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is forced to interpret as father of the age, or because the Greeks called the year *enon*, as Callimachus in the first book of the *Aetia*: "the four-year-old son of Damasus, Telestorides," or from *ia* instead of *mia* (one) according to the Pythagoreans. whence Messalas believes this one to be Aion; for indeed on the fifth of this month the ancients used to celebrate a festival of Aion. 4.2 They say twelve presidents, called Salii, were appointed by Numa, singing hymns to Janus according to the number of the Italic months. But Varro in the fourteenth book of *Divine Matters* says that he is called heaven among the Tuscans and overseer of every deed and Popanon because on the Kalends cakes (*popana*) are offered. And Fontenius in his work *On Statues* thinks him to be the overseer of all time, and for this reason his temple has twelve altars, according to the number of the months. And Gabius Bassus in his work *On the Gods* believes him to be a daimon set over the air, and through him the prayers of men are borne up to the greater powers; for this reason he is said to be two-formed from his appearance both towards us and towards the gods. And in our Philadelphia even now a trace of antiquity is preserved; for on the day of the Kalends Janus himself, supposedly, proceeds in procession figured with a two-formed face, and they call him Saturn, that is, Kronos. Indeed Lutatius [says he is] Helios from his ruling both gates, of the rising, perhaps, and of the setting. And they say that he is also the overseer of those setting out for war and through one face he sends forth the army, and through the other he calls it back. And Praetextatus the hierophant, who with Sopater the mystagogue and Constantine the emperor assisted in the founding of this blessed city, wishes him to be some power set over each Bear [constellation] and to send the more divine souls to the lunar dance. And these things the Roman hierophants [say]; but another says that Janus was a hero and was the first to build sacred precincts and perform honors to the gods, and for this reason he came to be remembered in the sacred rites. Indeed Demophilus wishes him to be the first to build houses and gateways and to have been named Januarius from *ianua*, which is door. And that he also had a sister named Camasene. Ovid the Roman allegorizes Janus to be Chaos. Dio the Roman says Janus was a certain ancient hero, who through his hospitality to Kronos received knowledge of the future and of the past, and for this reason he is fashioned two-faced by the Romans; from whom the month was called January, and the beginning of the year comes from the same month. 4.3 But this month was formerly called Monias from the monad. And the first festival of the Kalends is most revered by the Romans. And the consul, riding on a white horse and himself in white robes, leading a procession, would ride up to the Capitol-and this manner of procession they traditionally called an *ovatio* from the sacrifice of sheep. And the consul would offer the horse to Zeus-for he is Helios himself according to Pherecydes-then from there, having put on the consular robe, he would lead the way. This is in honor of Zeus, as though the Giants had been overcome by him, instead of winter being vanquished by the sun. The mythographers call winter a certain many-handed Briareus, because the moisture is poured out in many branching streams during it. And now Briareus fights with Zeus, that is, with the sun, and again becomes an ally to him because moist substance is an ally to the hot. 4.4 As Helios, then, lengthens the day, the consul proceeds, and the day is one of festival and armistice. For the sake of an omen the magistrates would be on their platforms and all the armies would be assembled with their standards. And in olden times they would give each other dried figs, supposedly making a beginning from sweet food. And they would give laurel leaves, which they called

