As long as
men are still sufficiently rude and ignorant to believe
the gods capable of voluntary falsehood, the predic-
tions of oracles need be marked by no ambiguity; a
deviation from truth on the part of the deity is in such
a condition of society regarded merely as a mark
of divine anger.
men are still sufficiently rude and ignorant to believe
the gods capable of voluntary falsehood, the predic-
tions of oracles need be marked by no ambiguity; a
deviation from truth on the part of the deity is in such
a condition of society regarded merely as a mark
of divine anger.
Charles - 1867 - Classical Dictionary
, vol.
10, pt.
1, p.
123.
) It is most probable,
therefore, that Ophir was in the southern part of Arabia.
It is mentioned in connexion with the names of Ara-
bian tribes, in Genesis, 10, 29. The "gold of Ophir"
is spoken of in the book of Job, a work most probably
of Arabian origin. The products of the voyage, too,
might easily have been obtained from Arabia; for,
though gold is not found there now, we have the tes-
timony of many ancient writers that it was in ancient
times. It is, however, very probable that Ophir was
an emporium of the Phoenicians for their eastern trade;
and, if so, the difficulty as to the productions is at
once removed. --Before bringing this article to a close,
it may not be amiss to notice the very singular opinion
of Arius Montanus, who finds Ophir in Peru, the gold
of Parvaiin (2 Chron. , 3, 6) being, according to him,
the gold of that country (Pcnt-aiin). It is of this that
Scaliger remarks, "Puto Anum Montanum illius joc-
? ? uhtorise intcrpretationis auctorcm esse. " (Scaligcr,
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? OPP
summer was so great as to produce an extraordinary
fertility and excellence in all the fruits of the earth
throughout Italy. Hence the Opirniaii wine became
famous to a late period. ( Vid. Falernus. )
OPIS, a city on the river Tigris, in Assyria, west of
Artomita. It is probably the same with that which
Pliny calls Antiochia. (Herodotus, 1, 189. -- Xcn. ,
Anab. , 2, i. --Phny, 6, 27. )
OPITERCIUM, a city of Venctia in Northern Italy,
en the right bank of the river Plavis. It is now Odes-
sa, a town of some consequence. (Strabo, 214. --
Pliny, 3, 19. ) The Opitcrgini Monica are in the
neighbourhood of this place, and among them rises
the Liqucntia or Liccnza. .
OPPIA LEX, by C. Oppius, a tribune of the com-
mons, A. U. C. 540. It required that no woman should
have in her dress above half an ounce of gold, nor
wear a garment of different colours, nor ride in a car-
riage in the city or in any town, or within a mile of it,
unless upon occasion of a public sacrifice. This
sumptuary law was made during the public distresses
consequent on Hannibal's being in Italy. It was re-
pealed eighteen years afterward, on the petition of the
Roman ladies, though strenuously opposed by Cato.
(Liny, 34, 1. --Tacit. , Ann. , 3, 33. )
OPPIANUS, an eminent Greek grammarian and poet
of Cilicia, two of whose works are still extant un-
der the titles "Cynegctica" (KwrryertKa), or "On
Hunting;" and "Halicutica" ('A/ueun/ca), or "On
Fishing. " The time and place of his birth are not
fully agreed upon. Syncellus (Chronogr. , p. 352, scq. )
and Jerome (Chronic. ) place him in the reign of Mar-
cus Aurclius Antoninus; but>> Sozomcn (Prtff. ad
hist. Ecclcs. ), Suidas (*. v. 'OKXtavuf), and others,
make him to have lived in the time of Severus; and
though Oppian, in both his poems, addresses the em-
peror by the name "Antoninus," it is more than proba-
ble that Caracalla is meant, as this appellation was con-
ferred upon him when he was associated with his fa-
ther in the empire (AD. 198. --Hcrodian,2, 10), and as
this is the name by which he is commonly designated
by the ancient historians, Herodian, Dio Cassius, &c.
As to his birthplace, Suidas supposes it to have been
Corycus, but the anonymous author of the Greek life
of Oppian, and most other authorities, say that he was
born at Anazarba, a city which also gave birth to Dios-
corides. His father appears to have been a person of
some consideration in his native city, for he was ban-
ished to the island of Melita, in the Adriatic, by Sev-
erus, for suffering himself to be so entirely engrossed
by his philosophical studies as to neglect coming in per-
son, along with his fellow-citizens, to pay his respects
to the cinperor, when, in taking a progress through
Cicilia, the latter made his entrance into Anazarba.
He was accompanied in his exile by his son Oppian,
who had enjoyed the advantage of an excellent educa-
tion under the superintendence of his father, and who
now began to devote himself to poetry. Accordingly,
he now composed his poem on fishing, and presented
it to the Emperor Severus (So:omcn, Prief. ad Hist.
