APPENDIX C΄ ON DEPILATION: BODY COSMETICS IN CLASSICAL ...

570 APPENDIX C΄
§·Î‰·ÈÌÔÓ›ˆÓ àÓ·Ó‰ÚfiÙÂÚÔÓ ïÚÄÛı·È ÙcÓ ¯Úfi·Ó j ÙeÓ ùÁÎÔÓ ÙÔÜ
ÛÒÌ·ÙÔ˜ ö¯ÂÈÓ ñapplebÚ Ùa Á˘ÌÓ¿ÛÈ·, we must suspect the substitution
of the skin-tint for the beautiful and athletic built of the bodies of the
Spartans. Probably Aelian had in mind the trivial remark about the
healthy tint of those not eschewing physical activity, and even this, as
above remarked, would rather apply to the bronze tan of those
exercising in the open, not the blackened aspect of those working in
the fields.
In a word, it should not be forgotten that delicacy and luxurious
indulgence in pleasures are not incompatible with bodily vigour and
physical valour (especially in an aristocratic context). Satyros
characteristically writes as follows appleÂÚd ÙÔÜ Î·ÏÔÜ \AÏÎÈ‚È¿‰Ô˘, apud
Athenaeus XII, 534b: ϤÁÂÙ·È, ÊËÛ›Ó, ¬ÙÈ âÓ \IˆÓ›÷· ÌbÓ JÓ
âÊ·›ÓÂÙÔ ÙÚ˘ÊÂÚÒÙÂÚÔ˜, âÓ £‹‚·È˜ ‰b ۈ̷ÛÎáÓ Î·d Á˘ÌÓ·˙fiÌÂ-
ÓÔ˜ ÙáÓ £Ë‚·›ˆÓ ·éÙáÓ ÌÄÏÏÔÓ BÔÈÒÙÈÔ˜, âÓ £ÂÙÙ·Ï›÷· ‰b îappleappleÔ-
ÙÚÔÊáÓ Î·d ìÓÈÔ¯áÓ ÙáÓ \AÏ¢·‰áÓ îappleappleÈÎÒÙÂÚÔ˜, âÓ apple¿ÚÙFË ‰b
ηÚÙÂÚ›·Ó ηd àʤÏÂÈ·Ó âappleÈÙˉ‡ˆÓ âӛη ÙÔf˜ §¿ÎˆÓ·˜, ñappleÂÚFÉÚÂÓ
‰b ηd ÙcÓ ÙáÓ £Ú÷·ÎáÓ àÎÚ·ÙÔappleÔÛ›·Ó.
The general contrast between light skin tints and dark-skinned
male bodies was carried a step further by its specialization in a
particularly relevant area of the human body. I refer to the antithesis
Ï¢Îfiapple˘ÁÔÈ - ÌÂÏ¿Ìapple˘ÁÔÈ. Due, probably, to another feat of shallow
cleverness on the part of Alexandrian scholarship, the matter appears a
little confused in our sources, but it really is clear enough. Among the
various kinds of eagle, two prominent ones were called apple‡Á·ÚÁÔÈ and
̤ϷÓ˜ or ÌÂÏ·Ó¿ÂÙÔÈ (v. Aristotle, Historia Animalium, Z, 563b5-
7, and especially I, 618b17 sqq.). The latter is a wilder species (but
caring for its offspring, which is an exception as Aristotle implies,
618b29), smallest but strongest of the eagles (̤Ϸ˜ ÙcÓ ¯Úfi·Ó ηd
̤ÁÂıÔ˜ âÏ¿¯ÈÛÙÔ˜, ÎÚ¿ÙÈÛÙÔ˜ ÙÔ‡ÙˆÓ 618b26-27), inhabiting
mountains and forests (ibid.), described by Aristotle in a series of
positive attributes (618b29-31): öÛÙÈ ‰b è΢‚fiÏÔ˜ ηd Âéı‹ÌˆÓ ηd
ôÊıÔÓÔ˜ ηd ôÊÔ‚Ô˜ ηd Ì¿¯ÈÌÔ˜ ηd ÂûÊËÌÔ˜. It is to this kind that
Achilles is compared in Ilias Φ, 251-3:
ËϽ‰Ë˜ ‰’ àapplefiÚÔ˘ÛÂÓ ¬ÛÔÓ Ù’ âappled ‰Ô˘Úe˜ âÚˆ‹,
·åÂÙÔÜ ÔúÌ·Ù’ ö¯ˆÓ ̤ϷÓÔ˜, ÙÔÜ ıËÚËÙÉÚÔ˜,
¬˜ ı’ ±Ì· οÚÙÈÛÙfi˜ Ù üÎÈÛÙÔ˜ appleÂÙÂËÓáÓ