The Judgment of Animals in Classical Greece: Animal Sculpture and ...

mind that the canine devotion which these stories mark remains consistent with the image
of the loyal dog in the fifth century.
Further evidence for the ferocity of Molossian dogs is found in a letter of
Alciphron (A.D. II-III) that purports to give a sketch of life in fourth-century Athens.
Horologius, a parasite, relates to one of his friends how Molossian dogs that guarded the
house of Phanias attacked him after he appropriated a silver pitcher for himself:
All of a sudden watchdogs surrounded and attacked me, one on this side, another
on that; they were savage and deep-throated, Molossians and Cnosians, and there
was nothing to hinder me from being rent asunder by their jaws (as if I had
offended Artemis) so thoroughly that not even my hands and feet would remain
next day for burial by those who might be prepared to pity and commiserate.
(Epistles III. 11) [11]
Like Augeas, Eupolis’s Molossian dog who attacked and killed Ephialtes, a thief,
Phanias’s Molossian dogs were ferocious to Horologius, also a thief. Unlike Ephialtes,
who succumbed to his wounds, Horologius lived to tell his story. His encounter with
these dogs was a traumatic experience. They were savage and deep-throated, and he
vividly recalls the fear and despair they caused in him: “there was nothing to hinder me
from being rent asunder by their jaws.” As a parasite, Horologius may be a ridiculous
figure, but his experience of the ferocity of Molossian dogs accords well with
Aristophanes’ portrayal of them as intimidating watchdogs.
Their ferocity aside, Molossian dogs were also known in Classical times for their
exceptional size and courage. Aristotle, states, for example, in the History of Animals:
The kind of hounds in Molossia is no different from those elsewhere in respect of
hunting, but in shepherding it is superior by reason of size and of courage in
facing wild animals. (HA 608a) [66]
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