Ecelcs. ), or, more probably (Suidas, s. v. 'OTTrmwJf. --
Oppian, Halicul. , 1, 3. --Id. ib. , 4, 5), to his son Car-
acalla, who was so much pleased with it that he not
only repealed the sentence of his father's banishment,
but alto presented Oppian with a piece of gold for
each verse that it contained. Suidas says that he re-
ceived on this occasion 20,000 gold pieces; but he
must have counted the versos contained in all Oppian's
? ? poems, since the Halieutica consisted of only about
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? ORA
ORACULUM.
edition in his Analccta Critica, Franco/. , 1777, 8vo,
fatcic. 1, p. 31, seqq. --(Encycl. Us. Knmol. , vol. 16,
u. 459, scqq. --Schall, Hist. Lit. Gr. , vol. 4, p. 67. )
Ops, cillnl also Tellus, the goddess of the Earth, and
the same with the Rhea of the Greeks. (Vid. Rhea. )
Another form of her name was Opis. The appella-
tion Ops or Opis is plainly connected with opes,
"wealth,"' of which the earth is the bestower; and
tier festival, the Opalia, was on the same day with the
original Saturnalia. (Macrob. , Hat. , 1, 10. -- Varro,
L. L , 5, p. 57. --Keightky's Mythology, p. 525. )
Opus (gen. Opuntis), one of the most ancient cities
of Greece, the capital of the Locri Opuntii, whose ter-
ritory lay to the north of Bceotia. According to Stra-
ta, it was fifteen stadia from the sea, and the distance
between it and Cymis, its emporium, was sixty stadia.
(Slrako, 425) Livy places Opus, however, only one
mile from the sea (28, 6)--This place is celebrated
by Pindar as the domain of Deucalion and Pyrrha (01. ,
9, 62), and by Homer as the birthplace of Patroclus.
(Iliad, 18, 325. ) The form of government adopted
by the Opuntians was peculiar, since, as we learn
from Aristotle, they intrusted the sole administration
to one magistrate. (Potit. , 3, 16. ) Plutarch com-
mends theiit piety and observance of religious rites.
Herodotus informs us that they furnished seven ships
to the Greek fleet at Artemisium (8, 1). They were
subsequently conquered by Myronides, the Athenian
general. In the war between Antigonus and Cassan-
uer. Opus, having favoured the latter, was besieged by
Ptolemy, a general in the service of Antigonus. It
was occupied several years after by Attains, king of
Pergamus. in the Macedonian war; but, on the advance
of Philip, son of Demetrius, he was forced to make a
precipitate retreat to his ships, and narrowly escaped
being taken. (Liny, 28, 6. ) -- The position of this
town has not been precisely determined by the re-
searches of modern travellers. (Whclcr's Travels, p.
575. -- Mctet. , Geogr. , 2, p. 323. -- Dodwcll, vol. 2, p.
53--Gell's Itinerary, p. 229. ) Its ruins are laid down,
in Lapie's map, a little to the southwest of Alachi, and
east of Tala/Ua. (Cramer's Arte. Greece, vol. 2, p.
117. seqq. )
Ohacu lum, an oracle. The primary and proper sig-
nification of the term is that of a response from an ora-
cle, and Cicero says that "oracula" were so called
"quod incst in his Deorum oratto. " (To/). , 20) The
word, however, is frequently employed to denote the
place whence the answers of divinities, as regarded the
events of the future, were supposed to be obtained.
? Oracular responses were called by the Greeks xpnofioi
or pavrua; the name fiavruov was also often given
to the pracular place, or seat of the oracle. --Curiosity
regarding the future, and the desire to penetrate its
mysteries, are dispositions which excite a powerful
control over the minds of men in every stage of soci-
ety. Among nations that have made little advance-
ment in civilization and intelligence, they operate with
peculiar force; and in these dispositions, combined
with the belief that the gods had both the ability and the
inclination to afford the knowledge so eagerly sought
aftjr, the oracles of the pagan world had their origin.
Of these oracles the most famous were those of Greece,
and among them the three most noted were those of
Dou\>na, Delphi, and Trophonius. In the number of
other noted oracles of antiquity may be mentioned that
of Jupiter Ammon in the deserts of Libya, of the
? ? Branchidae in Ionia, of Pella in Macedonia, of the head
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? ORACULUM.
ORC
that it was no longer a matter of interest to maintain
them. Towards this consummation Christianity pow-
erfully contributed, by the superior enlightenment
which it carried along with it wherever it was intro-
duced, and by the display which it made of the false-
hood and folly of the superstitions which it was des-
tined to overthrow. (Encycl. Us. Knowl. , vol. 16, p.
464, seq. )--The Grecian oracles, or, at least, the most
celebrated of them, were of foreign origin, and were
established either by Egyptian or Phoenician strangers.
(Hccrcn, Idecn, vol. 6, p. 94. --Compare Knight's In-
quiry, \< 43, 71, 223. ) But it was impossible for these
sacerdotal settlements to assume in Greece the aspect
which they took in Africa. The character of the coun-
try and the spirit of the people were alike opposed to
it. For though the popular religion in Greece was
not wholly unconnected with politics, the state, having
never, as in Egypt, been founded entirely upon reli-
gion, never made a temple its central point, these set-
tlements, however, continued as oracles, of which the
Greek stood in need both in public and private life.
(Hccrcn, Idccn, I. c. -- Politics of Ancient Greece, p.
