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they honored the departed; but indeed *februare* also means to purify the pontifical books, [calling] Februus Pluto. That the daemonic tribe under the moon is divided in three according to Iamblichus; and the terrestrial part of it is avenging, the aerial part is purificatory, and the part near the lunar zone is saving, which indeed we also know as heroic; and a certain very great daemon is said to rule all of this; and this would rather be Pluto, as the same Iamblichus says. They deem the month of February to have been dedicated to Hera because Hera seems to the natural philosophers to be the upper air; and purification is directly suited to the air. And the temples and the sacred vessels were purified during this month; and similarly also in private matters everyone held to purification. And because in February the libations for the departed were performed, for this reason Numa shortened it, judging it unholy for the month dedicated to the chthonic deities, who diminish all things, to be honored equally with the others. And it is called not only *Februarius* but also *Februatus*, because its guardian is referred to in the sacred rites as both *Februata* and *Februalis*. 4.26 Those of the Romans who write on natural history say, that seed cast into the womb on the third day is changed into blood, and first sketches out the heart, which is said to be formed first, and to die last; for if three is the beginning of numbers, and it is an odd number, then the beginning of generation is also from it. And on the ninth it coagulates and is formed together into flesh and marrow; and on the fortieth it is completed into a perfect form and configuration and, to speak simply, a complete human. Similarly, by analogy with the days, so also with the months; in the third month it begins to move, being attached to the womb, and in the ninth month it is completely finished and hastens toward exit. And if it is female, in the ninth month, but if it is the superior sex, at the beginning of the tenth, because the number nine, being female and proper to the Moon, is referred to matter, while the tenth is all-perfect and male. And it becomes female and male according to the predominance of heat; for when the heat in the seed abounds, since the coagulation happens quickly, it is made male and is formed quickly, but when it is diminished, it is overpowered by the influx and, being overcome, is made female, and coagulating more slowly, it is also formed more slowly. And that the account is true, aborted males even within forty days come forth formed, but females even after forty days are fleshy and unformed. And after birth they say the infant is unwrapped on the third day, and on the ninth it becomes strong and endures touch; and on the fortieth it acquires the ability to laugh and begins to recognize its mother. And concerning the dissolution into elements they say that nature again observes the same numbers in reverse, and through those things by which it was constituted, through them it is again dissolved. At any rate, when a person has died, on the third day the body is completely changed and loses the recognizability of its appearance; and on the ninth the whole thing dissolves, with the heart still preserved in it; and on the fortieth this too perishes with the whole. For this reason those who make offerings to the dead observe the third, ninth, and fortieth day, commemorating the former constitution, the growth after that, and indeed the end of the dissolution. 4.27 That when the Gauls had taken Rome, Camillus, having gathered a large multitude, falls upon the enemies; and a fierce battle having taken place, their swords along with their armor having been broken—for the Romans did not yet use iron breastplates, but bronze ones according to ancient practice— for the rest they came to hand-to-hand combat and dragged each other both by the crests of their helmets and indeed by the very hairs of their beards; and finally he drove off the barbarians and

