A complete dictionary of the Greek and Roman antiquities explaining the obscure places in classic authors and ancient historians relating to the religion, mythology, history, geography and chronology of the ancient Greeks and Romans, their ... rites and customs, laws, polity, arts and engines of war : also an account of their navigations, arts and sciences and the inventors of them : with the lives and opinions of their philosophers / compiled originally in French ... by Monsieur Danet ; made English, with the addition of very useful mapps.

N.

N Is the Thirteenth Letter of the Alphabet, and a Liquid Consonant which is called Iinniens, because of its having a clearer and plainer Sound than others, the same sounding a∣gainst the Roof of the Mouth: And this appears in that it has the same Pronunciation in Manlius as in the Word An, a Year, in Menses, as in en: Tho' sometimes it loses much of its Strength in particular Words, and forms a midling Sound be∣tween it self and the G, which gave the Greeks Occasion to change the N into P before these Greek Letters 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, as 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 for 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; tho' many are of Opinion, that this was the Transcriber's Faults in lengthning out the v too much, and making a 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 of it: The Latins had also somewhat of the like Nature in their Language, for they put Two gg together as the Greeks did, writing Aggulus for Angu∣lus, &c. The Greeks often changed this Letter into an L in the Midst of Words, as 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 was put for Manlius, or else they left it out alto∣ther, as 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 for Hortensius; which made Lambinus falsly believe, that the true Name of that Roman Orator was Hortesius contrary to the Authority of Ancient Books and Inscriptions; besides which we find by a great many Examples, that it was usual with the Greeks to leave out the N. when it came not in the End of Words.

This Letter was also sometimes lost in the La∣tin, as when from Abscindo they made the Preter∣perfect Tense abscidi: The N moreover had an Affinity with the R, from whence we find Ae∣neus put for Aereus, Cancer for Carcer, Carmen from Cano, Germen for Genimen according to Jo∣seph Scaliger upon Varro: And N was put for S, whence it is that Cessores was found for Censores in Varro, and Sanguis for Sanguen. N among the Ancients was a Numeral Letter, signifying 900, and when a Line was drawn above it, it implied 90000. N and L being put together, with the Lawyers signified as much as non liquet, the Cause did not yet appear clear enough for Sentence to pass.

NAIADES,

they were false Goddesses which the Heathens believed did preside over

Fountains and Rivers: The Poets often make mention of them. It's a Word that comes from 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 to flow.

NAPAEAE,

were false Goddesses which the Pagans believed did preside over Forests and Hills: In the mean while Servius in explaining this Verse in Virgil,

Faciles venerare Napaeas,

says, That the Napaeae, or the Naiades were the Nymphs of Fountains; Its plain that the Word is derived from the Hebrew Nouph or Noup. And the said Servius upon another Line in Virgil, says, That the Napaeae were the Nymphs of Fountains, and the Nereides of the Seas: In the mean time, if the Greek Etymology 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 be gi∣ven this Word, we must say that the Napaeae are the Nymphs of Forests.

NARCISSUS

the Son of Cephisus a River in Boeotia, and of Lyriope the Daughter of Ocea∣nus, who was exceeding beautiful: His Parents having one Day consulted the Prophet Tiresias concerning the Fate of their Son, he answered, That if he lived, he ought not to see his own Face, which they did not at first understand: He was courted by all the Nymphs of the Country because of his handsome and good Mein, but he slighted them all, and even made the Nymph Eccho languish and die for Love of him, insomuch that she had nothing left her but a weak Voice, her Body being transformed into a Rock: The Gods were not willing to let such disdainful Arro∣gance go unpunished, and therefore one Day as he returned weary and faint from Hunting, he stopt upon the Brink of a Well to quench his Thirst, and seeing his own Face in the Water he grew so desparately in Love therewith, that he wasted away upon the Place with Love and Languishment; but the Gods in Compassion to him changed him into a Flower of his Name. Pausanias in his Boeotica contradicts this Fable, and says, That Narcissus was in Love with his Sister that was born after him, and that when she died, he also pined away and perish'd.

NAVIS,

a Ship, its a Vessel built with high Sides in order to sail upon the Sea: Many are of Opinion that Janus was the first Inventer of Shipping, because the Figure of one was impres∣sed upon the Reverse of the most ancient Coins of the Greeks of Sicily and Italy, according to Athe∣neus: And Phaedrus, L. 4. F. 6. speaks of the first Ship in this manner,

I wish to God the Thessa∣lian Ax had never hewn down the lofty Pines growing on the Sides of the Forest of Peleon, and that subtil Argus who was desirous to trace out a bold Course and such as was exposed to the Dangers of apparent Death upon the Wa∣ters, had not built a Ship by the Art and Di∣rection of Pallas: This Ship, I say, first open∣ed the Passage of the Sea, which till then had continued inaccessible, and has been fatal to the Greeks and Barbarians: What think you of this short Relation? Doubtless you will tell me, that the same is impertinent and falsly ground∣ed, because Minos long before the Argonants, had surmounted the Violence of the Egaean Sea covering the same with a great Fleet.

The most famous Ships of old are reckoned that of Ptolomy Philopator, that was 280 Cubits long, 38 broad, and 48 high, and 54 from the Top of the Poop down to the Water: She car∣ried 400 Rowers, 400 Seamen, and 3000 Sol∣diers: That which he built to sail upon the Nile, was Half a Furlong long, and 30 Cubits broad: But this was nothing to Hiero's Ship, that was built by the Direction of Archimedes: There was as much Timber used in it, as was designed for 60 Gallies; and the same was so well contrived on the Inside that every Rower, Seaman, Sol∣dier and Passenger had a Cabin for himself: There were in it moreover several Halls to eat in, Rooms, Walks, Galleries, Gardens, Fish-ponds, Stables, Kitchins, Mills, a Temple for Venus, Baths and Council-Chambers: Besides which, it had an Iron Rampart, and Towers, Two at the Head and as many in the Stern, the other being on the Sides with Walls and Bastions, whereon might be seen several Warlike Engines, and among the rest one that threw a Stone of 300 Pound Weight, or an Arrow of 12 Cubits long to the Distance of 600 Paces; with many other strange Things of which Atheneus makes mention.

NAEVIUS

surnamed Accius, was a famous Augur who lived in the Time of Tarquinius Pris∣cus; its said of him that being minded in the King's Presence to give Authority to his Pre∣dictions, he cut a Stone in two with a Razor. See Accius.

NAULUM,

this was Money put into the Mouth of a Person deceased at Rome, to pay Charon the Ferryman for his Passage, and this Piece was to be of the current Coin of the Em∣peror that then reigned, which gave People af∣terwards an Opportunity to know when such an one died.

