The Natural History of Pliny, Volume 1 (of 6)

by the Elder Pliny

“Pliny,” says Buffon[31], “has worked upon a plan which is much more extensive than that of Aristotle, and not improbably too extensive. He has made it his object to embrace every subject; indeed he would appear to have taken the measure of Nature, and to have found her too contracted for his expansive genius. His ‘Natural History,’ independently of that of animals, plants, and minerals, includes an account of the heavens and the earth, of medicine, commerce, navigation, the liberal and mechanical arts, the origin of usages and customs, in a word, the history of all the natural sciences and all the arts of human invention. What, too, is still more astonishing, in each of these departments Pliny shows himself equally great. The grandeur of his ideas and the dignity of his style confer an additional lustre on the profoundness of his erudition; not only did he know all that was known in his time, but he was also gifted with that comprehensiveness of view which in some measure multiplies knowledge. He had all that delicacy of perception upon which depend so materially both elegance and taste, and he communicates to his readers that freedom of thought and that boldness of sentiment, which constitute the true germ of philosophy. His work, as varied as Nature herself, always paints her in her most attractive colours. It is, so to say, a compilation from all that had been written before his time: a record of all that was excellent or useful; but this record has in it features so grand, this compilation contains matter grouped in a manner so novel, that it is preferable to most of the original works that treat upon similar subjects.”

The judgment pronounced by Cuvier on Pliny’s work, though somewhat less highly coloured, awards to it a high rank among the most valuable productions of antiquity. “The work of Pliny[32],” says he, “is one of the most precious monuments that have come down to us from ancient times, and affords proof of an astonishing amount of erudition in one who was a warrior and a statesman. To appreciate with justice this vast and celebrated composition, it is necessary to regard it in several points of view—with reference to the plan proposed, the facts stated, and the style employed. The plan proposed by the writer is of immense extent—it is his object to write not merely a Natural History in our restricted sense of the term, not an account merely, more or less detailed, of animals, plants, and minerals, but a work which embraces astronomy, physics, geography, agriculture, commerce, medicine, and the fine arts—and all these in addition to natural history properly so called; while at the same time he continually interweaves with his narrative information upon the arts which bear relation to man considered metaphysically, and the history of nations,—so much so indeed, that in many respects this work was the Encyclopædia of its age. It was impossible in running over, however cursorily, such a prodigious number of subjects, that the writer should not have made us acquainted with a multitude of facts, which, while remarkable in themselves, are the more precious from the circumstance that at the present day he is the only author extant who relates them. It is to be regretted however that the manner in which he has collected and grouped this mass of matter, has caused it to lose some portion of its value, from his mixture of fable with truth, and more especially from the difficulty, and in some cases, the impossibility, of discovering exactly of what object[33] he is speaking. But if Pliny possesses little merit as a critic, it is far otherwise with his talent as a writer, and the immense treasury which he opens to us of Latin terms and forms of expression: these, from the very abundance of the subjects upon which he treats, render his work one of the richest repositories of the Roman language. Wherever he finds it possible to give expression to general ideas or to philosophical views, his language assumes considerable energy and vivacity, and his thoughts present to us a certain novelty and boldness which tend in a very great degree to relieve the dryness of his enumerations, and, with the majority of his readers, excuse the insufficiency of his scientific indications. He is always noble and serious, full of the love of justice and virtue, detestation of cruelty and baseness, of which he had such frightful instances before his eyes, and contempt for that unbridled luxury which in his time had so deeply corrupted the Roman people. For these great merits Pliny cannot be too highly praised, and despite the faults which we are obliged to admit in him when viewed as a naturalist, we are bound to regard him as one of the most meritorious of the Roman writers, and among those most worthy to be reckoned in the number of the classics who wrote after the reign of Augustus.”

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CONTENTS.
OF THE FIRST VOLUME.

