Series | Antiquity Studies
Edited book | ΦΑΙΔΙΜΟΣ ΕΚΤΩΡ
Chapter | Ovid and the Ass (Fast. 1.391-440, 6.319-46)

Ovid and the Ass (Fast. 1.391-440, 6.319-46)

Abstract

The focus of this paper is the double aetiology of the very first sacrifice of the ass in Ovid’s Fasti 1 and 6. I explore Ovid’s sources, in particular Hyginus’ Astronomica and Eratosthenes’ Catasterismoi and argue that the two Ovidian episodes look back to two Eratosthenic aetiological variants, both of which pertain to the catasterisation of the Asses. Regarding the significance of Priapus’ episode in the sacrificial list of Book 1, the sacrifice of the ass is programmatic for Ovid’s elegiac project: the donkey deserves to be sacrificed, since through its actions it undermines Priapus’ elegiac love and so poses a serious threat to the generic identity of the work. In Book 6 the ass is endowed with a national dimension, which was already inherent in Hyginus’ Eratosthenic version of the myth.


Open access

Submitted: May 17, 2021 | Accepted: June 23, 2021 | Published Dec. 16, 2021 | Language: en

Keywords Eratosthenes’ Catasterismoi • Priapus • Hyginus’ Astronomica • Sacrifice • Programmatic • Ass

Copyright © 2021 Myrto Garani. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/978-88-6969-548-3/028


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