NAUMACHIA;

Sea-fights, which were the finest Shews the Ancients had; for Nature and the Elements gave way to the Art and Inven∣tions of Men: Julius Caesar having found out a convenient Place on the Banks of the Tiber, and near enough to the City, called Codetta, as Sueto∣nius says, caused the same to be cleansed and ex∣cavated, wherein he presented the People with the Diversion of a Sea-fight: There Tyrian and Egyptian Ships fought; and this kind of Shew was so new, that it drew Spectators thither from all Parts of the World. Among these Sea-fights may be comprehended the fantastical Actions of Caligula who built a Bridge upon Two Rows of

Ships joined and fastned together, that reached from Baiae as far as Puteoli, insomuch that those Two Towns in the Territories of Rome, which by Sea and Nature were separated from each other 3600 Paces, were hereby joined together; the Emperor mounted upon a charging Horse and richly accoutred, rid several Times backwards and forwards upon the said Bridge the first Day, having a Crown on his Head, an Ax upon his Saddle-bow, his Shield on his Arm, and a Sword by his Side: Next Day he appear'd in an Ha∣bit that was less Warlike, and rode to and fro a few Times in a Chariot drawn by Two state∣ly Horses, being followed by a great many Per∣sons of Quality, who are named in the History.

As for his Successor, he undertook a real Sea-fight upon the Lake Fucinus; he made a Line of a Dozen Ships to fight against as many of the opposite Side, the one being Rbodians and the other Tyrians. They were animated to fight by the Trumpets of a Triton, who by the Help of an Engine arose out of the Water with his Com∣pany: He had the Curiosity to make the Com∣batants pass before him, who saluted him with these Words.

Sir, cried they, receive the Sa∣lutation of those who come to die for your Diver∣sion, Ave, Imperator, morituri te salutant. To whom he gave no other Answer than, Avete vos.

Nero also diverted the People with a Naval∣fight, after he had first divided the Mountain which separates the Lake Fucinus from the Ri∣ver Lyra: He fitted out Gallies in Three or Four Lines and put 19000 Men aboard them to fight. But the most remarkable of all the Sea-fights and which is most extolled by Historians and Poets, is that of Titus and Domitian: For here were 3000 Fighting Men on both Sides, one of whom they called Athenians, and the other Party Sy∣racusians.

NEBO,

its a Deity mentioned in Isaiah the Prophet, which presides over Prophesie, accord∣ing to St. Jerom, who has no other Proof for it but the Signification of the Word: The Chal∣••ems were much given to Divination, and Gro∣tius says with great Likelihood of Truth, that he was some Wizzard or Astrologer, of whom they had made a God.

NECESSITAS;

Necessity; was a Heathen Deity, which accompanied Man from his very Birth: Plato makes her to be the Mother of the Destinies.

NECROMANTIA;

Negromancy; an Art by which Communication is held with the Devil and the Dead: The Pythonissa, or Witch of Eudor, in the Scripture, made Samuel ap∣pear unto Saul by the Art of Negromancy.

NECTAR,

the Drink of the Gods, accord∣ing to the Fable.

NEMBROD;

Nimrod; Vossius thinks him to be the Mars of the Pagans; and Diodorus Siculus represents Mars in such a manner as is not very disagreeable to what the Scripture says concern∣ing Nimrod: For he was the first Inventer of War, and of an Empire established by Force of Arms: Thus Nimrod's Hunting ended in War, and the Effect thereof proved the Foundation of the first Empire in the World, that began at Babylon; which makes the Description given of Nimrod, to be very like unto that of Mars. It was Belus, according to all our prophane Au∣thors, that laid the first Foundation of the Assy∣rian Empire; and 'twas Nimrod that did it ac∣cording to a plain Text in Genesis; from whence it follows that Nimrod must be the same with Belus: In short, Mars being no other, according to Diodorus Siculus, than he who first began Wars and Battles, its very probable that Belus or Nimrod was the Person whom the Heathens worshipped by the Name of Mars; and if the Chronicle of Alexandria says, that Nimrod the Founder of Babylon was transformed into the Constellation, called Orion; its likely the Reason might be, because Orion was formerly an Hunter as well as Nimrod. Bochartus is of Opinion, That Nimrod was rather the Bacchus of the Ba∣bylonians: Nimrod was the Son of Chus; Bar-Chus has the same Import as the Son of Chus in Hebrew: The Letter R being often omitted by the Hebrews in the middle of Words. Bacchus might have been formed of Barchus: Nimrod comes near to the Word Aimra in Chaldee, which signifies a Tiger; whence it was that Bacchus was covered with a Tiger's Skin, and had Tigers to draw his Chariot. Bacchus his Victories in the Indies may represent those of Belus or Nimrod in the Empire of Babylon and the East. The same Author says elsewhere, That the Fable of Ju∣piter may be applied to the History of Nimrod, who rebelled against his Father Saturn, that is, Noah; for Nimrod in Hebrew comes from Marad, which signifies to rebel.

NEMEA;

a Forest in Achaia, where the People of Argos were wont to celebrate their Plays in Honour of Hercules, who had killed a Lion in the said Forest; and this made him take the Surname of Nemens. There are some Au∣thors who attribute the instituting of these Plays to have been in Honour of Archemorus the Son of Lycurgus, who died with the Stinging of a Ser∣pent: The Crown which was bestowed on the Conquerors at these Games, was made of Ash∣branches and the Judges were in Mourning.

NEMESIS;

this Goddess was she who par∣ticularly affected to punish and humble the Proud; the Persians despising the Greeks, and so having fitted up Marble in order to the Erecting of Trophies of a Victory, which they had not yet won, when the Grecians defeated them at Ma∣rathon, they made use of the same Marble to set up a Monument for the Goddess Nemesis, as Pausanias relates. This Author makes Oceanus to be the Father of this Goddess, and he is of

Opinion, that it was not the main Ocean, that was meant, but a River of that Name in Ae∣thiopia; but 'tis more likely that it was the true Ocean, from whence the Poets deduce all the Gods. He makes her also to be the Mother of Helen, by which no other is intimated but the Divine Displeasure, which suffered the extra∣ordinary Beauty of the said Lady, to be as it were the Torch that kindled the Flames of War between Europe and Asia, with Losses and incre∣dible Mortifications to both sides. Lastly, He says, that the Statues of Nemesis at Smyrna had Wings to make her the more like unto Cupid; because she very often made those feel her Seve∣rities, whose Obduracy Love could not subdue, and the which proceeded from nothing but Pride. Strabo makes mention of the Temples of Nemesis, who was also called Ramnusia.