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ἑρμηνεῦσαι βιάζεται ὡσεὶ τοῦ αἰῶνος πατέρα, ἢ ὅτι ἔνον τὸν ἐνιαυτὸν Ἕλληνες εἶπον, ὡς Καλλίμαχος ἐν πρώτῳ αἰτιῶν· τετράενον ∆αμάσου παῖδα Τελεστορίδην, ἢ ἀπὸ τῆς ἴας ἀντὶ τοῦ τῆς μιᾶς κατὰ τοὺς Πυθαγορείους. ὅθεν ὁ Μεσσαλᾶς τοῦτον εἶναι τὸν αἰῶνα νομίζει· καὶ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῆς πέμπτης τοῦ μηνὸς τούτου ἑορτὴν Αἰῶνος ἐπετέλουν οἱ πάλαι. 4.2 ∆υοκαίδεκα πρυτάνεις πρὸς τοῦ Νουμᾶ τοὺς καλουμένους Σαλίους ὁρισθῆναί φασιν ὑμνοῦντας τὸν Ἰανὸν κατὰ τὸν τῶν Ἰταλικῶν μηνῶν ἀριθμόν. ὁ δὲ Βάρρων ἐν τῇ τεσσαρεσκαιδεκάτῃ τῶν θείων πραγμάτων φησὶν αὐτὸν παρὰ Θούσκοις οὐρανὸν λέγεσθαι καὶ ἔφορον πάσης πράξεως καὶ Ποπάνωνα διὰ τὸ ἐν ταῖς Καλένδαις ἀναφέρεσθαι πόπανα. Φοντήϊος δὲ ἐν τῷ περὶ ἀγαλμάτων ἔφορον αὐτὸν οἴεται τοῦ παντὸς χρόνου τυγχάνειν, καὶ ταύτῃ δωδεκάβωμον εἶναι τὸν αὐτοῦ ναὸν κατὰ τὸν τῶν μηνῶν ἀριθμόν. ὁ δὲ Γάβιος Βάσσος ἐν τῷ περὶ θεῶν δαίμονα αὐτὸν εἶναι νομίζει τεταγμένον ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀέρος, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων εὐχὰς ἀναφέρεσθαι τοῖς κρείττοσι· ταύτῃ δίμορφος εἶναι λέγεται ἔκ τε τῆς πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἔκ τε τῆς πρὸς θεοὺς ὄψεως. καὶ ἐν τῇ καθ' ἡμᾶς Φιλαδελφείᾳ ἔτι καὶ νῦν ἴχνος τῆς ἀρχαιότητος σώζεται· ἐν γὰρ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῶν Καλενδῶν πρόεισι ἐσχηματισμένος αὐτὸς δῆθεν ὁ Ἰανὸς ἐν διμόρφῳ προσώπῳ, καὶ Σατοῦρνον αὐτὸν καλοῦσιν οἷον Κρόνον. ὅ γε μὴν Λουτάτιος Ἥλιον παρὰ τὸ ἑκατέρας πύλης ἄρχειν, ἀνατολῆς ἴσως καὶ δύσεως. φασὶ δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν καὶ ἔφορον τῶν ἐπὶ πόλεμον ὁρμώντων τυγχάνειν καὶ διὰ μὲν τῆς μιᾶς ὄψεως ἀποπέμπειν διὰ δὲ τῆς ἑτέρας ἀνακαλεῖσθαι τὸ στράτευμα. ὁ δὲ Πραιτέξτατος ὁ ἱεροφάντης, ὁ Σωπάτρῳ τε τῷ τελεστῇ καὶ Κωνσταντίνῳ τῷ αὐτοκράτωρι συλλαβὼν ἐπὶ τῷ πολισμῷ τῆς εὐδαίμονος ταύτης πόλεως, δύναμιν αὐτὸν εἶναί τινα βούλεται ἐφ' ἑκατέρας Ἄρκτου τεταγμένην καὶ τὰς θειοτέρας ψυχὰς ἐπὶ τὸν σεληνιακὸν χορὸν ἀποπέμπειν. καὶ ταῦτα μὲν οἱ Ῥωμαίων ἱεροφάνται· ἄλλος δέ φησι τὸν Ἰανὸν ἥρωα γενέσθαι καὶ πρῶτον κατασκευάσαι τεμένη καὶ τιμὰς τοῖς θεοῖς ἐπιτελέσαι, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μνήμην αὐτοῦ ἐν τοῖς ἱεροῖς γενέσθαι. ὅ γε μὴν ∆ημόφιλος πρῶτον αὐτὸν βούλεται οἴκους καὶ πυλεῶνας κατασκευάσαι καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς ἰανούας, ὅ ἐστι θύρας, Ἰανουάριον ὀνομασθῆναι. ἔχειν δὲ αὐτὸν καὶ ἀδελφὴν τοὔνομα Καμασήνην. Ὀβίδιος ὁ Ῥωμαῖος Ἰανὸν ἀλληγορεῖ τὸ χάος εἶναι. ∆ίων ὁ Ῥωμαῖος ἀρχαῖόν τινα ἥρωα Ἰανὸν λέγει, διὰ τὴν τοῦ Κρόνου ξένισιν λαβόντα τὴν γνῶσιν τῶν μελλόντων καὶ τῶν προϋπαρχόντων, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο διπρόσωπον ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων πλάττεσθαι· ἐξ οὗ τόν τε μῆνα κληθῆναι Ἰανουάριον, καὶ τὴν τοῦ ἔτους ἀρχὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ αὐτοῦ μηνὸς γίνεσθαι. 4.3 Οὗτος δὲ ὁ μὴν πρότερον Μονίας ἐκαλεῖτο ἀπὸ τῆς μονάδος. ἡ δὲ πρώτη τῶν Καλενδῶν ἑορτὴ Ῥωμαίοις σεβασμιωτάτη. καὶ ὁ ὕπατος ἵππῳ λευκῷ ἐποχούμενος καὶ αὐτὸς λευχείμων ἡγούμενος πομπῆς ἀνέτρεχεν ἐν τῷ Καπιτωλίῳ-τὸν δὲ τοιοῦτον τρόπον τῆς πομπῆς πατρίως ὀβατίωνα ἐκάλουν ἐκ τῆς τῶν προβάτων θυσίας. καὶ τὸν μὲν ἵππον προσέφερεν ὁ ὕπατος τῷ ∆ιί-καὶ γὰρ Ἥλιος αὐτὸς κατὰ Φερεκύδην-εἶτ' ἐκεῖθεν τὴν ὕπατον ἀναλαβὼν στολὴν προήρχετο. τοῦτο δὲ εἰς τιμὴν τοῦ ∆ιὸς ὡσεὶ καταγωνισθέντων ἐκείνῳ τῶν Γιγάντων, ἀντὶ τοῦ νικηθέντος τοῦ χείματος ὑπὸ τοῦ ἡλίου. οἱ δὲ μυθικοὶ Βριάρεω τὸν χειμῶνα καλοῦσι πολύχειρά τινα, διὰ τὸ πολυσχιδῶς τὸ ὑγρὸν ἐκχεῖσθαι κατ' αὐτόν. καὶ νῦν μὲν μάχεται ὁ Βριάρεως τῷ ∆ιὶ οἱονεὶ τῷ ἡλίῳ, καὶ σύμμαχος αὖθις αὐτῷ γίνεται διὰ τὸ τὴν ὑγρὰν οὐσίαν σύμμαχον εἶναι τῇ θερμῇ. 4.4 Ἡλίου τοίνυν ἐπεκτείνοντος τὴν ἡμέραν πρόεισιν ὁ ὕπατος, καὶ ἡ μὲν ἡμέρα ἑορτῆς καὶ ἐκεχειρίας. οἰωνοῦ δὲ χάριν οἱ ἄρχοντες ἐπὶ τῶν βημάτων ἐγίνοντο καὶ πάντα τὰ στρατεύματα σὺν τοῖς ἐπισήμοις συνήγετο. καὶ πάλαι μὲν ἰσχάδας ἀλλήλοις ἐπεδίδοσαν, ἀπὸ γλυκείας τροφῆς δῆθεν ἀπαρχόμενοι. φύλλα δὲ δάφνης ἐδίδοσαν ἅπερ ἐκάλουν