We have discussed domestic dogs on coins in the past. I specifically look for them and have acquired a couple. The image is
Roman Republic, C. Antestius, I provide as a visual for this non-coin post. I thought the following might be of interest, that the ancients (in this case
Greeks and
Romans) loved their dogs as much as modern people do. There are a number of great
dog stories from the past, from
Alexander the Great naming a city after
his dog, to the body of
Lysimachos kept from carrion for a day or two on the battlefield by
his faithful
dog before
his body was found and recovered, to the saddest (to me)
part of The Odyssey, Odysseus meeting
his dog Argos when the old
dog recognized him and Odysseus could not acknowledge
his old friend.
Below are a
collection of
dog epitaphs from Greek and
Roman times, mostly found in roadside tombs built by the humans who loved them. It reminds me of the roadside crosses we often see in the South for people killed in
car accidents. Until recently, I
had no idea that some dogs were memorialized this way in ancient times. Pretty cool, I think. There is also a lot of ancient art, in addition to coins, with dogs. They have evolved with humans longer than any other species.
“I am in tears, while carrying you to your last resting place as much as I rejoiced when bringing you
home in my own
hands fifteen years ago.”
“This is the tomb of the
dog,
Stephanos, who perished, Whom Rhodope shed tears for and buried like a human. I am the
dog Stephanos, and Rhodope set up a tomb for me.”
"You who pass on this path, if you happen to see this monument, laugh not, I pray, though it is a
dog's grave. Tears fell for me, and the dust was heaped above me by a master's hand."
“My eyes were wet with tears, our little
dog, when I bore thee (to the grave)… So, Patricus, never again shall thou give me a thousand kisses. Never canst thou be contentedly in my lap. In sadness have I buried thee, and thou deservist. In a resting place of marble, I have put thee for all time by the
side of my shade. In thy qualities, sagacious thou wert like a human being. Ah, me! What a loved companion have we lost!”
"Myia never barked without reason, but now, he is silent."
"To
Helena, foster child, soul without comparison and deserving of praise."
Note: confirmed this was a
dog’s tomb and that the
dog was seen as a family member, ie., foster child
"Here the
stone says it holds the white
dog from Melita, the most faithful guardian of Eumelus.
Bull, they called him when he was yet alive, but now,
his voice is prisoned in the silent pathways of night."
"Issa's more
pert than Lesbia's sparrow love, Purer than kisses of a turtle-dove, More sweet than a hundred maidens rolled in one, Rarer than wealthy
India's precious
stone. She is pet of Publius, Issa dear, She whines, a human voice you seem to hear."
And my favorite perhaps, although the one for
Stephanos’ ranks right up there.
"Surely, even as you lie dead in this tomb, I deem the wild beasts yet fear your white bones, huntress Lycas; and your valor great Pelion knows, and splendid Ossa and the lonely peaks of Cithaeron."
Cheers,
Virgil