95-517: The Labyrinth is an elaborate maze in Greek mythology. Labyrinth , Labyrint , and Labyrinthe may also refer to: Labyrinth In Greek mythology , the Labyrinth ( Ancient Greek : λαβύρινθος , romanized : Labúrinthos ) is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos . Its function
190-567: A Lydian word for "double-bladed axe". Arthur Evans , who excavated the Minoan palace of Knossos in Crete early in the 20th century, suggested that the ruins there inspired the story of the labyrinth, and since the double axe motif appears in the palace ruins, he asserted that labyrinth could be understood to mean "the house of the double axe". The same symbol, however, was discovered in other palaces in Crete . Nilsson observed that in Crete
285-444: A "familiarity with the provincia ", which, however, might otherwise be explained. For example, he says In the cultivation of the soil, the manners and civilization of the inhabitants, and the extent of its wealth, it is surpassed by none of the provinces, and, in short, might be more truthfully described as a part of Italy than as a province. denoting a general popular familiarity with the region. Pliny certainly spent some time in
380-527: A bath. In winter, he furnished the copier with gloves and long sleeves so his writing hand would not stiffen with cold (Pliny the Younger in avunculus meus ). His extract collection finally reached about 160 volumes, which Larcius Licinius, the Praetorian legate of Hispania Tarraconensis, unsuccessfully offered to purchase for 400,000 sesterces. That would have been in 73/74 (see above). Pliny bequeathed
475-555: A brother ( Domitian ) and joint offices with a father, calling that father "great", points certainly to Titus. Pliny also says that Titus had been consul six times. The first six consulships of Titus were in 70, 72, 74, 75, 76, and 77, all conjointly with Vespasian, and the seventh was in 79. This brings the date of the Dedication probably to 77. In that year, Vespasian was 68. He had been ruling conjointly with Titus for some years. The title imperator does not indicate that Titus
570-674: A campaign against the Germans (a practice which would not have endeared him to the disciplined Pliny). According to his nephew, during this period, he wrote his first book (perhaps in winter quarters when more spare time was available), a work on the use of missiles on horseback, De Jaculatione Equestri ("On the Use of the Dart by Cavalry"). It has not survived, but in Natural History , he seems to reveal at least part of its content, using
665-559: A contemporary of Daedalus, together with the historical mid-sixth-century BC architects and sculptors Rhoikos and Theodoros as two of the makers of the Lemnian labyrinth, which Andrew Stewart regards as "evidently a misunderstanding of the Samian temple's location en limnais ['in the marsh']." According to Pliny, the Tomb of Lars Porsena contained an underground maze. Pliny's description of
760-453: A continuous succession. Consequently, Plinian scholars present two to four procuratorships, the four comprising (i) Gallia Narbonensis in 70, (ii) Africa in 70–72, (iii) Hispania Tarraconensis in 72–74, and (iv) Gallia Belgica in 74–76. According to Syme, Pliny may have been "successor to Valerius Paulinus", procurator of Gallia Narbonensis (southeastern France), early in AD 70. He seems to have
855-710: A dolmen shrine in the Nilgiri Mountains , but are difficult to date accurately. Securely datable examples begin to appear only around 250 BC. Early labyrinths in India typically follow the Classical pattern or a local variant of it; some have been described as plans of forts or cities. Labyrinths appear in Indian manuscripts and Tantric texts from the 17th century onward. They are often called " Chakravyuha " in reference to an impregnable battle formation described in
950-457: A group of some 13 stone labyrinths on 0.4 km area of one small island. Local archaeologists have speculated that these labyrinths may be 2,000–3,000 years old, though most researchers remain dubious. The 7-course "Classical" or "Cretan" pattern known from Cretan coins (ca 400–200 BC) appears in several examples from antiquity, some perhaps as early as the late Stone Age or early Bronze Age. Roman floor mosaics typically unite four copies of
1045-481: A labyrinth according to Sumatran Bataks , and Europeans say it is the home of a rogue. One can think of labyrinths as symbolic of pilgrimage : people walking the path ascend toward salvation or enlightenment. Mystical teachings in traditions across centuries suggest that they can also be understood as coded maps of the spiritual path. Many labyrinths have been constructed recently in churches, hospitals, and parks. These are often used for contemplation; walking among
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#17327798894841140-712: A labyrinth, called "the Pattern," which grants those who walk it the power to move between parallel worlds. In Rick Riordan 's series Percy Jackson & the Olympians , the events of the fourth novel, The Battle of the Labyrinth , predominantly take place within the labyrinth of Daedalus, which has followed the heart of the West to settle beneath the United States. Ursula K. Le Guin used an underground labyrinth in
