Antilios

Complete text of entry:

Antilios grece apud Dyascoridem genera eius duo una est que folia lenticule similia habet et astam altam duobus palmis erectam cum foliis mollibus radix est illi minor et tenuis, nascitur locis herbosis et solaribus gustu salsa, altera est que folia et astam similes camepiti habet sed asperiora et minora florem purpureum et odorem gravem, radix est cicoree similis et cetera. Plinius eadem de ipsa sed antalum vocat et ut alii antulum, primam vero sabulosis locis nasci dicit secundam saxosis cetera conveniunt, hec est quam Avicenna zaharath vocat vide capitula amborum simul.

Simon's text sectioned - Dyascorides:

Antilios grece apud Dyascoridem genera eius duo una est que folia lenticule similia habet et astam altam duobus palmis erectam cum foliis mollibus radix est illi minor et tenuis, nascitur locis herbosis et solaribus gustu salsa, altera est que folia et astam similes camepiti habet sed asperiora et minora florem purpureum et odorem gravem, radix est cicoree similis et cetera.

Apparatus:

Antilios | Antillios ms. e | Antilos B
apud | apnd B {typesetting error}
{eius} sunt add. B efjp
folia lenticule similia habet | f. h. s. l. ms. p
una | unũ B
lenticule | leticule B {typesetting error}
{lenticule} astam | hastam H fp
mollibus | molibus B f
est illi | i. e. B
herbosis | erbosis AC
{et} astam ABC ej | hastam H fp
{astam} similes | sil’em B
camepiti AC | camepici ms. e | camepithi fp | camepitei B | chamepiti H
{gravem radix est} illi add. B
cicoree | cicorie j
et cetera om. ef

Translation:

There are two kinds of antilios, one has leaves similar to lenticula {"lentil"} and a stalk that is tall, two palmi standing up, with soft leaves and a very small and thin root. It grows in grassy and sunny places, and it has a salty taste. The second kind has leaves and a stalk similar to camepiti {"ground-pine"}, but the leaves are rougher and smaller, it has a purple flower and a heavy scent; the root is similar to cicorea {"chicory or endive"}.

Commentary:

Simon's text is from Dyascorides alphabeticus, cf. Bodmer f 14r [[1]], which is taken from Dioscorides Longobardus,3, 148, ed. Stadler (1899: 436-7) [[2]]: De antilios.
For the original Greek text see 3, 136, ed. Wellmann (1906-14: II.144-5) [[3]]: ἀνθυλλίς {/anthyllís/}.

Antilios:
Greek ἀνθυλλίς /anthyllís/ and its variant forms ἀνθύλλιον /anthýllion/ - lit. "little flower" - and ἄνθυλλον /ánthyllon/ are derived from ἄνθος /ánthos/ "flower, blossom", Frisk (1960-72: I.108), s.v. ἄνθος {/ánthos/}. Simon's form antilios shows a change of ending, which is already found in the Longobardic Dioscorides.

Simon's text sectioned - Plinius:

Plinius eadem de ipsa sed antalum vocat et ut alii antulum, primam vero sabulosis locis nasci dicit secundam saxosis cetera conveniunt, hec est quam Avicenna zaharath vocat vide capitula amborum simul.

Apparatus:

{ipsa} dixit add. H
antalũ | antallũ f | antal H | anthalium is different from anthyllium Pliny
antulum | antalũ ms. e | anthyllum Pliny
{antulum} uocat add. p
primam | prĩa B | prima f
locis om. B efjp Pliny
nasci dicit | nascitur ms. e
saxosis | sasoxis B | sassoxis ms. e
hec ē B | h' est H fp | h' au͞t ms. e | hoc est AC j
quam | q'd AC
zaharath AC | zaharach B jp | zaharuch ms. e | zacharach H | zabarach f ('h' misread as 'b'; 't' misread as 'c')

Translation:

Pliny says the same about this plant but he calls it antalum and also like other people antulum. The first kind, he says, grows in sandy places and the second on stony ground; otherwise they have the same properties. This is the plant Avicenna calls zaharath. Collate the chapters {by the different authors} concerning the two kinds of antilios {see Commentary}.

Commentary:

This is a short excerpt from Pliny 21, 193, 175, ed. Rackham (1938-63: VI.284): Anthalii, quod Aegyptii edunt, nullum alium reperi usum. sed est herba anthyllium, quam alii anthyllum vocant – "Of the anthalium plant, which is eaten by the Egyptians, I have not found any other use {i.e. no medicinal use}. But there is a plant called anthyllium, which some people call anthyllum".

anthalium:
Here Pliny introduces this chapter by mentioning a plant he had described briefly before; Natural History, 21, 52, 88, ed. Rackham (1938-63: VI.22), a plant called anthalium which, as he says, the Egyptians consider as food. For no apparent other reason than the phonetic similarity of their names he then goes on to write about a different plant altogether called anthyllium with its variant form: anthyllum, both being obvious Latinisations of Greek ἀνθύλλιον /anthýllion/ and ἄνθυλλον /ánthyllon/.

The similarity between anthalium and anthyllium/ anthyllum was bound to cause misunderstandings by the copyists and some forms in Simon's witnesses like antalũ/antallũ are certainly influenced by anthalium, but antulum must reflect anthyllum.

Simon's final comment: vide capitula amborum simul is ambiguous. It literally translates: "See the chapters of the two at the same time". However other interpretations are possible.

The plant descriptions by Dioscorides and Pliny agree significantly on most features attributed to the plants and obviously both authors were consulting the same source. Similarly Avicenna's account is based on Dioscorides and therefore largely in agreement with the other two reports as well.

Botanical identification:

Although there are disagreements as to the two plants' identification, e.g. Genaust (1996: 67), s.v. Anthýllis, calls it "nicht sicher bestimmbar", i.e. 'not clearly identifiable', there seems to be considerable agreement between e.g. Berendes (1902), André (1985) and Beck (2005).

Berendes (1902: 353), agrees with Prosper Alpinus that the first kind of anthyllis is Cressa cretica L., "Cretan alkaliweed" [[4]], [[5]]. This plant has in Europe a Mediterranean distribution and grows on sandy and salty soil, often near the sea.

As for the second kind Berendes is not sure but quotes Clusius, who though it was Ajuga iva (L.) Schreb. [[6]], [[7]], [[8]], but Fraas saw it as Frankenia hirsuta L., "sea heath" [[9]] , [[10]] which has many synonyms [[11]], e.g. Frankenia laevis L.

A. iva fits in well with the authors' descriptions; it grows in dry, stony places and olive groves whereas F. hirsuta is a less likely candidate since it prefers salt marshes as its habitat.

André (1985: 18), s.v. anthyllis, also anthyllium or anthyllion and also anthyllum agrees with Berendes on C. cretica but mentions only A. iva for the second kind. These same identifications are adopted by Beck (2005: 241).

Antalum: According to André (1985:18), s.v. anthalium this name is not attested in Greek; he sees it as “Souchet comestible” {i.e. ‘chufa sedge’} Cyperus esculentus L. [[12]].

Anthyllis has survived into modern botanical terminology for a genus of the Fabaceae or Leguminosa family [[13]], and anthyllis survives as a species epithet e.g. in Erinacea anthyllis Link, "blue broom", [[14]]. N.b. Modern botanical terminology only uses ancient plant names as a naming pool, normally without any claim that it is an attempt to identify the plant the ancients could have meant by this name.

WilfGunther 07/06/2014

For the Arabic lemma see Zaharat, Antillillis

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