Zeus : a study in ancient religion - Warburg Institute

2o6 The Delphic Tripod
is finely conceived by a fifth-century artist as sitting on the Delphic
tripod and fixing her gaze on Xh^p/tidle, while she divines the fiiture
for Aigeus (fig. 145)'. In this masterly painting Themis is but the
prototype of the Pythia : even the Pythia, when she mounts the
tripod (fig. 146, by, lays by mortality and becomes more than human
in her insight and foresight.
Inst. 1832 iv. 333 flf., Mon. d. Inst, i pi. 46 = my fig. 144, Lenormant—de Witte El. nion.
dr. ii. 20 ff. pi. 6, L. de Ronchaud in Daremberg— Saglio Diet. Ant. i. 315 fig. 370,
Baumeister Denkm. i. 102 fig. 108, Overbeck Gr. Kunstmyth. ApoUon pp. 63 no. 13,
64f., 360 Atlas pi. 20, 12, M. Mayer in Roscher Lex. Myth. i. 2839, K. Wernicke in
Pauly—Wissowa Real-Enc. ii. 93, Reinach Rip. Vases i. 79, 4, W. Helbig Fiihrer diirch
die dffentlichen Sammlmigen klassischer Altertiimer in Rom^ Leipzig 1912 i. 311 no. 497,
Hoppin Red-fig. Vases i. 66 no. 51, supra i. 335). As to the further interpretation of the
scene, opinions differ. According to T. Panofka, C. Lenormant, J. de Witte, L. de
Ronchaud, ApoUon is crossing the sea from Crete to Delphoi. J. Overbeck, M. Mayer,
S. Reinach, W. Helbig, hold that he is on his way from the land of the Hyperboreoi to
Delphoi, where his advent was celebrated in the spring. K. Wernicke speaks more
cautiously of 'der Meerfahrt des A. Delphinios.' A. Baumeister thinks 'dass hier das
Orakel des Gottes als Kolonien griindend und aussendend gedacht wird. ' Is it over-rash
to see in this striking picture an artist's conception of the ecstasy or 'travelling clairvoyance'
of the god? In any case an odd sequel to it is Artemid. oneirocr. 5. 21 'ihoi,^ tu eVi kvkKi^
rpiTTodos 5iaw\eiv 7re\a70S fiiya : (peuyuv (i(f)vy€ B.) d5t/ci7/xdra)i' ypa(f>T)v ed\w Kal eis vtjctov
KaTeSiKdcrdri to yap irepiixov v" clvtov wepl^pvTOP, Kal ioiKOs (oikos codd. Aid. J. G. Reiff
corr.) TO crxvf^