1235-591: A personal favor. No earlier instances of the Plinii are known. In 59 BC, only about 82 years before Pliny's birth, Julius Caesar founded Novum Comum (reverting to Comum) as a colonia to secure the region against the Alpine tribes , whom he had been unable to defeat. He imported a population of 4,500 from other provinces to be placed in Comasco and 500 aristocratic Greeks to found Novum Comum itself. The community
1330-464: A promotion to military tribune , which was a staff position, with duties assigned by the district commander. Pomponius was a half-brother of Corbulo. They had the same mother, Vistilia , a powerful matron of the Roman upper classes, who had seven children by six husbands, some of whom had imperial connections, including a future empress. Pliny's assignments are not clear, but he must have participated in
1425-467: A relation with Greek λαύρα ('narrow street'). When the Bronze Age site at Knossos was excavated by archaeologist Arthur Evans , the complexity of the architecture prompted him to suggest that the palace had been the Labyrinth of Daedalus. Evans found various bull motifs, including an image of a man leaping over the horns of a bull , as well as depictions of a labrys carved into the walls. On
1520-475: A ritual Easter dance along the path on Easter Sunday. Some labyrinths may have originated as allusions to the Holy City ; and some modern writers have theorized that prayers and devotions may have accompanied the perambulation of their intricate paths. Although some books (in particular guidebooks) suggest that the mazes on cathedral floors served as substitutes for pilgrimage paths, the earliest attested use of
1615-533: A severe winter killed the first crops planted by the Treviri; they sowed again in March and had "a most abundant harvest." The problem is to identify "this", the year in which the passage was written. Using 77 as the date of composition Syme arrives at AD 74–75 as the date of the procuratorship, when Pliny is presumed to have witnessed these events. The argument is based entirely on presumptions; nevertheless, this date
1710-419: A single path to the center. A labyrinth in this sense has an unambiguous route to the center and back and presents no navigational challenge. Unicursal labyrinths appeared as designs on pottery or basketry , as body art , and in etchings on walls of caves or churches. The Romans created many primarily decorative unicursal designs on walls and floors in tile or mosaic . Many labyrinths set in floors or on
1805-522: A vast array of topics on human knowledge and the natural world, which became an editorial model for encyclopedias. He spent most of his spare time studying, writing, and investigating natural and geographic phenomena in the field. Among Pliny's greatest works was the twenty-volume Bella Germaniae ("The History of the German Wars"), which is no longer extant . Bella Germaniae , which began where Aufidius Bassus ' Libri Belli Germanici ("The War with
1900-529: A venerable tradition outside Italy). In his next work, Bella Germaniae , Pliny completed the history which Aufidius Bassus left unfinished. Pliny's continuation of Bassus's History was one of the authorities followed by Suetonius and Plutarch . Tacitus also cites Pliny as a source. He is mentioned concerning the loyalty of Burrus , commander of the Praetorian Guard , whom Nero removed for disloyalty. Tacitus portrays parts of Pliny's view of
1995-461: A very ready sleeper, sometimes dropping off in the middle of his studies and then waking up again." A definitive study of the procuratorships of Pliny was compiled by the classical scholar Friedrich Münzer , which was reasserted by Ronald Syme and became a standard reference point. Münzer hypothesized four procuratorships, of which two are certainly attested and two are probable but not certain. However, two does not satisfy Suetonius' description of
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#17327798894842090-575: A wing", responsible for a cavalry battalion of about 480 men. He spent the rest of his military service there. A decorative phalera , or piece of harness, with his name on it has been found at Castra Vetera , modern Xanten, then a large Roman army and naval base on the lower Rhine. Pliny's last commander there, apparently neither a man of letters nor a close friend of his, was Pompeius Paullinus , governor of Germania Inferior AD 55–58. Pliny relates that he personally knew Paulinus to have carried around 12,000 pounds of silver service on which to dine in
2185-585: A writer (whose works did not survive) in Germania Inferior . In AD 47, he took part in the Roman conquest of the Chauci and the construction of the canal between the rivers Maas and Rhine . His description of the Roman ships anchored in the stream overnight having to ward off floating trees has the stamp of an eyewitness account. At some uncertain date, Pliny was transferred to the command of Germania Superior under Publius Pomponius Secundus with
