Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 15, 1904.djvu/291

 The European Sky-god. 267

of Ephesus^^ struck under Antoninus Pius shows on its reverse side Zeus 'TerLo<i enthroned on a rocky summit (Trachea) and pouring from his raised right hand a shower of rain upon a recumbent mountain-god (Pion). Now in polished classical times the thunderbolt was comm.only regarded as a weapon flung by Zeus.^* But in by-gone animistic days Zeus had been identified with his own bolt.^^ Similarly in the historical period rain was " water from Zeus," or " the shower of Zeus."-^^ But there were not wanting expressions that hinted at a closer connection. Matron, the parodist of Homer, dubbed rain " the child of Zeus " ; ^'' Orphic writers spoke of it as " the tears of Zeus " ; -^^ Aristophanes moj'e sua as the water of Zeus.^^ Indeed, it is probable that Zeus had originally been thought to come down himself in the form of rain. This belief may underlie the usage of ^i]viov or ^ijvlov vScop, i.e:, " Zeus- water," as a term for rain-water in magical formulEe."° It would account for the extraordinary significance attached

'^ Brit. Mtis. Cat. Gk. Coins Ionia, p. 79, pi. 13, 9. Eumelus {frag. 18 Kinkel) ap. Lyd. de mens., 4. 48, states that on the top of Mount Tmolus was a place called originally VovaX Aiof 'TfT-iou, later ^evaiov.

''' On Zeus Kepauj/o/SdXoc, iyx^i-K^^pavvog, t\a(nj3p6v-7]c, &c., see the references collected by Gruppe, p. 11 11, n. 3.

'* See Farnell, i., 45 f., who cites the Zeus KepavvoQ of Mantinea, the Zeus Karaij3dr)]g of Olympia and elsewhere, the Zeus KaTTTrwrag of Gythium, &c.

"* 'Ek Aiugvcwp Hdt., 2. 13 ; Ap. Rhod., 2. 11 22; Plut. (jna:stt. nat., 2: Aibg opiSpog, Od. g. 11 1 ; Theocr., 17. 78.

Matron aj>. Athen., 2. 64 c, dg ev xh'^V ^p'^'^^ ^>-og irdig uairiTog ufi^pog.

Clem. Alex, strom., 5. 8. ^O, 'ETriysvrjg tv riii Trepl Tfjg ^Op(ptijjg TTou'jatujg TO. ISidZovra Trap' 'Op(pei tKTitiifievog frjcn. . . SaKpva Aivg tov oji^inov SrfKovv.

Anstoph. 7iub., 373. Kairoi Trporspov ruv Ai' d\i]6aic ipfirjv did koukLvov ovpeiv.

^ Wessely, Griechische Zatiberpapyrzis von Pa7'is u. Londott, Wien, 1SS8, pap. Paris. 225, lav jiiv rovg liTovpaviovg Qtovg K\y^rj Z,{]viov {sc. fidXe vcajp); Wessely, JVeue Griechische Zaiiberpapyri, Wien, 1893, p. 41, 630, Z,r]viov viiarog.