The Egyptians painted her having her Throne upon the Moon, that so she might observe the Actions of Men. When the Romans went for the Army, they sacrificed to her, and gave the People a Shew of the Gladiators; and when they returned victorious they rendered her Thanks for the Revenge she had taken upon their Ene∣mies. Plato L. 4. de Leg. says in plain Terms, that Nemesis is the Angel of Revenge, Omnibus praeposita est Nemesis juditii angelus, actionum Om∣nium consider a••••ix. This Philosopher has said what the Poets and Historians would say; that there is an Eternal Justice who severely punishes the Proud, and who has Angels to be the Exe∣cutioners of her Wrath; Artemidorus has the same Idea of this Goddess as Plato, which is no∣thing else but the same Justice, from whom the Good ought to expect all sorts of Kindnesses and Favours; and from whom on the Contrary the Wicked can promise to themselves nothing but Chastenings and Punishments: The Romans also worshipped this Goddess, but gave her no Name in their Language, as Pliny says; Nemesis, quae Dea Latinum nomen ne in Capitolio quidem invenis: and again elsewhere; Alias Graecam Nemesim in∣vocantes cùm ob id Romae simulachrum in Capitolio est, quamvis Latinum nomen non sit. But no Bo∣dy has better exprest the Nature and Power, and formed a truer Idea of this Goddess than Am∣mianus Marcellinus, who yet does not give her any Latin Name, tho' he does Two in Greek, viz. Adras••ea and Nemesis; of whom he gives a Description rather like a Philosopher, or a Di∣vine than an Historian. L. 14. He informs us that 'tis she who raises up the Just and punishes the Wicked, that she tumbles down the Proud, and makes a just Mixture of Prosperity and Ad∣versity, gives Success to our Undertakings or dis∣appoints our Designs according to the Counsels of an Eternal Wisdom.

But tho' the Latins had no proper Name in their Language to express this Goddess by, yet the Poets have not forgot to speak of her, as does C••andian:

Sed Dea quae nimiis obstat Rhamnusia votis, Ingemuit flexitque rotam.

Again, it appears by some Verses of the Poets that the Name of Rhamnusia came from the Place where this Goddess was worshipped: The same being Rhamnus in Attica, where there was a Temple erected to her; and as for the Name of Adrastea, Strabo says, it came from King A∣drastus, who dedicated a Temple to her: Cal∣listhenes Adrasteam ab Adrasio rege denominatam ait, qui primus Nemesi templum posuit. And for this Purpose he recites the Verses of Antimachus the Poet: Hic sacris colitur Dea & Adrastea vo∣catur, primus illi aram condidit Adrastus ad amnem Aesopi.

NENIA;

this Word sometimes signifies a Toy or Trifle, and other whiles Lamentations and mournful Times, sung at the Burying of the Dead: The Word comes from a trifling Play among Children, called Nenia, which was much used by those of Rome, and wherein he that succeeded best was made King:

Roscia, dic sodes, melior lex, an puerorum Nenia, quae regnum rectè facientibus offert. Hor. Ep. 1. L. 1.

But the Nenia for the Dead is derived from a Hebrew Word, that signifies Lamentation or Complaint. The Lamentations of Jeremy are no∣thing else but Nenia's upon the Destruction of the Jewish Monarchy, and the City of Jerusalem, which he bewails like a Man that is dead. Nenia is not Greek; for the Greeks called mournful Songs Epicedia, or Threni. The Nenia's began presently as soon as the Party expired, as it ap∣pears from the Gospel it self: Filia mea modo d••∣functa est, said the Chief of the Synagogue to the Son of God,, and yet the Singers of the Nenias and of all their mournful Musick had already begun their Lamentations. The Nenia's did not al∣ways consist of mean Verses; for those made by David upon the Death of Saul and Jonathan, and of Jeremy upon Jerusalem, are compleat Pieces, and very elegant.

NEPHALIA,

a Sacrifice and Feast of the Greeks, called the Feast of Sober Men, at which the Athenians offered to the Sun and Moon, to Aurora and Venus, a Drink made of Water and Honey: They burnt all sorts of Wood upon this Occasion, except the Vine and Fig-tree.

NEPTUNUS,

Neptune, one of Saturn's Sons and Jupiter's Brother, who for his Share had the Dominion of the Sea assigned him; in∣stead of a Scepter they gave him a Trident, and for a Chariot a great Sea-shell, which they make to be drawn either by Whales and Sea-Calves or by Horses whose nether Parts were fishy: His Wife was Amphitrite whom he ob∣tained

by the means of a Dolphin, in Acknow∣ledgement of whose Kindness he placed him a∣mong the Stars near into Capricorn. He taught Men the Art of managing a Horse, which with a Blow of his Trident he made to come out of the Earth, when he was in Dispute with Miner∣us who should give Name to Coecropia, which was afterwards called Athens from Minerva: Be∣ing engaged in a Conspiracy against his Brother Jupiter, he was forced to fly with Apollo to Lao∣medon, where he helped to build the Walls of Troy, tho' he was so unhappy as not to be paid for his Labour, They make Neptune to be the Creator of the Horse, for thus Virgil speaks of it.

Tuque, ô cui prima frementem Fudit equum Tellus, magno percussa tridenti, Neptune. Georg. L. 1.

Servius says, that Neptune was also called Equester, because he made a Horie come out of the Earth, that he might have the Honour to give Name to the City of Athens, tho' Minerva pre∣vailed, by making an Olive-tree suddenly to grow up out of the Ground: It's probable this Horse was nothing but a Ship, the Swiftness whereof a Horse does imitate, and which is un∣der the Protection of Neptune: The Fable also signifies perhaps nothing else but the two Things wherein the City of Athens excelled; viz. Ships and Olive-trees: Pausanias gives other Reasons why the Invention of the Use of Horses is attri∣buted to Neptune.

The Medals represented him naked, holding sometimes a Dolphin in his Left-hand, or under his Feet, and his Trident in his Right, as may be seen by the Reverse of the Medalls of Marcus A∣grippa: He was represented at other Times with his Trident in one Hand, and in the other an Arostolia or Ornament, which was fastned to the Prow of Ships; and this is made out to us by the Reverse of the Silver Medalls of Augustus and Vespatian, on which there are these abbrevia∣ted Words Nept. Red. Neptuno reduci; these two Emperors intimating hereby their rendring Thanks to Neptune for their Expeditions by Sea and safe Return: He was represented also lying upon the Sea, holding his Trident in one Hand, and leaning with the other Arm upon such a Vessel as the Gods of the Rivers were wont to do: He is to be seen likewise mounted in a Cha∣riot drawn by two Horses, as he is also sitting upon a Dolphin, holding Victory in his Right-hand, which puts two Crowns upon his Head, and his Trident in the Left: When the Romans and Greeks gave Neptune Thanks for the Victories they obtained by Sea; they represented him on the one Side with his Trident, and on the o∣ther stood Victory upon the Stern of a Ship. The Romans built a Temple to Neptunue Equester, as Dionysius of Hallicarnassus says, and appointed a Festival for him, called Consualia, wherein they crowned some Horses with Garlands of Flowers, which in this manner were led through the City. The Arcadians gave this Festival the Name of Hippocratia.