78. ) Somewhat analogous to this view of the sub-
ject is the position assumed by the advocates for the
existence of early sacerdotal castes or colleges in
Greece; and they consider the oracles as a remnant
surviving the overthrow of sacerdotal power. Hence
they undertake to explain why the oracles play so sub-
ordinate a part, and exercise so little influence in the
earlier periods of Grecian history; for the struggle be-
tween the sacerdotal caste and the warlike portion of
the population had been too recent for this, and the ha-
tred of the latter was still ardent against those who had
endeavoured to reduce them under their sway. (Con-
stant, dc la Religion, vol. 3, p. 369. ) Homer speaks
of no oracle except Dodona, and of that indirectly;
no mention is made of Delphi in either of his poems.
What had, however, been wrested by force from the
sacerdotal caste, was in a great measure regained by
the influence of these very oracles on the weak'and su-
perstitious. Everything that could tend to keep up a
feeling of awe in the visiter was carefully exhibited.
The seats of the oracles were established in the bosoms
of forests, by the lonely sources of rivers, on wild and
craggy mountains, in gloomy caves, but, above all, near
the mansions of the dead; and, notwithstanding the
efforts of philosophy, and the raillery and sarcasm of
the comic muse, they succeeded in acquiring a power
which often placed in the hands of their expounders
the common fortunes of Greece. --The ambiguity of
the oracular responses has always been a subject of
remark: in this, indeed, all the artifice and adroitness
of the priests directly centred. Every prediction was
susceptible of a double meaning, and the veracity of
the gods in this way remained safe from impeachment.
It must be remarked, however, that this fatal ambigu-
ity on the part of the oracles does not confine itself
merely to the ages of tradition and fable. On the con-
trary, it becomes more frequent the more men part
with the improper and degrading notions of the deity
which they had originally entertained.
As long as
men are still sufficiently rude and ignorant to believe
the gods capable of voluntary falsehood, the predic-
tions of oracles need be marked by no ambiguity; a
deviation from truth on the part of the deity is in such
a condition of society regarded merely as a mark
of divine anger. But when the character of the gods
? ? is better understood, and when their attributes are
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? ORC
ORCHOMENUS.
he states the number at thirty-three, of which twenty,
according to him, were inhabited, and the remaining
thirteen deserted. --The Orkneys at the present day are
still called Orcades by the French. They are separa-
ted from the northern extremity of Scotland by the
Pentland Straits or Frith, in which the sea is so bois-
terous that the surf upon the rocks spreads a fine rain
to a league's distance within the land: no wind, how-
ever strong, will enable the mariner to stem the cur-
rent in this place. The group consists of 67 islands
and islets, 27 of which arc inhabited. Red sand-
stone is the prevailing rock. The soil of some of the
islands is of inferior quality, but that of others is ex-
cellent. The Shetland or Zetland islands are eighty-
six in number, of which forty arc inhabited. They
contain granite and rocks of igneous origin, with red
sandstone: their vegetation is poorer than that of the
Orkneys, and their soil for the most part is marshy.
(Maltc-Brun, vol. 8, p. 684. )
Orchomexcs, I. a celebrated city of Bceotia, near
the Ophissus. and to the northwest of the Lake Co-
pais. It was the second city of the land, and at one
time even rivalled Thebes itself in wealth, power, and
importance. Its first inhabitants are said to have been
the Phlegyas, a lawless race, who regarded neither
gods nor men* but laid the whole country under con-
tribution by their frequent and daring robberies.
(Horn. , Hymn. Apoll. , 278. -- Schol. in Apollon.
Rhod. . 1, 735. --Horn. , II. , 13, 3*02-- Pausan. , 9, 36. )
Pausanias, however, reports that a city named An-
dreis existed before the time of Phlcgyas, who is said
to have been a son of Mars. The Phlegyae having
been destroyed by the gods for their impiety, with the
exception of a small remnant who fled into Phocis,
were succeeded by the Minya? (vid. Minye), who arc
commonly looked upon as the real founders of Orchom-
enus. which thence obtained the surname of "the
Minyean. " (Od. , 11, 283-- Pmd. , 01. , 14, 1-- Apoll.
Rhod. , 3, 1094-- Thucyd. , 4, 36. ) At this period
Orchomenus became so renowned for its wealth and
power that Homer represents it as vying with the most
opulent cities in the world. (II. , 9, 381. ) These
riches arc said to have been deposited in a building
erected for that purpose by Minyas, and which Pau-
sanias describes as an astonishing work, and equally
worthy of admiration with the walls of Tyrins or the
pyramids of Egypt (9, 36). Thebes was at that time
inferior in power to the Minyean city, and in a war
with Erginus, king of the latter, was compelled to be-
come its tributary. (Strabo, 414. -- Pausan. , I. c. )
As another proof of the wealth and civilization to
which Orchomenus had attained, it is mentioned that
Eteoclcs, one of its early kings, was the first to erect
and consecrate a temple to the Graces (Strab. , I. c. --
Pausan. , 9, 35), whence Orchomenus is designated
by Pindar (Pyth. , 12, 45) as the city of the Graces.