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BOOK I.
DEDICATION.
Page
C. Plinius Secundus to his friend Titus Vespasian		[1]
BOOK II.
AN ACCOUNT OF THE WORLD AND THE ELEMENTS.
Chap.
1.	Whether the world be finite, and whether there be more thanone world	[13]
2.	Of the form of the world	[16]
3.	Of its nature; whence the name is derived	[ib.]
4.	Of the elements and the planets	[18]
5.	Of God	[20]
6.	Of the nature of the stars; of the motion of the planets	[25]
7.	Of the eclipses of the moon and the sun	[34]
8.	Of the magnitude of the stars	[35]
9.	An account of the observations that have been made on theheavens by different individuals	[36]
10.	On the recurrence of the eclipses of the sun and the moon	[38]
11.	Of the motion of the moon	[40]
12.	Of the motions of the planets and the general laws of theiraspects	[ib.]
13.	Why the same stars appear at some times more lofty and atother times more near	[42]
14.	Why the same stars have different motions	[47]
15.	General laws of the planets	[48]
16.	The reason why the stars are of different colours	[49]
17.	Of the motion of the sun and the cause of the irregularity ofthe days	[50]
18.	Why thunder is ascribed to Jupiter	[51]
19.	Of the distances of the stars	[52]
20.	Of the harmony of the stars	[ib.]
21.	Of the dimensions of the world	[53]
22.	Of the stars which appear suddenly, or of comets	[55]
23.	Their nature, situation, and species	[56]
24.	The doctrine of Hipparchus about the stars	[59]
25.	Examples from history of celestial prodigies; Faces, Lampades,and Bolides	[ib.]
26.	Trabes Cælestes; Chasma Cæli	[60]
27.	Of the colours of the sky and of celestial flame	[ib.]
28.	Of celestial coronæ	[61]
29.	Of sudden circles	[62]
30.	Of unusually long eclipses of the sun	[ib.]
31.	Many suns	[ib.]
32.	Many moons	[63]
33.	Daylight in the night	[ib.]
34.	Burning shields	[ib.]
35.	An ominous appearance in the heavens, that was seen once only	[ib.]
36.	Of stars which move about in various directions	[64]
37.	Of the stars which are named Castor and Pollux	[ib.]
38.	Of the air, and on the cause of the showers of stones	[65]
39.	Of the stated seasons	[66]
40.	Of the rising of the dog-star	[67]
41.	Of the regular influence of the different seasons	[ib.]
42.	Of uncertain states of the weather	[69]
43.	Of thunder and lightning	[ib.]
44.	The origin of winds	[70]
45.	Various observations respecting winds	[71]
46.	The different kinds of winds	[73]
47.	The periods of the winds	[75]
48.	Nature of the winds	[77]
49.	Ecnephias and Typhon	[79]
50.	Tornadoes; blasting winds; whirlwinds, and other wonderfulkinds of tempests	[80]
51.	Of thunder; in what countries it does not fall, and for whatreason	[ib.]
52.	Of the different kinds of lightning and their wonderful effects	[81]
53.	The Etrurian and the Roman observations on these points	[82]
54.	Of conjuring up thunder	[83]
55.	General laws of lightning	[84]
56.	Objects which are never struck	[86]
57.	Showers of milk, blood, flesh, iron, wool, and baked tiles	[87]
58.	Rattling of arms and the sound of trumpets heard in the sky	[88]
59.	Of stones that have fallen from the clouds. The opinion ofAnaxagoras respecting them	[ib.]
60.	The rainbow	[89]
61.	The nature of hail, snow, hoar, mist, dew; the forms of clouds	[90]
62.	The peculiarities of the weather in different places	[91]