The History of Japhet agrees very much with what the Fable relates concerning Neptune: Ja∣phet's Share, according to Scripture, was Europe, with all the Isles of the Sea, and the Peninsula's whereof it consists, Euhemerus the Historian, as interpreted by Ennius, and related by Lanctan∣tius, bears the same Testimony concerning Nep∣tune, that the Seas and the Islands fell to his Lot: Neptuno maritima omnia cum insulis obvene∣runt: Plutarch says, the Egyptians called the Promontories and the utmost Parts of the Earth Nephthyn, which Term has doubtless a great deal of Resemblance to that of Neptune. As for Neptune's other Name called by the Greeks 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Bochartus thinks it is derived from the Punick Word Pesat: Herodotus says also, there were none but the Libyans that gave Nep∣tune the Name of Posidon; so Posidon will be the same Name as Neptune. Lactantius does not doubt but that Neptune was Superintendant Ge∣neral of the Seas.

All Nations had also a Neptune of their own, and all these Neptunes had in like manner some∣thing that was very manifestly like and unlike to one another: Diodorus Siculus speaks of an Al∣tar in Arabia dedicated to Neptune, standing upon the Sea-side. Sanchuniathon says, that Ʋ∣soüs was the first who hollowed the Body of a Tree, and in Phoenicia durst adventure to trust himself with the Waves of the Sea. The Nep∣tune of the Phoenicians is ancienter than him of the Greeks and Latins, as they were Navigators before the others; and him they made to be the Son of Pontus: The Egyptians had also their Nep∣tune, and Plutarch assures us, that even the Name of Neptune was taken from the Egyptian Tongue, and signified Promontories, and Sea-Coasts: But Plutarch perhaps, confounds the Egyptians with the Libyans, for Herodotus wit∣nesses that the Word Neptune was proper only to the Language of the Libyans who were the oldest Worshippers of this Deity.

None, says he, assumed the Name of Neptune at the Be∣ginning but the Libyans, who always worship∣ped this God.

The same Author says else∣where, that the Scythians had also a Respect for Neptune, and that they called him Thamimasades. Appian relates, that Mithridates threw the Cha∣riots drawn by Four Horses in Honour of Nep∣tune, into the Sea.

NEREUS,

is one of the Gods of the Seas, his Name being derived from 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Fluid, ac∣cording to Hescychius: But yet 'tis more pro∣bably deduced from Nâhar, an Hebrew Term, signifying fluere, fluvius: Some make him to be

the Son of Neptune, others of Pontus: Pontus and Neptune being the same; but Neptune is more often looked upon as the Genius of the Seas, and Oceanus and Pontus as the Body thereof. They make Nereus to have 50 Daughters, called from him Nereides, which are so many particular Seas, being Parts of the main Sea it self. Nereus mar∣ried Doris by whom he had Thetis.

NEREIDES,

are Sea-Nymphs and the Daughters of Nereus.

NERO,

the 6th Emperor of Rome, was the Son of Domitius Aeneobarbus and Agrippina and adopted by the Emperor Claudius his Predecessor, to the Empire: The Medals which we have of him shew his natural Inclinations by the Features of his Face: For his Eyes were small and beetle∣browed, his Throat and Chin met together, his Neck was thick, his Belly big and Legs small: Take him altogether, he perfectly resembled a Hog, which he did not illy imitate in his sordid Pleasures; his Chin was a little turn'd up, which was a Sign of Cruelty; his Hair light and Legs small, as Suetonius observes, and his Face rather Fair than Majestick, which made him easily to be adjudged an effeminate Person: So that if in the Beginning of his Reign he shewed much Moderation and Clemency, even so far as to say he wished he could not write, that he might not sign the Sentence of a Criminal which was brought to him, it was no more than an affected Modesty, which Policy and the Respect that he bore unto his Preceptors, inspired him with. Seneca in his Satyr against Claudius, with a sort of Flattery unbecoming a Philosopher, brings in Apollo speaking of Nero, as being like unto him∣self both in Beauty and Majesty:

Ille mihi fimilis vultu, fimilisque decore, Nec cantu, nec voce minor, &c.

And this doubtless is the Reason why Nero is of∣ten seen represented like unto Apollo: To speak the Truth, he had no bad Face, but he could not pass for a very handsome Person, since his Eyes were too small, his Neck very thick, and his Legs so slender and disproportionate to his Height. Indeed, at the time when Seneca writ, he was handsomer than afterwards, seeing he was yet but young, and not so gross and fat as afterwards, and this may be observed by the Me∣dals which were cast, while he was yet but Caesar.

* We have a Dialogue in Lucian, which speaks of Nero's undertaking to cut thro' the Isthmus of Corinth, which I shall recite intire in this place, because it contains some Particulars of the said Prince his Life.

Menecrates.

Did not this Design seem to have somewhat in it of the Air of Greece, which this Prince affects so much?

Musonius.

It would doubtless have spared Merchants and Sailors much Trouble, and par∣ticularly Pilots, which are a long time sail∣ing round Peloponesus, and would have very much conduced to the Defence and Profit of Greece, which would have had a better Inter∣course with it self in the several Parts of it hereby.

Menecr.

Thou will oblige us to give a Relati∣on of what passed upon this Occasion, seeing thou were present.

Muson.

This I will very willingly do: The Love of Musick, and an Opinion which Nero had that the Muses could not sing better than himself, carried him into Greece, that he might be crowned at the Olympick Games; for as to the Pythian Games, he thought he had a greater Share therein than Apollo himself; and I do not know but that he might believe the said God would neither dare to sing nor play upon the Harp after him. This Design therefore had not been premeditated long, but when he found himself upon the Place, and saw the little Di∣stance there was from one Sea to the other, the same being about Three Quarters of a League, he was taken with a Desire to render himself famous by this Undertaking, according to the Example of other great Princes, who had un∣dertaken the like Designs. For Agamemnon (as 'tis said) separated the Island of Negropont from Baeotia. Darius made a Bridge over the Bospho∣rus, and Xerxes would have cut thro' Mount Athos. Besides, he was mightily pleased to hear himself praised, for Tyrants are never so cruel nor blind, but they desire to do something for the Benefit of the Publick, or their own Glo∣ry; wherefore, after he had sung the Praises of Neptune and Amphitrite upon the Theatre of Corinth, with another little Poem in Honour of Leucothea and Melicertus, he went on with a Golden How, which was presented him, and with Songs and publick Acclamations advanced towards the Place, where the Canal was to be made, and there began to dig a little; after which recommending the Business to those who had the Charge thereof, he returned into the City, believing that he had by this Action out-done the Labours of Hercules. The Work was divided so, that his Army should be imploy'd in that part which was eanest, and that was to dig a Canal in the Plain, while the Malefactors, which were taken out of the Prison, should do the rest. After they had worked for Twelve Days, there was a Rumour spread up and down Corinth, that the Mathematicians should say, that one of the Seas was much higher than the other, and that if they continued to go on, the Isle of Egina would be drowned: But besides that these Rumours were false in themselves, they never had been able to divert the Resolution of a Prince, who affected to do great Things, if all the Mathematicians in the World had assured him of the Truth thereof; for he would never have

abandoned the Undertaking, had he not recei∣ved the News of Vindex his Revolting, and that all Things were in Confusion at Rome.

Menecr.