In a war waged against Hercules, its power, however,
was greatly impaired, though at the period of the
Trojan war it still retained its independence, since we
find it mentioned by Homer as a separate principality,
distinct from Bceotia. (//. , 2, 511. ) It appears to
have joined the Bceotian confederacy about six years
after the siege of Troy (Strabo, 410), and Thucydides
informs us in his time it was no longer termed the
Minyean, but the Bceotian Orchomenus (4, 76. --
Compare Herod. , 8, 34). It was occupied by the
Lacedemonians at the time they held the Cadmean
? ? citadel, but joined the Thebans after the battle of
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? ORE
ORE
t'ic Achman league. Surprised again by Clcomcncs,
it was retaken by Antigonus Doson, who placed there
a Macedonian garrison. After his death, however, it
appears to have reverted to the Achaeans. (Polyb. , 2,
46 --Id. , 2, 54 --Id. , 4, 6-- Strabo, 338. ) The plain
of Orchomenus was in a great measure occupied by a
small lake, formed by the rain-water which descended
from the surrounding hills: one of these, situated
over against the town, was named Trachys. The
modern village of Kalpaki is built on the ruins of Or-
chomenus. (Cramer's Ant. Greece, vol. 3, p. 306,
seqq. )--III. A city of Thessaly, on the confines of
Macedonia. (Schol. in Apoll. Rhod. , 2, 1186. --Van
Stavcren, ad Hygin, fah. , I. --Midler, Orchomcnos
und die Minycr, p. 249. )--IV. A city of Pontus, ac-
cording to the scholiast on Apollonius Rhodius (2,
1186). Consult the remarks of Mullcr (Orchomcnos,
ice, p. 288).
Orcus, the god of the lower world, in the old Latin
religion, corresponding to the Hades or Pluto of the
Greeks. Verrius says that the ancients pronounced
Orcus as if written Uragus, or, rather, Urgus, whence
it would signify the Driver (from urgeo). answering to
the Hades- Agcsilaus of the Greeks. This etymology,
however, is very doubtful. (Feslus, s. v. --Kcightlcy's
Mythology, p. 527. )
Ordovices, % people of Britain, occupying what
would correspond at the present day to the northern
portion of Wales, together with the isle of Anglesey.
(Tacit. . Hist. , 12, 33. --Mannert, Geogr. , vol. 2, pt.
2, p. 187. ) It was probably owing to the nature of
their country, and to the vicinity of Deva, now Ches-
ter, where a whole Roman legion was quartered, that
the Romans had so few towns and stations among the
Ordovices. Mediomanium was their capital, and was
probably situated at Mayicood or Meifad, in Mont-
gomeryshire. (Mela, 3, 6. --Plm. , 4, 16-,-Manncrt,
I. e. )
Oreades, nymphs of the mountains, so called from
the Greek opoc, "<z mountain. " Another form of the
name is Orcstiades ('OpeoTuUhr). They generally at-
tended upon Diana, and accompanied her in hunting.
(Virg. , ten. , 1, 504-- Ocid, Met. , 8, 787. --Horn. , II. ,
6, 420. )
Orkst. k, a people of Epirus, situate apparently to
the southeast of the Lynccstre, and, like them, origi-
nally independent of the Macedonian kings, though af-
terward annexed to their dominions. At a later peri-
od, having revolted under the protection of a Roman
force, they were declared free on the conclusion of
peace between Philip and the Romans. (Liv. , 33, 34.
--/i{? 42,38. ) Their country was apparently of small
extent, and contained but few towns. Among those
Orestia is named by Stcphanus Byzantinus, who states
it to have been tho birthplace of Ptolemy, the son of
Lagus. Its foundation was ascribed by tradition to
Orestes This is probably the same city called by
Strabo (326) Argos Orcoticum, built, as he" affirms, by
Orestes. Hierocles also (p. 641) recognises an Ar-
gos in Macedonia. (Cramer's Ancient Greece, vol. 1,
p. 197. )
Orestes, son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra.
On the assassination of Agamemnon, Orestes, then
quite young, was saved from his father's fate by his
sister Elcctra, who had him removed to the court of
their uncle Strophius, king of Phocis. There he form-
ed an intimate friendship with Pylades, the son of
? ? Strophius, and with him concerted the means, which
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? ORI
ORIBASIUS.
er Callas. Thucydidcs first notices Oreus at the close
of his history, as the last place retained by the Athe-
nians in Eubuea (8, 95). From Xcnophon we learn,
that, having been subsequently occupied by the Lace-
demonians, who had expelled Neogenes tuts tyrant, it
revolted from them previous to the battle of Lcuctra.
{Hut. Gr. , 5, 4, 57. ) After that period we find His-
tiea, or Orcus, governed by another tyrant named Phil-
istides, who, as Demosthenes asserts, was secretly sup-
pjrted and befriended by Philip of Macedon (Phil. , 3,
p. 125): he was afterward defeated and slain by the
Athenians and Chalcidians. (Stcph. Byz. , s. v. ) . Es-
chincs, on the other hand, cites a decree of Orcus, to
prove that Demosthenes had been bribed by the citi-
zens of that town. (JEsch. in Ctcs. , p, 68. )--In the
second Punic war, Orcus, when besieged by Attalus
and Sulpicius, a Roman general, was betrayed into
their hands by Plator, who had been intrusted by Phil-
ip with the command of the place, (/-. ir, 28, 6. ) It
must have been restored, however, to that monarch on
peace being concluded; for, in the Macedonian war,
we find it sustaining another obstinate siege against
the same enemies, when it was taken by assault. (Liv. ,
31,46. -- Polyb. , 11, 6. --Id. , 18, 28. ) This city no
lonjrcr existed in Piiny's time (4, 12). Its ruins are
slill to be seen near the coast, opposite to Cape Volo
of Thcssaly. (Cramer's Anc. Greece, vol. 2, p. 126. )
Orgktorix, a nobleman of the Helvetii, the most
conspicuous for rank and riches of any of his country-
men.
therefore, that Ophir was in the southern part of Arabia.