63.	Nature of the earth	[ib.]
64.	Of the form of the earth	[94]
65.	Whether there be antipodes?	[ib.]
66.	How the water is connected with the earth. Of the navigationof the sea and the rivers	[97]
67.	Whether the ocean surrounds the earth	[98]
68.	What part of the earth is inhabited	[100]
69.	That the earth is in the middle of the world	[102]
70.	Of the obliquity of the zones	[ib.]
71.	Of the inequality of climates	[ib.]
72.	In what places eclipses are invisible, and why this is the case	[104]
73.	What regulates the daylight on the earth	[105]
74.	Remarks on dials, as connected with this subject	[106]
75.	When and where there are no shadows	[107]
76.	Where this takes place twice in the year and where the shadowsfall in opposite directions	[108]
77.	Where the days are the longest and where the shortest	[ib.]
78.	Of the first dial	[109]
79.	Of the mode in which the days are computed	[110]
80.	Of the difference of nations as depending on the nature of theworld	[ib.]
81.	Of earthquakes	[111]
82.	Of clefts of the earth	[112]
83.	Signs of an approaching earthquake	[114]
84.	Preservatives against future earthquakes	[ib.]
85.	Prodigies of the earth which have occurred once only	[115]
86.	Wonderful circumstances attending earthquakes	[116]
87.	In what places the sea has receded	[ib.]
88.	The mode in which islands rise up	[117]
89.	What islands have been formed, and at what periods	[118]
90.	Lands which have been separated by the sea	[119]
91.	Islands which have been united to the main land	[ib.]
92.	Lands which have been totally changed into seas	[ib.]
93.	Lands which have been swallowed up	[120]
94.	Cities which have been absorbed by the sea	[ib.]
95.	Of vents in the earth	[121]
96.	Of certain lands which are always shaking, and of floatingislands	[122]
97.	Places in which it never rains	[123]
98.	The wonders of various countries collected together	[ib.]
99.	Concerning the cause of the flowing and ebbing of the sea	[124]
100.	Where the tides rise and fall in an unusual manner	[127]
101.	Wonders of the sea	[128]
102.	The power of the moon over the land and the sea	[ib.]
103.	The power of the sun	[129]
104.	Why the sea is salt	[ib.]
105.	Where the sea is the deepest	[130]
106.	The wonders of fountains and rivers	[131]
107.	The wonders of fire and water united	[138]
108.	Of Maltha	[138]
109.	Of naphtha	[139]
110.	Places which are always burning	[ib.]
111.	Wonders of fire alone	[141]
112.	The dimensions of the earth	[143]
113.	The harmonical proportion of the universe	[147]
BOOK III.
AN ACCOUNT OF COUNTRIES, NATIONS, SEAS, TOWNS, HAVENS, MOUNTAINS,RIVERS, DISTANCES, AND PEOPLES WHO NOW EXIST OR FORMERLYEXISTED.
	Introduction	[151]
1.	The boundaries and gulfs of Europe first set forth in a generalway	[153]
2.	Of Spain generally	[ib.]
3.	Of Bætica	[154]
4.	Of Nearer Spain	[164]
5.	Of the province of Gallia Narbonensis	[174]
6.	Of Italy	[180]
7.	Of the ninth region of Italy	[184]
8.	The seventh region of Italy	[186]
9.	The first region of Italy; the Tiber; Rome	[191]
10.	The third region of Italy	[207]
11.	Sixty-four islands, among which are the Baleares	[210]
12.	Corsica	[213]
13.	Sardinia	[215]
14.	Sicily	[216]
15.	Magna Græcia, beginning at Locri	[222]
16.	The second region of Italy	[225]
17.	The fourth region of Italy	[231]
18.	The fifth region of Italy	[235]