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κατοιχομένους ἐτίμων· ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ φεβρουᾶρε τὸ καθᾶραι τὰ ποντιφικάλια βιβλία καλεῖ, Φέβρον τὸν Πλούτωνα. ὅτι τὸ ὑπὸ σελήνην δαιμόνιον φῦλον τριχῆ διῄρηται κατὰ τὸν Ἰάμβλιχον· καὶ τὸ μὲν πρόσγειον αὐτοῦ τιμωρόν, τὸ δὲ ἀέριον καθαρτικόν, τὸ δὲ πρὸς τῇ σεληνιακῇ ζώνῃ σωτήριόν ἐστιν, ὃ δὴ καὶ ἡρωϊκὸν ἴσμεν· ἡγεῖσθαι δὲ λέγεται παντὸς τούτου μέγιστός τις δαίμων· οὗτος δ' ἂν εἴη μᾶλλον ὁ Πλού των, ὥς φησιν ὁ αὐτὸς Ἰάμβλιχος. τὸν Φεβρουάριον μῆνα Ἥρᾳ ἀνατεθῆναι ἀξιοῦσι διὰ τὸ τὴν Ἥραν παρὰ τοῖς φυσικοῖς δοκεῖν εἶναι τὸν ὕπτιον ἀέρα· ὁ δὲ καθαρμὸς ἄντικρυς τῷ ἀέρι ἁρμόδιος. ἐκαθαίροντο δὲ οἱ ναοὶ καὶ τὰ ἱερὰ σκεύη ἐπὶ τούτου τοῦ μηνός· ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἰδιωτικῶν πάντες τοῦ καθαρμοῦ ἀντείχοντο. ὅτι δὲ ἐν τῷ Φεβρουαρίῳ αἱ χοαὶ τῶν κατοιχομένων ἐτελοῦντο, διὰ τοῦτο ὁ Νουμᾶς αὐτὸν ἠλάττωσεν, ἀνόσιον εἶναι κρίνων ἴσα τοῖς ἄλλοις τιμᾶσθαι τὸν τοῖς γε τὸ πᾶν ἐλαττοῦσι χθονίοις ἐγκείμενον. οὐ μόνον δὲ Φεβρουάριος ἀλλὰ καὶ Φεβρουάτος λέγεται, διὰ τὴν τούτου ἔφορον καὶ Φεβρουάταν καὶ Φεβρουάλεμ τοῖς ἱεροῖς ἀναφέρεσθαι. 4.26 Οἱ τῶν Ῥωμαίων τὴν φυσικὴν ἱστορίαν συγγράφοντές φασι, σπέρμα τῇ μήτρᾳ καταβαλλόμενον ἐπὶ μὲν τῆς τρίτης ἡμέρας ἀλλοιοῦσθαι εἰς αἷμα, καὶ πρώτην διαζωγραφεῖν τὴν καρδίαν, ἥτις πρώτη μὲν διαπλάττεσθαι, τελευταία δὲ ἀποθνήσκειν λέγεται· εἰ γὰρ ἀρχὴ ἀριθμῶν ὁ τρεῖς, περιττὸς δέ ἐστιν ἀριθμός, ἄρα καὶ ἀρχὴ γενέσεως ἐξ αὐτοῦ. ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ἐννάτης πήγνυται καὶ εἰς σάρκα καὶ μυελοὺς συγγλοιοῦται· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς τεσσαρακοστῆς εἰς ὄψιν τελείαν καὶ διατύπωσιν ἀποτελεῖσθαι καὶ ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν τέλειον ἄνθρωπον. ὁμοίως κατὰ ἀναλογίαν τῶν ἡμερῶν καὶ ἐπὶ μηνῶν· ἐπὶ τοῦ τρίτου μηνὸς ἐγκινεῖσθαι ἐχόμενον τῇ μήτρᾳ, ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ ἐννάτου μηνὸς παντελῶς ἀπαρτίζεσθαι καὶ πρὸς ἔξοδον σπεύδειν. καὶ εἰ μέν ἐστι θῆλυ, κατὰ τὸν ἔννατον μῆνα, εἰ δὲ κρεῖττον, κατὰ τὸν δέκατον ἀρχόμενον, διὰ τὸ τὸν μὲν ἔννατον ἀριθμόν, θῆλυν ὄντα καὶ Σελήνης οἰκεῖον, πρὸς τὴν ὕλην ἀναφέρεσθαι, τὸν δὲ δέκατον παντέλειον εἶναι καὶ ἄρρενα. θῆλυ δὲ καὶ ἄρρεν γίνεται κατὰ τὴν τοῦ θερμοῦ ἐπικράτειαν· πλεονάζοντος μὲν τοῦ κατὰ τὸ σπέρμα θερμοῦ, ἅτε τῆς πήξεως ταχείας γινομένης, ἀρρενοῦται τε καὶ διαμορφοῦται ταχέως, ἐλαττουμένης δὲ κατισχύεται ὑπὸ τῆς ἐπιρροῆς καὶ καταγωνιζόμενον θηλύνεται, βράδιον δὲ πηγνύμενον βράδιον καὶ μορφοῦται. ὅτι δὲ ἀληθὴς ὁ λόγος, τὰ μὲν ἄρρενα καὶ τῶν τεσσαράκοντα ἡμερῶν ἐντὸς ἐκτιτρωσκόμενα μεμορφωμένα προπίπτει, τὰ δὲ θήλεα καὶ μετὰ τὰς τεσσαράκοντα ἡμέρας σαρκώδη τε καὶ ἀδιατύπωτα. μετὰ δὲ τὴν κύησιν ἐπὶ τῆς τρίτης τεχθὲν ἀποσπαργανοῦσθαι τὸ βρέφος φασίν, ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ἐννάτης ἰσχυροποιεῖσθαι καὶ ἁφὴν ὑπομένειν· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς τεσσαρακοστῆς προσλαμβάνειν τὸ γελαστικὸν καὶ ἄρχεσθαι ἐπιγινώσκειν τὴν μητέρα. ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ἀναστοιχειώσεως τοὺς ἴσους φασὶν ἀριθμοὺς αὖθις ἐξ ὑποστροφῆς παραφυλάττειν τὴν φύσιν, καὶ δι' ὧν συνέστη, δι' αὐτῶν αὖθις ἀναλύεσθαι. τελευτήσαντος γοῦν ἀνθρώπου, ἐπὶ μὲν τῆς τρίτης ἀλλοιοῦται παντελῶς καὶ τὴν ἐπίγνωσιν τῆς ὄψεως διαπόλλυσι τὸ σῶμα· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ἐννάτης διαρρεῖ σύμπαν, ἔτι σωζομένης αὐτῷ τῆς καρδίας· ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς τεσσαρακοστῆς καὶ αὕτη συναπόλλυται τῷ παντί. διὰ τοῦτο τρίτην ἐννάτην καὶ τεσσαρακοστὴν ἐπὶ τῶν τεθνηκότων φυλάττουσιν οἱ ἐναγίζοντες αὐτοῖς, τῆς τέ ποτε συστάσεως τῆς τε μετ' ἐκείνην ἐπιδόσεως καὶ τὸ δὴ πέρας τῆς ἀναλύσεως ἐπιμιμνησκόμενοι. 4.27 Ὅτι Γάλλων παραλαβόντων τὴν Ῥώμην ὁ Κάμιλλος συναγείρας πλῆθος ἀθρόον ἐμπίπτει τοῖς πολεμίοις· καὶ μάχης κρατερᾶς γενομένης κλασθέντων αὐτοῖς τῶν ξιφῶν σὺν καὶ τοῖς ὅπλοις-οὔπω γὰρ σιδηροῖς ἐχρῶντο Ῥωμαῖοι θώραξι, χαλκοῖς δὲ κατὰ τὴν παλαιότητα- τὸ λοιπὸν εἰς χεῖρας ἐλθεῖν ἕλκειν τε ἀλλήλους ἔκ τε τῶν λοφιῶν τῶν περικεφαλαιῶν καὶ ἐξ αὐτῶν μέντοι τῶν τοῦ πώγωνος τριχῶν· τέλος δὲ τοὺς βαρβάρους ἀπήλασε καὶ