Tell us now what it was that incli∣ned him to have such a passionate Love unto Musick, and whether he had so good a Voice as some have reported; for others have affirmed the Contrary.

Muson.

His Voice was in reality neither to be admired nor laughed at, because it was neither very good nor very bad. It was a kind of a ri∣sing Voice that he does not manage ill, and such as agrees very well with his Harp, as well as his Gesture and Countenance; besides which, he understood the Way of the Theatre exactly well, and better than became a Prince. But when he pretended to rival the Masters of the Art, he made a Fool of himself; whatever Danger might ensue: For he was too full of Action, and stood a Tip-toes; besides, he coloured in the Face thro' an over Eagerness, and a Desire to perform well, tho' he naturally had a very ruddy Coun∣tenance; and as he had no extraordinary Voice, nor good Breath, they fail'd him often at a Pinch.

Menecr.

But how do they do to enter the Lists with him?

Muson.

He put a Player to death at the Isth∣mian Games, who had the Boldness to dispute the Prize with him; for it is no less Danger to excel him, than 'tis to laugh at his Voice.

Menecr.

How was that, we know nothing of it?

Muson.

This was done at the Games of all Greece, and was thus: Tho' it were not an usual thing to represent the Diversions of the Theatre at these Games, no more than to sing at the Olympick Games, yet he was minded to carry away the Honour of his Tragedy; amongst those who came to contend with him for the Prize, there was a very famous Actor from Epirus, who in∣sisted upon having 10 Talents for yielding the Ho∣nour unto him; this made him swell with Anger, besides, the Actor had already told in private, what it was that hindred Nero to grant him what he asked. But as he saw him acting his Part with great Applause, he caused one of his Ser∣vants to tell him, that he ought to yield that Honour to his Prince; and because he would not, but persisted inflexible, and doubled his Efforts, which were attended with the loud Acclamati∣ons of the People; he ordered his Actors to go upon the Stage (as if that were part of the same Act) who when they had push'd him against a Pil∣lar, but his Throat with thin pieces of Ivory, which they had in their Hands, that were as sharp as Razors.

Menecr.

And did he after this Action get the Applause of Greece, and win the Victory?

Muson.

This passed for a Jest, in a Man that had killed his own Mother.

Menecr.

Indeed, 'tis not strange he should go about to make an Actor hold his Tongue, when he had endeavoured to stop Apollo's Mouth, by hindring his Priestess to deliver any more O∣racles, because she had placed him in the Num∣ber of Par••icides, tho' she had still spared him; for Oresles and Alcmaenon, with whom she com∣pared him, had killed their Mother in Revenge for their Father, which had some Shadow of Glory in it; but Nero's Crime was without Pre∣tence.

When the Provinces had revolted against him, and that he found he was hated by every Body for his Cruelty and enormous Debaucheries, he killed himself, that he might avoid the Punish∣ments his Crimes deserved.

NERVA,

named Cocceius, succeeded Do∣mitian, and was chosen Emperor by the Senate with unspeakable Joy; he happily began his Reign by putting forth a Proclamation for a ge∣neral Pardon to all such as were banish'd or in Prison: He was a very just and good Prince; he was represented upon his Coin with a dry and wrinkled Face, his Eyes sunk in his Head, and his Chin sharp: He was very old when he came to the Empire, and was afflicted with a very weak Stomach, which made him lean for want of Di∣gestion; and this altered his Aspect, and hid his Inclinations: Tho' he had a large and Eagle Nose, yet he was not Valiant; 'twas rather a Sign of great Goodness in him; he had a pretty long Visage: In the mean time they found in him several Signs of an Inclination to Passion from the Lines of his Face and Habit of his Body; and among the rest, a lean and thin Face, a sharp-pointed Head, a more than ordinary Tall∣ness of Body, hooked Nose, Beetle-brows, and a dry and sharp Chin; in short, he died by be∣ing put into too violent a Passion against Regu∣lus, after he had reigned One Year and Four Months.

NESSUS;

the Centaur; a Son of Ixion and a Cloud, with whom Hercules having entrusted his Wife Dianira, for him to carry her over the River Evenus, he went to ravish her, which being perceived by Hercules, he shot him with an Arrow: At his Death he bequeath∣ed his Shirt stained with his Blood to Dianira; giving her understand, that if she could get Hercules to wear it, he should for ever love her: This therefore she sent unto him by Lycas, and as soon as he had put it on, he found his Bo∣dy seized with so violent a Fire, that he threw himself Headlong into the Flames of Mount Oeta.

NESTOR,

whom Homer proposed for an Example of Wisdom and Prudence, lived about 300 Years, and was sound both in Body and Mind; whence it is, that when we would wish a Man a long Life, we wish him the Age of Nestor.

NEUROBATES;

by this Name were a kind of Rope-dancers called, who walked not upon an extended Cord, but made several Tours and Leaps, as a Dancer does upon the Ground at the Sound of Musick.

NICANDER;

was a famous Physician in Nero's Time, who wrote Two Poems concerning venemous Beasts, and Remedies against Poisons, called Theriaca, and Alexipharmaca.

NICETERIUM;

the Prize at the Olym∣pick and Circensian Games.

NILUS;

the Nile, a River which crosses a great part of Affrica, the Spring-head thereof being unknown till the last Age; the same is in a Territory which the Inhabitants call Abain, or Sacahela, that is, the Father of the Waters: This River runs out of Two Fountains or Eyes, to use the Words of the People of that Country, that are at about Thirty Paces distance, each of them being about the same Circumference as one of our Pits or a Coach-wheel, whose Bot∣toms are 16 or 17 Foot deep: The Inhabitants, who are Heathens, worship the largest of the Two, and to it offer several Cows in Sacrifice, whose Hesh they eat as if it were holy, and leave the Bones in a Place appointed for that Purpose, which at present makes a Mountain: Its above 2000 Years since Herodotus has made mention of these Cows that were sacrificed at the Sources of the Nile. The Inhabitants call it Agaiis, the same being in the Kingdom of Goy∣am, 12 Degrees North Latitude and 55 Longi∣tude. Its in a Plain about Three Quarters of a League long, surrounded with Mountains: At its going out from thence the River enters into a small Lake, then is loft under Ground for about a Musket-shot; and Three Days Journey from the Source thereof, 'tis so large and deep as to bear Vessels on't; but in about 100 Paces far∣ther it runs cross some Rocks, so that one may easily pass over without wetting his Feet: They sail upon it with Boats made of Mat, and well set together: It receives Three great Rivers into it, viz. the Gema, Linquetil and Brantil, and when it comes out of the Lake of Dambea, which is Fifty Leagues over, it receives into it other large Rivers, viz. the Gamara, Abea, Baixo, and Aquors, and lastly the Tacasus near Egypt: It hath Two principal Cataracts or Falls. At the Second it falls into a great Abyss, and the Noise thereof may be heard at the Distance of Three Leagues; the Water is forced with so much Violence, that it forms a kind of an Arch, and leaves so great a Space between, that a Man may pass it without being wet; and there also are Seats cut in the Rocks, where Travellers may rest themselves: The first Cataract or Water∣fall of the Nile is about Fifty Foot, but the se∣cond is three times as high: Its false that the Noise made by these Cataracts, render the Neighbouring People Deaf, tho' the same may be heard Three Days Journey off, and that the Waters which spurt therefrom, appear like a Smoak. Alexander consulted the Oracle of Ju∣piter Ammon, in order to know where the Spring of this River was. Sesostris and Ptolomy sought for it in vain: Cambyses, as Strabo says, spent a whole Year to find it: Lucan witnesseth, that Caesar said, He would have given over the Pur∣suit of the Civil War, if he were sure to find it. Isaac Vossius hath wrote concerning the Original of the Nile, and other Rivers, and attributes the Rise and Overflowing thereof to the Rains, which fall between the Two Tropicks on the 1st of June, and which are the Causes of the fine Weather we enjoy in Europe. When the Nile rises up to 16 Degrees, they fear a Famine, but when it comes to 23 'tis a good Year: When 'tis too high, the Inundation is dangerous: The Measure for the Increase of the Nile was kept in the Temple of Serapis, and the Emperor Con∣stantine caused the same to be carried to the Church of Alexandria.