It is mentioned in connexion with the names of Ara-
bian tribes, in Genesis, 10, 29. The "gold of Ophir"
is spoken of in the book of Job, a work most probably
of Arabian origin. The products of the voyage, too,
might easily have been obtained from Arabia; for,
though gold is not found there now, we have the tes-
timony of many ancient writers that it was in ancient
times. It is, however, very probable that Ophir was
an emporium of the Phoenicians for their eastern trade;
and, if so, the difficulty as to the productions is at
once removed. --Before bringing this article to a close,
it may not be amiss to notice the very singular opinion
of Arius Montanus, who finds Ophir in Peru, the gold
of Parvaiin (2 Chron. , 3, 6) being, according to him,
the gold of that country (Pcnt-aiin). It is of this that
Scaliger remarks, "Puto Anum Montanum illius joc-
? ? uhtorise intcrpretationis auctorcm esse. " (Scaligcr,
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? OPP
summer was so great as to produce an extraordinary
fertility and excellence in all the fruits of the earth
throughout Italy. Hence the Opirniaii wine became
famous to a late period. ( Vid. Falernus. )
OPIS, a city on the river Tigris, in Assyria, west of
Artomita. It is probably the same with that which
Pliny calls Antiochia. (Herodotus, 1, 189. -- Xcn. ,
Anab. , 2, i. --Phny, 6, 27. )
OPITERCIUM, a city of Venctia in Northern Italy,
en the right bank of the river Plavis. It is now Odes-
sa, a town of some consequence. (Strabo, 214. --
Pliny, 3, 19. ) The Opitcrgini Monica are in the
neighbourhood of this place, and among them rises
the Liqucntia or Liccnza. .
OPPIA LEX, by C. Oppius, a tribune of the com-
mons, A. U. C. 540. It required that no woman should
have in her dress above half an ounce of gold, nor
wear a garment of different colours, nor ride in a car-
riage in the city or in any town, or within a mile of it,
unless upon occasion of a public sacrifice. This
sumptuary law was made during the public distresses
consequent on Hannibal's being in Italy. It was re-
pealed eighteen years afterward, on the petition of the
Roman ladies, though strenuously opposed by Cato.
(Liny, 34, 1. --Tacit. , Ann. , 3, 33. )
OPPIANUS, an eminent Greek grammarian and poet
of Cilicia, two of whose works are still extant un-
der the titles "Cynegctica" (KwrryertKa), or "On
Hunting;" and "Halicutica" ('A/ueun/ca), or "On
Fishing. " The time and place of his birth are not
fully agreed upon. Syncellus (Chronogr. , p. 352, scq. )
and Jerome (Chronic. ) place him in the reign of Mar-
cus Aurclius Antoninus; but>> Sozomcn (Prtff. ad
hist. Ecclcs. ), Suidas (*. v. 'OKXtavuf), and others,
make him to have lived in the time of Severus; and
though Oppian, in both his poems, addresses the em-
peror by the name "Antoninus," it is more than proba-
ble that Caracalla is meant, as this appellation was con-
ferred upon him when he was associated with his fa-
ther in the empire (AD. 198. --Hcrodian,2, 10), and as
this is the name by which he is commonly designated
by the ancient historians, Herodian, Dio Cassius, &c.
As to his birthplace, Suidas supposes it to have been
Corycus, but the anonymous author of the Greek life
of Oppian, and most other authorities, say that he was
born at Anazarba, a city which also gave birth to Dios-
corides. His father appears to have been a person of
some consideration in his native city, for he was ban-
ished to the island of Melita, in the Adriatic, by Sev-
erus, for suffering himself to be so entirely engrossed
by his philosophical studies as to neglect coming in per-
son, along with his fellow-citizens, to pay his respects
to the cinperor, when, in taking a progress through
Cicilia, the latter made his entrance into Anazarba.
He was accompanied in his exile by his son Oppian,
who had enjoyed the advantage of an excellent educa-
tion under the superintendence of his father, and who
now began to devote himself to poetry. Accordingly,
he now composed his poem on fishing, and presented
it to the Emperor Severus (So:omcn, Prief. ad Hist.
