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of foolish men, as Apollonides, also called Horapius, recalls in a book entitled Semenouthi and in his other histories concerning both the Egyptian religion and their kings. And why should I speak of the myths of the Greeks and the vain labor in them, Pluto ruling over darkness, and Poseidon plunging beneath the seas and embracing Melanippe and begetting a man-eating son, or of the children of Zeus, all that the authors dramatized? And that these were born men and not gods, they themselves recount their lineage. But Aristophanes the comic poet, in his work entitled The Birds, undertaking to speak about the creation of the world, said that the constitution of the world was at first an egg, saying: First a black-winged one laid an egg. But Satyrus too, in his history of the demes of the Alexandrians, beginning from Philopator, who was also called Ptolemy, reveals that Dionysus was his founder; for which reason Ptolemy also established the first tribe. Therefore Satyrus speaks thus: "From Dionysus and Althaea, the daughter of Thestius, was born Deianeira; and from her and Heracles, the son of Zeus, Hyllus; and from him, Cleodaeus; and from him, Aristomachus; and from him, Temenus; and from him, Ceisus; and from him, Maron; and from him, Thestius; and from him, Acous; and from him, Aristodamidas; and from him, Caranus; and from him, Coenus; and from him, Tyrimmas; and from him, Perdiccas; and from him, Philip; and from him, Aeropus; and from him, Alcetas; and from him, Amyntas; and from him, Bocrus; and from him, Meleager; and from him, Arsinoe; and from her and Lagus, Ptolemy, also called Soter; and from him and Berenice, Ptolemy Philadelphus; and from him and Arsinoe, Ptolemy Euergetes; and from him and Berenice, the daughter of Magas who was king in Cyrene, Ptolemy Philopator. Thus then the kinship with Dionysus of those who have reigned in Alexandria is comprised thus. whence also in the Dionysian tribe demes are registered. Altheis, from the one who became the wife of Dionysus, the daughter of Thestius, Althaea. Deianeiris, from the daughter of Dionysus and Althaea, the wife of Heracles. whence also the demes according to them have their names: Ariadnis from the daughter of Minos, the wife of Dionysus, a father-loving child who had intercourse with Dionysus in the form of Prymnis , Thestis from Thestius, the father of Althaea, Thoantis from Thoas, child of Dionysus, Staphylis from Staphylus, son of Dionysus, Euainis from Eunous, son of Dionysus, Maronis from Maron, son of Ariadne and Dionysus. For all these are sons of Dionysus." But many other names have come to be and exist to this day, from Heracles those called Heraclidae, and from Apollo, Apollonidae and Apollonii, and from Poseidon, Poseidonii, and from Zeus, Dii and Diogenae. And why should I further recount the multitude of such names and genealogies? so that in every way are mocked those who