Plutarch says the Egyptians adored the Waters of the Nile, and St. Athanasius intimates as much: The Nile was the chief Instrument of God's Blessing bestowed upon Egypt, as the same Au∣thor observes; and thus from it have they made their God Osiris, if we believe Plutarch. And it ought not to be thought strange that Osiris, which is the Sun, should be also the Nile: For by the same Reason that the Sun is Osiris, or the Active or Male Principle in respect to all the Earth, which is Isis, the Passive and Feminine Principle, the Nile is also the Active Principle and Author of the Fertility of the Land of Egypt, from which it receives all its Faecundity; so the Nile is Osiris likewise.

There are some also of Opinion, that the Name of Osiris comes from the Hebrew Name of the Nile; for in Scripture the Nile is usually called Nahal Misraim, Fluvius Aegypti, and sim∣ply Nahal or Nehel, from whence they made 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉: Again, Mela says, that the Nile at the Springs thereof was called Nuchul, quasi Na∣chal. But the same Scriptures give likewise un∣to the Nile the Name of Scachar Niger, because the Waters of the said River are very often troubled, muddy, and blackish; whence also it is, that Plutarch and other Greek Authors some∣times call it 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Servius and other Latin Writers name it Melo. From Schachar or Scha∣bar they make Siris, which is the Name given to the Nile by Dionysius, in his Description of the World: Siris ab Aethiopibus vocatur. Its also believed, that the Reason why the Dog-star is called Sirius, is, because it hath borrowed its Name from the Nile, with which it hath so much Sympathy, the Overflowings of the said River being confined to the Dog-days. This being premised; 'tis not difficult to believe that the

Nile or Siris have been worshipped under the Name of Osiris. The Overflowings of the Nile are so beneficial to Egypt, that there is no need of Rain in that Country. Thus the Nile unto them stood instead of Jupiter, who was held to be the Author of Rains. And this Tibullus ex∣presses in these Verses:

Te propter nullos Tellus tua postulat imbres, Arida nec pluvio supplicat herba Jovi.

And in Athenaeus we read this Prayer put up to the Nile, as to the Jupiter of Egypt.

〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.

NIMROD.

See Nembrod.

NINUS,

was the Son of Belus and Founder of the Assyrian Empire; he continued the Build∣ing of the City of Babylon, which at first he made the Seat of his Empire, than founded Ni∣neve, so called from his own Name: He made an Idol of his Father Belus, whom he would have to be worshipped by his People, made it a Place of Refuge for all Malefactors, and was the Au∣thor of Idolatry.

NIOBE,

Tantalus his Daughter, who died miserably through her own Vanity; for she ha∣ving bore a great many Children, was so rash as to prefer her self before Latona. At this A∣pollo and Diana growing angry, they killed all her Children with Arrows; which made her pine away for Grief. The Poets say, that the Gods being touched with Compassion for this un∣fortunate Mother, which pined away with Tears and Sorrows, changed her into a Marble∣stone, which by a Blast of Wind was carried as far Lycia, near unto the City of Sypilus, where her marbled Body continually sweated as a Sign of her Mourning.

NISUS,

King of Megara, who had an Hair in his Head of a Purple Colour, unto which was limited the Duration of his Reign; which Story is taken from Sampson's Hair, wherein consisted all his Strength:

Cui splendidus ostro Inter honoratos medio sub vertice canos, Criuis inhaerebat, magnifiducia regni.Ovid. Metam. l. 8. v. 8.

Scylla, a Daughter of this King's, happening to fall in Love with King Minos during the Time of his Besieging Megara, betray'd her Father, and cut off this fatal Hair: The City hereupon was taken, Nisus transformed into a Sea-Eagle, and Scylla being deserted by Minos, was changed into a Bird named Ciris:

Jam pendebat in auras, Et modò factus erat fulvis Halyaeetos alis, &c. Plumis in avem mutata, vocatur Ciris: & à tonso est hoc nomen adepta capillo.Ibid. v. 145.

Here is a double Etymology the one Greek, and the other Hebrew, and as Ovid hints, the Name of Ciris comes from 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 tondere; but that of Nisus from the Hebrew Nets which signifies a Sparhawk.

NOBILITAS,

Antonius Geta, Son to the Emperor Severus, has given us the Figure of it in a Medal of his, where she is represented in a Roman Lady's Dress, holding a Scepter in her Hand, and upon her Left Arm a small Statue of Minerva.

NODINUS or NODOSUS,

a God that presided over the Knots that are in the Stalks of Corn.

NODUS GORDIUS;

the Gordian Knot, tis a Greek Proverb, which is said concerning a Knot that cannot be untied, and figuratively put for a Difficulty that cannot be resolved: It proceeds from an indissoluble Knot of Leather∣thongs, which Gordius King of Phrygia laid up in the Temple of Apollo, in Commemoration of his being saluted King, because he was the first that entred into the said Temple. Alexander cut it with his Sword, because he could not untie it, for the Oracle had foretold, that the Person who untied it, should conquer Asia.

NOAH,

the Son of Lamech, a just and up∣right Man, who found Favour with God, and who with his Family only escaped the Deluge, being shut up in an Ark by the Lord's Command∣ment. Noah's History has been applied to Sa∣turn; for Noah was the Father of all Mankind after the Flood: He was also the King and Au∣thor of another Golden Age, while the Earth was peopled with no other than with his Chil∣dren and Grand-children, whom he had brought up in Innocence and under whose Empire he left them to enjoy an entire Liberty: There were no Slaves in the first Age after the Deluge; all Man∣kind making as it were yet but one Family. And whereas Noah, according to the Scripture, was the first that planted a Vineyard and brought up the Use of Wine, the Heathens gave Saturn also the Glory of having taught Men the Art of Agriculture, and especially planting of Vines and the Use of the Sickle.

