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Homer's Wild She-Mules

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 September 2015

G. Devereux
G. Devereux*
Affiliation:
École des Hautes Études, Paris
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Extract

Hellenists still debate whether the ‘wild she-mules’ (ἡμιόνων γένος ἀγροτεράων) of the Iliad (ii 852) are domestic mules or wild equidae.

The problem is further complicated by the fact that the ancients did not seem to differentiate adequately between the true wild ass and the wild hemione, although, according to Hančar's authoritative book—which incorporates the findings of modern zoology—the two are definitely distinct. There is, furthermore, a great deal of plausibility in Keller's statement that the ancients did not always differentiate properly even between wild horses and wild hemiones. In fact, the only author who seems to have had more than an inkling that there is a difference between wild asses and hemiones is Aristotle (Historia Animalium vi 36=580b). Even the distinction between wild species and the domestic mule is sometimes so blurred that only the report that a ‘mule’ had a foal enables one to decide that the animal is a domesticated hemione or wild ass. Under these conditions little help can be derived from nomenclature, though, for the sake of completeness, we will indicate whether the animal is called hemionos, onos agrios, onagros, asinus ferus, or mula.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Hellenic Studies , Volume 85 , November 1965 , pp. 29 - 32
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies 1965

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References

1 Hančar, F., Das Pferd in prähistorischer und früher historischer zeit (Vienna, 1956).Google Scholar

2 Olck's article ‘Esel’ in Pauly-Wissowa uses a wholly obsolete taxonomy, apart from being poorly reasoned.

3 Die antike Tierwelt i (Leipzig, 1909).

4 Troy (London, 1912) 287 f.

5 By contrast, this country did export valuable horses. For the excellence of Enetian horses—indispensable for the breeding of fine mules—cf. Devereux, G., ‘The Enetian Horse of Alkman's Partheneion ’, Hermes (in press)Google Scholar and Devereux, G., ‘The Enetian Horses of Hippolytos’, Ant. Class. xxxiii (1964) 375–383.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

6 Barrett, W. S., Hippolytus (Oxford, 1964)Google Scholar ad vv. 231, 1131 indicates, however, that, in Homer, the team harnessed to a chariot was sotnetimes spoken of as feminine, while the self-same horses, when spoken of individually, were referred to as males.

7 Edmonds' emendation of ὀνείρων to ὀνάγρων in Alkman, , Partheneion 49 Google Scholar has been ignored, both as geographically irrelevant and as untenable on other grounds.