19.	The sixth region of Italy	[237]
20.	The eighth region of Italy; the Padus	[241]
21.	The eleventh region of Italy; Italia Transpadana	[246]
22.	The tenth region of Italy	[248]
23.	Istria, its people and locality	[251]
24.	The Alps, and the Alpine nations	[254]
25.	Liburnia and Illyricum	[257]
26.	Dalmatia	[259]
27.	The Norici	[262]
28.	Pannonia	[263]
29.	Mœsia	[264]
30.	Islands of the Ionian Sea and the Adriatic	[265]
BOOK IV.
AN ACCOUNT OF COUNTRIES, NATIONS, SEAS, TOWNS, HAVENS, MOUNTAINS,RIVERS, DISTANCES, AND PEOPLES WHO NOW EXIST OR FORMERLYEXISTED.
1.	Epirus	[271]
2.	Acarnania	[273]
3.	Ætolia	[275]
4.	Locris and Phocis	[276]
5.	The Peloponnesus	[278]
6.	Achaia	[280]
7.	Messenia	[282]
8.	Laconia	[283]
9.	Argolis	[284]
10.	Arcadia	[285]
11.	Attica	[288]
12.	Bœotia	[290]
13.	Doris	[293]
14.	Phthiotis	[293]
15.	Thessaly Proper	[294]
16.	Magnesia	[296]
17.	Macedonia	[297]
18.	Thrace; the Ægean Sea	[302]
19.	The islands which lie before the lands already mentioned	[310]
20.	Crete	[313]
21.	Eubœa	[316]
22.	The Cyclades	[317]
23.	The Sporades	[320]
24.	The Hellespont.—The lake Mæotis	[326]
25.	Dacia, Sarmatia	[329]
26.	Scythia	[330]
27.	The islands of the Euxine. The islands of the northern ocean	[338]
28.	Germany	[345]
29.	Ninety-six islands of the Gallic ocean	[349]
30.	Britannia	[350]
31.	Gallia Belgica	[353]
32.	Gallia Lugdunensis	[355]
33.	Gallia Aquitanica	[357]
34.	Nearer Spain, its coast along the Gallic ocean	[360]
35.	Lusitania	[363]
36.	The islands in the Atlantic ocean	[367]
37.	The general measurement of Europe	[369]
BOOK V.
AN ACCOUNT OF COUNTRIES, NATIONS, SEAS, TOWNS, HAVENS, MOUNTAINS,RIVERS, DISTANCES, AND PEOPLES WHO NOW EXIST OR FORMERLYEXISTED.
1.	The two Mauritanias	[374]
2.	Numidia	[387]
3.	Africa	[388]
4.	The Syrtes	[391]
5.	Cyrenaica	[395]
6.	Libya Mareotis	[401]
7.	The islands in the vicinity of Africa	[402]
8.	Countries on the other side of Africa	[403]
9.	Egypt and Thebais	[406]
10.	The River Nile	[410]
11.	The cities of Egypt	[416]
12.	The coasts of Arabia, situate on the Egyptian Sea	[422]
13.	Syria	[423]
14.	Idumæa, Palæstina, and Samaria	[424]
15.	Judæa	[427]
16.	Decapolis	[431]
17.	Phœnice	[433]
18.	Syria Antiochia	[436]
19.	The remaining parts of Syria	[438]
20.	The Euphrates	[441]
21.	Syria upon the Euphrates	[443]
22.	Cilicia and the adjoining nations	[446]
23.	Isauria and the Homonades	[450]
24.	Pisidia	[451]
25.	Lycaonia	[ib.]
26.	Pamphylia	[452]
27.	Mount Taurus	[453]
28.	Lycia	[455]
29.	Caria	[458]
30.	Lydia	[465]
31.	Ionia	[466]
32.	Æolis	[472]
33.	Troas and the adjoining nations	[476]
34.	The islands which lie in front of Asia	[479]
35.	Cyprus	[480]
36.	Rhodes	[483]
37.	Samos	[485]
38.	Chios	[486]
39.	Lesbos	[487]
40.	The Hellespont and Mysia	[488]
41.	Phrygia	[490]
42.	Galatia and the adjoining nations	[491]
43.	Bithynia	[493]
44.	The islands of the Propontis	[496]

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NATURAL HISTORY OF PLINY

BOOK I.[34]
DEDICATION.
C. PLINIUS SECUNDUS TO HIS FRIEND TITUS VESPASIAN.

This treatise on Natural History, a novel work in Roman literature, which I have just completed, I have taken the liberty to dedicate to you, most gracious[35] Emperor, an appellation peculiarly suitable to you, while, on account of his age, that of great is more appropriate to your Father;—