Athenaeus, after Berosus, says the Saturnalia were celebrated at Babylon, as well as in Greece and Italy: And these Saturnalia were Days ap∣pointed for Debaucheries; as if the Heathens had had a mind to keep up the Remembrance of Noah's Drunkenness, into which he unadvisedly fell, before he had yet had a Tryal of the Strength of Wine. St. Cyrill relates unto us the Testimo∣nies

of Alexander Polyhistor and Abydenus, who say, that Xisutrus King of Assyria, escaped the Deluge, which Saturn had foretold should come, by putting himself, according to his Advice in an Ark together with all Kinds of Beasts; that he sailed to Armenia, and that he sent some Birds to know if the Waters were gone off the Face of the Earth. It's manifest, that this is the Story of Noah counterfeited, and that these Fables had their Origin in Assyria; insomuch that the fabu∣lous Saturn is the true Noah, and his Ark rested on the Mountains of Armenia. Tzetzes makes Noah one while to go into India, and at another time to Egypt: He lived 350 Years after the Deluge, and repeopled the Earth according to the Command which God gave him: St. Epipha∣nius says, that Noah made a Division of the World between his Three Sons at Rkinocorura a Place upon the Frontiers of Egypt.

NOEMA,

the Daughter of Lamech, whom Moses has joyned with Jubal and Tubalcain; Ge∣nebrard in his Chronicle says, she invented the Art of Spinning and Woollen Manufacturies, and so she was the Minerva of the Heathens, but as the Name of Noema signifies Beautiful, others have been of Opinion 'twas Venus; here unto they add farther, that as Noema is in the Book of Genesis joined with Tubalcain, so the Pagans said, that Venus was Vulcan's Wife.

NOMEN,

a Name; the Greeks had but one Name, but the Romans had sometimes Three or Four, which they called Praenomen, Nomen, Cognomen, and sometimes Agnomen. The Prae∣nomen is that which belongs to every Person in particular; the Name is that which denotes the House from whence one is descended, and the Surname is that which belongs to a particular Family or to a Branch of that House.

It was a Custom among the Romans to give to their Children the Name of the Family, to Boys on the 9th Day after their Birth, and to Girls on the 8th. But according to Festus and Plutarch, the Praenomen was not given them be∣fore they put on the Virile Robe, that is, at the Age of 17. Thus Cicero's Children were al∣ways called Ciceronis pueri till those Years, after which, they called them Marcus filius, and Quin∣tus filius: As for the Slaves they had no other Name than that of their Master, as Lucipor, Lu∣cius his Slave, Lucii puer; Marcipor, Marcus his Slave, Marcipuer. But yet afterwards they gave them a Name which generally was that of their Country, as Syrus, Geta, Davus, and when they were made free they took the Praenomen and Name of their Master, but not the Surname, in the room of which they retained their own Name. Thus that learned Freedman of Cicero was called M. Tullius Tyro; and this was also ob∣served with Respect to Allies and Strangers, who took upon them the Name of the Person by whose Favour they had obtained the Priviledge of be∣ing Citizens of Rome.

Varro says, that the Women formerly had their own proper and particular Names, as Cala, Caecilia, Lucia, Volumnia, and those, Names, as Quintilian observes, were distinguish'd by Letters inverted thus C. L. M. However, afterwards they gave them no Names, but if there was on∣ly one Girl, they did no more than give her the Name of her Family, and sometimes softened the same by the Way of a Diminution, as Tullia or Tulliola: But if they were two, they called one Major, the other Minor; and if more, they were named according to their Age, Prima, Se∣cunda, Tertia, Quarta, Quinta, &c. or they made a Diminutive of the same, as Secandilla, Quartilla, Quintilla, &c.

NOMENCLATOR;

He was a Person among the Romans who accompanied those who laboured under-hand to be made Magistrates, and who told them the Names of all the Citi∣zens they met with, that they might salute them, and call them by their Names, which was a very civil Custom, and much in use at Rome.

NONAE;

the Nones, quasi Novae; being as much as to say, new Observations, tho' its more likely the Name came, because that from the said Day to the Ides, there were always Nine Days. They computed Six Days in the Nones of May, October, July and March, and in the other Months only Four. Some believe that Ro∣mulus began the Month on the First Day of the Moon's appearing in the Evening, on which the Country People were obliged to come to Town, in order to know of the Pontiffs, the Time when the Feasts and other Ceremonies were to be celebrated; and in short, whatever they were to do, or let alone during the whole Month. And as the Sacrificer was on the same Day wont to cry the Word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 with a loud Voice Five times successively, if the Nones contained but Five Days, or Seven times, if they comprehended Seven; so the Nones perhaps got their Name, in that at first they were called Nono Idus, the 9th of the Ides, as they are put indeed in the place of the IX of the Ides. Besides, seeing there were Three different Variations, and such as are ve∣ry considerable in the Course of the Moon; the 1st, When she is entirely hid by the Sun-beams; 2d, On the first Day of her appearing, when she rises at Night, and appears with Horns at her coming forth from under the said Beams; 3d, When she is at the Full; 'tis thought that Romulus from thence took occasion to divide the Days of his Months, which he began always with the Calends, at the time when the Moon, sub ra∣diis Solis celaretur, was hid by the Sun-beams, and afterwards gave the Name of Nonae or No∣vae Lunae to the Day whereon the New Moon appear'd, and that of the Idus when she was at the Full, or appear'd with a beautiful Face, the same Word coming from the Greel 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉

Idus, which signifies as much; from whence they give a Reason for the Inequality of the Days of the Nones: For, as it happens by a Composition of the Sun and Moon's Motions, that the Moon comes forth sometimes sooner from under the Beams of the other, and sometimes latter, and that this Difference is usually confined within the Space of Two Days: Its very likely, say they, that at the Time when Romulus instituted this Calender, the Moon continued longer hid by the Sun-beams, in the Months of March, May, July, and October, and that upon this Occasion he allowed Seven Days to the Nones of these Four Months, and only Five to the rest, during which the Moon got sooner from under the said Beams, and was visible.

NOVEMBER;

'twas formerly the 9th Month of the Year, instituted by Romulus, which consisted of Ten in all; and now 'tis the 11th. The Emperor Commodus called it Exuperatorius; but after his Death it reassumed its former Name: In this Month the Sun enters into Sagitarius; and it was under the Protection of Diana: On the first Day thereof they made a Feast to Jupi∣ter, and performed the Circensian Games: On the Day of the Nones or Fifth were the Neptu∣nalia celebrated, which lasted Eight Days. On the 7th was held the Show of Ornaments: On the 3d of the Ides the Inclosure of the Sea: On the Ides the Feast called Lectisternia: On the 18th of the Calends, the Trial of Horses: On the 17th of the Calends, the popular Plays in the Circus for Three Days: On the 14th, the Traders Feast lasting Three Days: On the 13th, the Pontiff's Supper in Honour of Cybele: On the 11th, the Liberalia: On the 10th, they of∣fered Sacrifice to Pluto and Proserpina: On the 8th, were the Brumalia celebrated, which lasted for Thirty Days: On the 5th, were performed the Mortuary Sacrifices to the frighted Gauls and Greeks.

