And in the clos at large pasturen grete boles and hors and egles and beres and lyouns; and thei don no manere harm to men but ben everyche of hem holy and tame.

Sacred animals were a common feature of temple-closes in Greece (Gardner-Jevons, Manual, p. 188). Plato introduces sacred bulls into his utopian Atlantis, Critias, 119 p.

Prestes thei apoynten withouten nombre, of the whiche some sleen the victimes and some beren the offrynges of licours and some ben cleped Fuyrbereres and some Awtere Prestes. Whan I was there, mo than a 300 weren wont to assemblen hem for sacrifise. Thei ben clothed in whyte robes alle, and thei han a poynted cappe on here hedes.

For the pointed cap, see Cumont in Daremberg-Saglio, Dict. des Ant., s.v. Syria Dea, fig. 6698, and the reference in the next note (Abd-Hadad).

And everyche yeer a newe chefe preste is sett over hem, that allone wereth a robe of purpre and is crouned with a coronale of gold.

Coins of Hieropolis, of the fourth century, B.c. (Babelon, Perses achéménides, No. 315), show the high priest Abd-Hadad in the dress here described. Compare Herodian 5, 3, 6 (costume of Elagabalus; cf. Dio Cassius 79, 11); Cureton, Ancient Syriac Documents, p. 41 (Sharbil, priest of Nebo); Athenaeus 5, 215 8.c. (priest of Sandan at Tarsus).

And therto is other gret multytude of religious men, of floyteres and piperes and Galles, and also wommen that ben wode and out of here witte.

Twyes each day sacrifise is perfourmed, to the which allecomen. To Iove thei sacrificen withouten ony noys, ne syngynge not ne floytynge; but whan thei presenten offrynges to Iuno, thanne thei syngen and floyten and sounen cymbales. And as to this thei mighte not telle me no thing certeyn.

Ther is also a lak, a lityl fro the temple, in the whiche holy fissches ben norysscht, withouten nombre and of dyverse kyndes. Some of hem ben ful grete, and thise han names and comen whan thei ben cleped. And whan I was there, amonges hem was oon that werde gold. On his fynne was festned a ioyelle of gold; and often tymes I saughe him, and he hadde that ioyelle.

"At Hierapolis in Syria, in the lake of Venus, they (the fish) obey the spoken commands of the acditui; when called, they come with their golden ornaments; they show affection and let themselves be tickled (adulantes scalpuntur), and they open their mouths for people to put in their hands” (Pliny, Nat. Hist. 32, 17). According to Aelian (Nat. Hist. 12, 2) they swam in regular formation, and had leaders. The pond still exists, but the fish are no more (Cumont, Etudes Syriennes, p. 36 sq.). There were similar ponds at Ascalon, Edessa, and Smyrna: see the interesting inscription from Smyrna in Dittenberger, Sylloge Inscr. Grace.*, No. 584. The custom was transmitted to modern times (Baudissin, Studien, ii, pp. 159 and 165; Hogarth, Jc, p. 189). On the fish tabu in Syria, see Xenophon, Anab. 1, 4, 9; Menander, fragment 544 Kock; Cicero, de Nat. Deor. 3, 39; Diodorus 2, 4, 3; Plutarch, Moral. 170 D, 730D; Ovid, Fasti 2, 461 sqqg.; Athenaeus 4, 157 B; 8, 346 ¢ sqq.; Clement Alex., Protrept. 2, 39, p. 35 e; Hyginus, Fab. 197;. Astron. 2, 30.