
• * 1.7

  Pieties chappell.
• * 1.8

  Terminus.
• * 1.9

  Batylus.
• * 1.10

  Iuuentas.
• * 1.11

  Thunders of how ma∣ny sorts.