Forlong - Rivers of Life

128
Rivers of Life, or Faiths of Man in all Lands.
tured as a Hercules or representation of manly vigour, in which his uprightness is
meant to be a special characteristic. The pillar or column on. which he sometimes
leans is Phallic, and especially so when
the serpent is entwined round it as here.
Sometimes the whole figure is Phallic,
and in this case is usually ornamented with
bunches of grapes and clinging ivy, as
emblems of Dionysus, whose symbol is
the Phallus, and whose attendants are Bacchantes
wreathed in ivy. At other times
Apollo stands as here usuaIly sculptured,
the symbol of manly power and vigour,
and with his quiver full of arrows, from
which one has just issued. Mark here that
the Lingam column around which the Serpent
twines, is the highly emblematic tree
stem, and that in this case he is known as
the Pythian-Apollo, Darter, or Sun, for
the Oak Stem is Jove or Jehovah. I
should perhaps state that it is very often
only by studying this support or accompnniment
to a god, that we can discern the
full meaning and characteristics of the
god-idea and tale, thus pictorially meant
Fig. 45.—THE PYTHIAN APOLLO.
to be told us. If not told in the accompaniments,
we can generally discern it in
the garments and ornaments of the figure itself, but when this is nude, we learn
that the painters or sculptors meant us to fall back on the surroundings, and
so we discover (as Erasmo Pistolesi tells us in his beautiful work on “The
Antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii) in the case of Bacchus, first, from his
Nebride, tiger’s or lion’s or ram’s skin, and, secondly and thirdly, from his side
column entwined with the vine and serpent (love or passion), the three characteristic
symbols of the worship of Bacchus.” So, in the case of the clothed Minerva, we
understand the meaning she represents by observing wreaths of serpents around her
neck and bosom and a gorgon’s or child’s head in the centre of the breast, and we
natumlly exclaim: “Passion and the bewilderment of disordered pnssion, and love for
offspring,” more especially if she stands with a globe, or child, or both in hand. Now
in the case of this last Apollo the side column is often much higher than here, and the
snake larger and more prominent, and shown as looking upward with head erect, and
reaching nearly to the Apollo’s chest, and folded about his arm; the column is also