NOVENSILES;

were Heroes newly received into the Number of the Gods, or the Gods of the Provinces and Kingdoms which the Romans had conquered, and to which they sacrificed under the Name of Dii Novensiles.

NOX;

the Night, the Daughter of Terra and Chaos, which the Poets represented in the Form of a Woman in Mourning, crowned with Poppies, and having black Wings, and riding in a Chariot drawn by Two Horses, surrounded with Stars, which served as her Guides: They sacrificed a Cock unto her. Cic. L. 3. de Nat. Deor. Says her Children were Love, Deceit, Fear, Old Age, Miseries, Distinies, &c. The Night is part of the Natural Day, during which the Sun is not above the Horizon; the Ancient Gauls and Germans divided Time not by the Day, but by Nights, as you may see in Caesar and Tacitus.

NUMA,

called Pompilius; the Son of Pomponius Pompilius: He was born at Cures, the Capital City of the Sabines; the Fame of his Vertue made the Romans chuse him for their King, after Romulus his Death: He revived all the Ancient Ceremonies of Religion, and insti∣tuted new Ones; and writ down a whole Form of Religious Worship in Eight Books, which he caused to be laid with him in his Tomb after his Death. But one Terentius, says Varro, having an Estate haid by the Janiculum, as his Servant was ploughing near unto Numa's Tomb, he turn'd up the Books wherein the said Prince had set down the Reasons of his instituting such My∣steries. Terentius carried them presently to the Praetor, who, when he had read the Beginning of them, thought it was a Matter of that Impor∣tance as deserved to be communicated to the Senate: The Principal Senators having read some things therein, would not meddle with the Regulations of Numa, but thought it conducive to the Interest of Religion to have the said Books burnt. Numa had had Recourse to the Art of Hydromancy, in order to see the Images of the Gods in the Water and to learn of them the Re∣ligious Mysteries he ought to establish: Varro says, that this kind of Divination was found out by the Persians, and that King Numa, and after him Pythagoras the Philosopher made use thereof: To which he adds, that they also in∣voked Mens Souls upon this Occasion by sprink∣ling of Blood, and this is that which the Greeks called Necromancy; and because Numa made use of Water to perform his Hydromancy, they said, he married the Nymph Egeria, as the said Varro explains it: It was therefore by this way of Hy∣dromancy that this inquisite King learnt those Mysteries which he set down in the Pontiff's Books, and the Causes of the same Mysteries, the Knowledge whereof he reserved to himself alone: He boasted he had very often Conver∣sation with the Moses, to whom he added a Tenth, which he named Tacita, and made the Romans worship her.

He somewhat rectified the Calender, and ad∣ded Two Months to the Year, which at first con∣sisted but of 10 Months, and so made them 12, adding every Two Year one Month consisting of 22 Days, which he called Mercedinum, and which he immediately placed after the Month of Fe∣bruary; he lived about 80 Years and of them reigned 40. This Numa Pompilius, second King of Rome was indeed both a King and a Philo∣sopher, who gave himself up so much to the Doctrine which Pythagoras afterwards publish'd to the World, that many through a gross. Ig∣norance of the Time took him to be a Disciple of Pythagoras: Dionysius of Hallicarnassus has re∣futed this Error, by shewing that Numa was more ancient than Pythagoras by Four Genera∣tions, as having reigned in the 6th Olympiad, whereas Pythagoras was not famous in Italy before

the 50th. The same Historian says, that Numa pretended his Laws and Maxims were communi∣cated to him by the Nymph Egeria, which o∣thers believed to be a Muse; at last the said Historian says, Numa pretended to have that Conversation with a Coelestial Mistress, that so they might believe his Laws were the Ema∣tions of the Eternal Wisdom it self.

NUMERUS;

a Number, is a Discrete Quantity, being a Collection of several separate Bodies. Euclid defines it to be a Multitude com∣posed of many Unites. The perfect Number establish'd by the Ancients is Ten, because of the Number of the Ten Fingers of a Man's Hand. Plato believed this Number to be perfect, inas∣much as the Unites, which the Greeks called Mo∣nades, compleated the Number of Ten. The Ma∣thematicians who would contradict Plato herein, said, that Six was the most perfect Number, because that all its Aliquot Parts are equal to the Number Six: And farther, to make the Per∣fection of the Number Six to appear, they have observed that the Length of a Man's Foot is the 6th Part of his Height. There is an even and an odd Number; the Even is that which may be divided into Two equal Parts, whereas the odd Number cannot be divided equally with∣out a Fraction, which is more of an Unity than the even Number. The Golden Number is a Period of 19 Years, invented by Metho the A∣thenian; at the End of which happen the Luna∣tions and the same Epact; tho' this Period be not altogether true: Its thought to have been thus called either because of the Benefit there is in the Use of it, or because it was formerly writ∣ten in Gold Characters. See Arithmetica.

NUPTIAE,

Marriages, from the Verb nu∣bere, which signifies to vail, because the Bride had a Vail on of the Colour of Fire, wherewith she covered her self: They carried a lighted Torch, and sung Hymen or Hymenaeus, which was a fabulous Deity of the Pagans, whom they be∣lieved to preside over Marriages: The Poets called him fair Hymenaeus. See Matrimonium.

NYMPHA;

a Nymph; a false Deity, be∣lieved by the Heathens to preside over Waters, Rivers and Fountains; some have extended the Signification hereof, and have taken them for the Goddesses of Mountains, Forests and Trees. The Ancients took the Nymphs to be Bacchus his Nurses, whether it were because the Wine wanted Water to bring its Grapes to Maturity, or because 'tis requisite Water should be mixed with Wine, that it may not disorder the Head. They have been sometimes represented each of them with a Vessel, into which they poured Wa∣ter, and holding the Leaf of an Herb in their Hands, which grows in Water and Wells; or else another while with that of a Water-Plant called Nymphaea, that took its Name from the Nymphs; and again, with Shells instead of Ves∣sels, and naked down to the Navel; the Nymph were sometimes honoured with the Title of Au∣gust, as other Deities were, which appears by this Inscription:

NYMPHIS
AUGUSTIS
MATURNUS
V. S. L. M.

That is, Votum solvit libens meritò: Maternus has freely and fully discharg'd her Vow to the Au∣gust Nymphs. This Epithet has been given them by way of Honour, because 'twas believed they watched for the Preservation of the Impe∣rial Family.

NYMPHAEA;

the Baths which were conse∣crated to the Nymphs; and therefore so called from them. Silence was more particularly required there; whence we read in an Inscription of Gru∣ter, NYMPHIS LOCI, BIBE, LAVA, TACE; to the Nymphs of the Place, drink, bathe your selves, and be silent.