Ecelcs. ), or, more probably (Suidas, s. v. 'OTTrmwJf. --
Oppian, Halicul. , 1, 3. --Id. ib. , 4, 5), to his son Car-
acalla, who was so much pleased with it that he not
only repealed the sentence of his father's banishment,
but alto presented Oppian with a piece of gold for
each verse that it contained. Suidas says that he re-
ceived on this occasion 20,000 gold pieces; but he
must have counted the versos contained in all Oppian's
? ? poems, since the Halieutica consisted of only about
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? ORA
ORACULUM.
edition in his Analccta Critica, Franco/. , 1777, 8vo,
fatcic. 1, p. 31, seqq. --(Encycl. Us. Knmol. , vol. 16,
u. 459, scqq. --Schall, Hist. Lit. Gr. , vol. 4, p. 67. )
Ops, cillnl also Tellus, the goddess of the Earth, and
the same with the Rhea of the Greeks. (Vid. Rhea. )
Another form of her name was Opis. The appella-
tion Ops or Opis is plainly connected with opes,
"wealth,"' of which the earth is the bestower; and
tier festival, the Opalia, was on the same day with the
original Saturnalia. (Macrob. , Hat. , 1, 10. -- Varro,
L. L , 5, p. 57. --Keightky's Mythology, p. 525. )
Opus (gen. Opuntis), one of the most ancient cities
of Greece, the capital of the Locri Opuntii, whose ter-
ritory lay to the north of Bceotia. According to Stra-
ta, it was fifteen stadia from the sea, and the distance
between it and Cymis, its emporium, was sixty stadia.
(Slrako, 425) Livy places Opus, however, only one
mile from the sea (28, 6)--This place is celebrated
by Pindar as the domain of Deucalion and Pyrrha (01. ,
9, 62), and by Homer as the birthplace of Patroclus.
(Iliad, 18, 325. ) The form of government adopted
by the Opuntians was peculiar, since, as we learn
from Aristotle, they intrusted the sole administration
to one magistrate. (Potit. , 3, 16. ) Plutarch com-
mends theiit piety and observance of religious rites.
Herodotus informs us that they furnished seven ships
to the Greek fleet at Artemisium (8, 1). They were
subsequently conquered by Myronides, the Athenian
general. In the war between Antigonus and Cassan-
uer. Opus, having favoured the latter, was besieged by
Ptolemy, a general in the service of Antigonus. It
was occupied several years after by Attains, king of
Pergamus. in the Macedonian war; but, on the advance
of Philip, son of Demetrius, he was forced to make a
precipitate retreat to his ships, and narrowly escaped
being taken. (Liny, 28, 6. ) -- The position of this
town has not been precisely determined by the re-
searches of modern travellers. (Whclcr's Travels, p.
575. -- Mctet. , Geogr. , 2, p. 323. -- Dodwcll, vol. 2, p.
53--Gell's Itinerary, p. 229. ) Its ruins are laid down,
in Lapie's map, a little to the southwest of Alachi, and
east of Tala/Ua. (Cramer's Arte. Greece, vol. 2, p.
117. seqq. )
Ohacu lum, an oracle. The primary and proper sig-
nification of the term is that of a response from an ora-
cle, and Cicero says that "oracula" were so called
"quod incst in his Deorum oratto. " (To/). , 20) The
word, however, is frequently employed to denote the
place whence the answers of divinities, as regarded the
events of the future, were supposed to be obtained.
? Oracular responses were called by the Greeks xpnofioi
or pavrua; the name fiavruov was also often given
to the pracular place, or seat of the oracle. --Curiosity
regarding the future, and the desire to penetrate its
mysteries, are dispositions which excite a powerful
control over the minds of men in every stage of soci-
ety. Among nations that have made little advance-
ment in civilization and intelligence, they operate with
peculiar force; and in these dispositions, combined
with the belief that the gods had both the ability and the
inclination to afford the knowledge so eagerly sought
aftjr, the oracles of the pagan world had their origin.
Of these oracles the most famous were those of Greece,
and among them the three most noted were those of
Dou\>na, Delphi, and Trophonius. In the number of
other noted oracles of antiquity may be mentioned that
of Jupiter Ammon in the deserts of Libya, of the
? ? Branchidae in Ionia, of Pella in Macedonia, of the head
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? ORACULUM.
ORC
that it was no longer a matter of interest to maintain
them. Towards this consummation Christianity pow-
erfully contributed, by the superior enlightenment
which it carried along with it wherever it was intro-
duced, and by the display which it made of the false-
hood and folly of the superstitions which it was des-
tined to overthrow. (Encycl. Us. Knowl. , vol. 16, p.
464, seq. )--The Grecian oracles, or, at least, the most
celebrated of them, were of foreign origin, and were
established either by Egyptian or Phoenician strangers.
(Hccrcn, Idecn, vol. 6, p. 94. --Compare Knight's In-
quiry, \< 43, 71, 223. ) But it was impossible for these
sacerdotal settlements to assume in Greece the aspect
which they took in Africa. The character of the coun-
try and the spirit of the people were alike opposed to
it. For though the popular religion in Greece was
not wholly unconnected with politics, the state, having
never, as in Egypt, been founded entirely upon reli-
gion, never made a temple its central point, these set-
tlements, however, continued as oracles, of which the
Greek stood in need both in public and private life.
(Hccrcn, Idccn, I. c. -- Politics of Ancient Greece, p.
78. ) Somewhat analogous to this view of the sub-
ject is the position assumed by the advocates for the
existence of early sacerdotal castes or colleges in
Greece; and they consider the oracles as a remnant
surviving the overthrow of sacerdotal power. Hence
they undertake to explain why the oracles play so sub-
ordinate a part, and exercise so little influence in the
earlier periods of Grecian history; for the struggle be-
tween the sacerdotal caste and the warlike portion of
the population had been too recent for this, and the ha-
tred of the latter was still ardent against those who had
endeavoured to reduce them under their sway. (Con-
stant, dc la Religion, vol. 3, p. 369. ) Homer speaks
of no oracle except Dodona, and of that indirectly;
no mention is made of Delphi in either of his poems.
