A throw at dice,[1] brilliance, gleam.[2]
Cratinus [sc. uses the word].[3] And [sc. in so doing] he reveals [that it is] a type of round sacrificial cake, and rite of sacrifice, as Leagoras says.[4] It is also a child's game. But the moon is also so called, and
Asclepius.[5]
The headword applies to the brilliant flash of light (of the sun, white cliffs, lightning, flashing eyes, ebony, etc.). It is used of
Apollo Aigletes, of the Charites (Graces, whose mother is named Aigle;
alphaiota 66), and of Mt. Olympus. These synonyms are given in several
scholia.
[1] According to Lamer (1948) -- based on
Hesychius and
Eustathius ad Il. 823.28 -- this was a bad throw. For the names of other throws (
beta 369) in gambling (
kappa 2602), see
alpha 388,
mu 1036 (note [3]),
pi 1384,
tau 1006; and Lamer 1933ff. It is more likely that
βόλος (cf. LSJ) here means either a (lightning-fast) manner of throwing the dice out of the throwing tower (see
tau 7, notes [7] and [8]) or a direct hit from the tower into the cup that seems to have been used to receive the thrown dice (see
phi 465), rather than the score of the dice. The child's game is unknown.
[2] cf. generally
alphaiota 65,
alphaiota 66.
[3]
Cratinus fr.377 Kock. Though this "fragment" appears to confine itself to the present headword,
Cratinus should probably be taken as the subject of the following sentence also, seemingly referring to rituals and a cake in some secret cult (perhaps of
Dionysus, for the word is remarkably common in
Nonnus); and the verb should probably be taken to mean "reveals" or "betrays" a mystery. For poana see
alpha 2082,
pi 2051.
[4] 'Leagoras' is unknown. Adler, without comment, notes that L.K.Valckenaer (1715-1785) suggested the emendation Melesagoras; this is presumably the historian (A)melesagoras, FGrH 330.
[5] This is a confusion. Aigle is the name of a daughter of
Asclepius (
eta 435).
Lamer, H. “Lusoria tabula”, RE 13 (1938) 1900-2029 (in German)
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