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ματαίων ἀνθρώπων, ὡς μέμνηται Ἀπολλωνίδης, ὁ καὶ Ὁράπιος ἐπικληθείς, ἐν βίβλῳ τῇ ἐπιγραφομένῃ Σεμενουθὶ καὶ ταῖς λοιπαῖς κατ' αὐτὸν ἱστορίαις περί τε τῆς θρησκείας τῆς Aἰγυπτιακῆς καὶ τῶν βασιλέων αὐτῶν. Τί δέ μοι λέγειν τοὺς κατὰ Ἕλληνας μύθους καὶ τὴν ἐν αὐτοῖς ματαιοπονίαν, Πλούτωνα μὲν σκότους βασιλεύοντα, καὶ Ποσειδῶνα ὑπὸ πόντων δύνοντα καὶ τῇ Μελανίππῃ περιπλεκόμενον καὶ υἱὸν ἀνθρωποβόρον γεννήσαντα, ἢ περὶ τῶν τοῦ ∆ιὸς παίδων ὁπόσα οἱ συγγραφεῖς ἐτραγῴδησαν; καὶ ὅτι οὗτοι ἄνθρωποι καὶ οὐ θεοὶ ἐγεννήθησαν, τὸ γένος αὐτῶν αὐτοὶ καταλέγουσιν. Ἀριστοφάνης δὲ ὁ κωμικὸς ἐν ταῖς ἐπιγραφομέναις Ὄρνισιν, ἐπιχειρήσας περὶ τῆς τοῦ κόσμου ποιήσεως, ἔφη ἐν πρώτοις ὠὸν γεγενῆσθαι τὴν σύστασιν τοῦ κόσμου, λέγων· Πρώτιστα τεκὼν μελανόπτερος ᾠόν. Ἀλλὰ καὶ Σάτυρος ἱστορῶν τοὺς δήμους Ἀλεξανδρέων, ἀρξάμενος ἀπὸ Φιλοπάτορος τοῦ καὶ Πτολεμαίου προσαγορευθέντος, τούτου μηνύει ∆ιόνυσον ἀρχηγέτην γεγονέναι· διὸ καὶ φυλὴν ὁ Πτολεμαῖος πρώτην κατέστησεν. λέγει οὖν ὁ Σάτυρος οὕτως· "∆ιονύσου καὶ Ἀλθαίας τῆς Θεστίου γεγενῆσθαι ∆ηϊάνειραν, τῆς δὲ καὶ Ἡρακλέους τοῦ ∆ιὸς Ὕλλον, τοῦ δὲ Κλεοδαῖον, τοῦ δὲ Ἀριστόμαχον, τοῦ δὲ Τήμενον, τοῦ δὲ Κεῖσον, τοῦ δὲ Μάρωνα, τοῦ δὲ Θέστιον, τοῦ δὲ Ἀκοόν, τοῦ δὲ Ἀριστοδαμίδαν, τοῦ δὲ Καρανόν, τοῦ δὲ Κοινόν, τοῦ δὲ Τυρίμμαν, τοῦ δὲ Περδίκκαν, τοῦ δὲ Φίλιππον, τοῦ δὲ Ἀέροπον, τοῦ δὲ Ἀλκέταν, τοῦ δὲ Ἀμύνταν, τοῦ δὲ Βόκρον, τοῦ δὲ Μελέαγρον, τοῦ δὲ Ἀρσινόην, τῆς δὲ καὶ Λάγου Πτολεμαῖον τὸν καὶ Σωτῆρα, τοῦ δὲ καὶ Βερενίκης Πτολεμαῖον τὸν Φιλάδελφον, τοῦ δὲ καὶ Ἀρσινόης Πτολεμαῖον τὸν Eὐεργέτην, τοῦ δὲ καὶ Βερενίκης τῆς Μάγα τοῦ ἐν Κυρήνῃ βασιλεύσαντος Πτολεμαῖον τὸν Φιλοπάτορα. ἡ μὲν οὖν πρὸς ∆ιόνυσον τοῖς ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ βασι- λεύσασιν συγγένεια οὕτως περιέχει. ὅθεν καὶ ἐν τῇ ∆ιονυσίᾳ φυλῇ δῆμοί εἰσιν κατακεχωρισμένοι. Ἀλθηῒς ἀπὸ τῆς γενομένης γυναικὸς ∆ιονύσου, θυγατρὸς δὲ Θεστίου, Ἀλθαίας. ∆ηϊανειρὶς ἀπὸ τῆς θυγατρὸς ∆ιονύσου καὶ Ἀλθαίας, γυναικὸς δὲ Ἡρακλέους. ὅθεν καὶ τὰς προσωνυμίας ἔχουσιν οἱ κατ' αὐτοὺς δῆμοι· Ἀριαδνὶς ἀπὸ τῆς θυγατρὸς Μίνω, γυναικὸς δὲ ∆ιονύσου, παιδὸς πατροφίλης τῆς μιχθείσης ∆ιονύσῳ ἐν μορφῇ Πρύμνιδι , Θεστὶς ἀπὸ Θεστίου τοῦ Ἀλθαίας πατρός, Θοαντὶς ἀπὸ Θοαντὸς παιδὸς ∆ιονύσου, Σταφυλὶς ἀπὸ Σταφύλου υἱοῦ ∆ιονύσου, Eὐαινὶς ἀπὸ Eὐνόος υἱοῦ ∆ιονύσου, Μαρωνὶς ἀπὸ Μάρωνος υἱοῦ Ἀριάδνης καὶ ∆ιονύσου. οὗτοι γὰρ πάντες υἱοὶ ∆ιονύσου." Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἑτέραι πολλαὶ ὀνομασίαι γεγόνασιν καί εἰσιν ἕως τοῦ δεῦρο, ἀπὸ Ἡρακλέους Ἡρακλεῖδαι καλούμενοι, καὶ ἀπὸ Ἀπόλλωνος Ἀπολλωνίδαι καὶ Ἀπολλώνιοι, καὶ ἀπὸ Ποσειδῶνος Ποσειδώνιοι, καὶ ἀπὸ ∆ιὸς ∆ῖοι καὶ ∆ιογέναι. Καὶ τί μοι τὸ λοιπὸν τὸ πλῆθος τῶν τοιούτων ὀνομασιῶν καὶ γενεαλογιῶν καταλέγειν; ὥστε κατὰ πάντα τρόπον ἐμπαίζονται οἱ