What had, however, been wrested by force from the
sacerdotal caste, was in a great measure regained by
the influence of these very oracles on the weak'and su-
perstitious. Everything that could tend to keep up a
feeling of awe in the visiter was carefully exhibited.
The seats of the oracles were established in the bosoms
of forests, by the lonely sources of rivers, on wild and
craggy mountains, in gloomy caves, but, above all, near
the mansions of the dead; and, notwithstanding the
efforts of philosophy, and the raillery and sarcasm of
the comic muse, they succeeded in acquiring a power
which often placed in the hands of their expounders
the common fortunes of Greece. --The ambiguity of
the oracular responses has always been a subject of
remark: in this, indeed, all the artifice and adroitness
of the priests directly centred. Every prediction was
susceptible of a double meaning, and the veracity of
the gods in this way remained safe from impeachment.
It must be remarked, however, that this fatal ambigu-
ity on the part of the oracles does not confine itself
merely to the ages of tradition and fable. On the con-
trary, it becomes more frequent the more men part
with the improper and degrading notions of the deity
which they had originally entertained.
As long as
men are still sufficiently rude and ignorant to believe
the gods capable of voluntary falsehood, the predic-
tions of oracles need be marked by no ambiguity; a
deviation from truth on the part of the deity is in such
a condition of society regarded merely as a mark
of divine anger. But when the character of the gods
? ? is better understood, and when their attributes are
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? ORC
ORCHOMENUS.
he states the number at thirty-three, of which twenty,
according to him, were inhabited, and the remaining
thirteen deserted. --The Orkneys at the present day are
still called Orcades by the French. They are separa-
ted from the northern extremity of Scotland by the
Pentland Straits or Frith, in which the sea is so bois-
terous that the surf upon the rocks spreads a fine rain
to a league's distance within the land: no wind, how-
ever strong, will enable the mariner to stem the cur-
rent in this place. The group consists of 67 islands
and islets, 27 of which arc inhabited. Red sand-
stone is the prevailing rock. The soil of some of the
islands is of inferior quality, but that of others is ex-
cellent. The Shetland or Zetland islands are eighty-
six in number, of which forty arc inhabited. They
contain granite and rocks of igneous origin, with red
sandstone: their vegetation is poorer than that of the
Orkneys, and their soil for the most part is marshy.
(Maltc-Brun, vol. 8, p. 684. )
Orchomexcs, I. a celebrated city of Bceotia, near
the Ophissus. and to the northwest of the Lake Co-
pais. It was the second city of the land, and at one
time even rivalled Thebes itself in wealth, power, and
importance. Its first inhabitants are said to have been
the Phlegyas, a lawless race, who regarded neither
gods nor men* but laid the whole country under con-
tribution by their frequent and daring robberies.
(Horn. , Hymn. Apoll. , 278. -- Schol. in Apollon.
Rhod. . 1, 735. --Horn. , II. , 13, 3*02-- Pausan. , 9, 36. )
Pausanias, however, reports that a city named An-
dreis existed before the time of Phlcgyas, who is said
to have been a son of Mars. The Phlegyae having
been destroyed by the gods for their impiety, with the
exception of a small remnant who fled into Phocis,
were succeeded by the Minya? (vid. Minye), who arc
commonly looked upon as the real founders of Orchom-
enus. which thence obtained the surname of "the
Minyean. " (Od. , 11, 283-- Pmd. , 01. , 14, 1-- Apoll.
Rhod. , 3, 1094-- Thucyd. , 4, 36. ) At this period
Orchomenus became so renowned for its wealth and
power that Homer represents it as vying with the most
opulent cities in the world. (II. , 9, 381. ) These
riches arc said to have been deposited in a building
erected for that purpose by Minyas, and which Pau-
sanias describes as an astonishing work, and equally
worthy of admiration with the walls of Tyrins or the
pyramids of Egypt (9, 36). Thebes was at that time
inferior in power to the Minyean city, and in a war
with Erginus, king of the latter, was compelled to be-
come its tributary. (Strabo, 414. -- Pausan. , I. c. )
As another proof of the wealth and civilization to
which Orchomenus had attained, it is mentioned that
Eteoclcs, one of its early kings, was the first to erect
and consecrate a temple to the Graces (Strab. , I. c. --
Pausan. , 9, 35), whence Orchomenus is designated
by Pindar (Pyth. , 12, 45) as the city of the Graces.
In a war waged against Hercules, its power, however,
was greatly impaired, though at the period of the
Trojan war it still retained its independence, since we
find it mentioned by Homer as a separate principality,
distinct from Bceotia. (//. , 2, 511. ) It appears to
have joined the Bceotian confederacy about six years
after the siege of Troy (Strabo, 410), and Thucydides
informs us in his time it was no longer termed the
Minyean, but the Bceotian Orchomenus (4, 76. --
Compare Herod. , 8, 34). It was occupied by the
Lacedemonians at the time they held the Cadmean
? ? citadel, but joined the Thebans after the battle of
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? ORE
ORE
t'ic Achman league. Surprised again by Clcomcncs,
it was retaken by Antigonus Doson, who placed there
a Macedonian garrison. After his death, however, it
appears to have reverted to the Achaeans. (Polyb. , 2,
46 --Id. , 2, 54 --Id. , 4, 6-- Strabo, 338. ) The plain
of Orchomenus was in a great measure occupied by a
small lake, formed by the rain-water which descended
from the surrounding hills: one of these, situated
over against the town, was named Trachys. The
modern village of Kalpaki is built on the ruins of Or-
chomenus. (Cramer's Ant. Greece, vol. 3, p. 306,
seqq. )--III. A city of Thessaly, on the confines of
Macedonia. (Schol. in Apoll. Rhod. , 2, 1186. --Van
Stavcren, ad Hygin, fah. , I. --Midler, Orchomcnos
und die Minycr, p. 249. )--IV. A city of Pontus, ac-
cording to the scholiast on Apollonius Rhodius (2,
1186). Consult the remarks of Mullcr (Orchomcnos,
ice, p. 288).
Orcus, the god of the lower world, in the old Latin
religion, corresponding to the Hades or Pluto of the
Greeks. Verrius says that the ancients pronounced
Orcus as if written Uragus, or, rather, Urgus, whence
it would signify the Driver (from urgeo). answering to
the Hades- Agcsilaus of the Greeks. This etymology,
however, is very doubtful. (Feslus, s. v. --Kcightlcy's
Mythology, p. 527. )
Ordovices, % people of Britain, occupying what
would correspond at the present day to the northern
portion of Wales, together with the isle of Anglesey.
(Tacit. . Hist. , 12, 33. --Mannert, Geogr. , vol. 2, pt.
2, p. 187. ) It was probably owing to the nature of
their country, and to the vicinity of Deva, now Ches-
ter, where a whole Roman legion was quartered, that
the Romans had so few towns and stations among the
Ordovices. Mediomanium was their capital, and was
probably situated at Mayicood or Meifad, in Mont-
gomeryshire. (Mela, 3, 6. --Plm. , 4, 16-,-Manncrt,
I. e. )
Oreades, nymphs of the mountains, so called from
the Greek opoc, "<z mountain. " Another form of the
name is Orcstiades ('OpeoTuUhr). They generally at-
tended upon Diana, and accompanied her in hunting.
(Virg. , ten. , 1, 504-- Ocid, Met. , 8, 787. --Horn. , II. ,
6, 420. )
Orkst. k, a people of Epirus, situate apparently to
the southeast of the Lynccstre, and, like them, origi-
nally independent of the Macedonian kings, though af-
terward annexed to their dominions. At a later peri-
od, having revolted under the protection of a Roman
force, they were declared free on the conclusion of
peace between Philip and the Romans. (Liv. , 33, 34.
--/i{? 42,38. ) Their country was apparently of small
extent, and contained but few towns. Among those
Orestia is named by Stcphanus Byzantinus, who states
it to have been tho birthplace of Ptolemy, the son of
Lagus. Its foundation was ascribed by tradition to
Orestes This is probably the same city called by
Strabo (326) Argos Orcoticum, built, as he" affirms, by
Orestes. Hierocles also (p. 641) recognises an Ar-
gos in Macedonia. (Cramer's Ancient Greece, vol. 1,
p. 197. )
Orestes, son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra.
On the assassination of Agamemnon, Orestes, then
quite young, was saved from his father's fate by his
sister Elcctra, who had him removed to the court of
their uncle Strophius, king of Phocis. There he form-
ed an intimate friendship with Pylades, the son of
? ? Strophius, and with him concerted the means, which
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? ORI
ORIBASIUS.
er Callas. Thucydidcs first notices Oreus at the close
of his history, as the last place retained by the Athe-
nians in Eubuea (8, 95). From Xcnophon we learn,
that, having been subsequently occupied by the Lace-
demonians, who had expelled Neogenes tuts tyrant, it
revolted from them previous to the battle of Lcuctra.
{Hut. Gr. , 5, 4, 57. ) After that period we find His-
tiea, or Orcus, governed by another tyrant named Phil-
istides, who, as Demosthenes asserts, was secretly sup-
pjrted and befriended by Philip of Macedon (Phil. , 3,
p. 125): he was afterward defeated and slain by the
Athenians and Chalcidians. (Stcph. Byz. , s. v. ) . Es-
chincs, on the other hand, cites a decree of Orcus, to
prove that Demosthenes had been bribed by the citi-
zens of that town. (JEsch. in Ctcs. , p, 68. )--In the
second Punic war, Orcus, when besieged by Attalus
and Sulpicius, a Roman general, was betrayed into
their hands by Plator, who had been intrusted by Phil-
ip with the command of the place, (/-. ir, 28, 6. ) It
must have been restored, however, to that monarch on
peace being concluded; for, in the Macedonian war,
we find it sustaining another obstinate siege against
the same enemies, when it was taken by assault. (Liv. ,
31,46. -- Polyb. , 11, 6. --Id. , 18, 28. ) This city no
lonjrcr existed in Piiny's time (4, 12). Its ruins are
slill to be seen near the coast, opposite to Cape Volo
of Thcssaly. (Cramer's Anc. Greece, vol. 2, p. 126. )
Orgktorix, a nobleman of the Helvetii, the most
conspicuous for rank and riches of any of his country-
men.