2280-673: Is also treated in contemporary fine arts . Examples include Piet Mondrian 's Pier and Ocean (1915), Joan Miró 's Labyrinth (1923), Pablo Picasso 's Minotauromachy (1935), M. C. Escher 's Relativity (1953), Friedensreich Hundertwasser 's Labyrinth (1957), Jean Dubuffet 's Logological Cabinet (1970), Richard Long 's Connemara sculpture (1971), Joe Tilson 's Earth Maze (1975), Richard Fleischner 's Chain Link Maze (1978), István Orosz 's Atlantis Anamorphosis (2000), Dmitry Rakov 's Labyrinth (2003), and drawings by contemporary American artist Mo Morales employing what
2375-603: Is required to achieve Suetonius' continuity of procuratorships, if the one in Gallia Belgica occurred. Pliny was allowed home (Rome) at some time in AD 75–76. He was presumably at home for the first official release of Natural History in 77. Whether he was in Rome for the dedication of Vespasian's Temple of Peace in the Forum in 75, which was in essence a museum for display of art works plundered by Nero and formerly adorning
2470-523: Is retained in the center of several medieval examples. The Chartres pattern (named for its appearance in Chartres Cathedral ) is the most common medieval design; it appears in manuscripts as early as the 9th century. When the early humanist Benzo d'Alessandria visited Verona before 1310, he noted the " Laberinthum which is now called the Arena "; perhaps he was seeing the cubiculi beneath
2565-455: Is trained from his very cradle and perfected." It was followed by eight books entitled Dubii sermonis ( Of Doubtful Phraseology ). These are both now lost works . His nephew relates: "He wrote this under Nero, in the last years of his reign, when every kind of literary pursuit which was in the least independent or elevated had been rendered dangerous by servitude." In 68, Nero no longer had any friends and supporters. He committed suicide, and
2660-542: Is unknown, but it could have arrived by dispersal of property from Pliny the Younger 's estate at Colle Plinio , north of Città di Castello , identified with certainty by his initials in the roof tiles. He kept statues of his ancestors there. Pliny the Elder was born at Como , not at Verona: it is only as a native of old Gallia Transpadana that he calls Catullus of Verona his conterraneus , or fellow-countryman, not his municeps , or fellow-townsman. A statue of Pliny on
2755-726: The Pisonian conspiracy to kill Nero and make Piso emperor as "absurd" and mentions that he could not decide whether Pliny's account or that of Messalla was more accurate concerning some of the details of the Year of the Four Emperors . Evidently Pliny's extension of Bassus extended at least from the reign of Nero to that of Vespasian. Pliny seems to have known it was going to be controversial, as he deliberately reserved it for publication after his death: It has been long completed and its accuracy confirmed; but I have determined to commit
2850-453: The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 and a statement by his nephew that he died in his 56th year, which would put his birth in AD 23 or 24. Pliny was the son of an equestrian Gaius Plinius Celer and his wife, Marcella. Neither the younger nor the elder Pliny mention the names. Their ultimate source is a fragmentary inscription ( CIL V 1 3442 ) found in a field in Verona and recorded by
2945-463: The 150th anniversary of the Underground. The plaques were installed over a 16-month period in 2013 and 2014, and each is numbered according to its position in the route taken by the contestants in the 2009 Guinness World Record Tube Challenge . Prehistoric labyrinths may have served as traps for malevolent spirits or as paths for ritual dances. Many Roman and Christian labyrinths appear at
Labyrinth (disambiguation) - Misplaced Pages Continue
3040-399: The 16th-century Augustinian friar Onofrio Panvinio . The form is an elegy . The most commonly accepted reconstruction is PLINIVS SECVNDVS AVGV. LERI. PATRI. MATRI. MARCELLAE. TESTAMENTO FIERI IVSSO Plinius Secundus augur ordered this to be made as a testament to his father [Ce]ler and his mother [Grania] Marcella The actual words are fragmentary. The reading of the inscription depends on
3135-499: The Cretan capital in the 1st century AD, were called labyrinthos . Pliny 's Natural History gives four examples of ancient labyrinths: the Cretan labyrinth, an Egyptian labyrinth, a Lemnian labyrinth, and an Italian labyrinth. These are all complex underground structures, and this appears to have been the standard Classical understanding of the word. Beekes also finds the relation with labrys speculative, and suggests instead
3230-691: The Domus Aurea, is uncertain, as is his possible command of the vigiles (night watchmen), a lesser post. No actual post is discernible for this period. On the bare circumstances, he was an official agent of the emperor in a quasiprivate capacity. Perhaps he was between posts. In any case, his appointment as commander of the imperial fleet at Misenum took him there, where he resided with his sister and nephew. Vespasian died of disease on 23 June 79. Pliny outlived him by four months. During Nero's reign of terror, Pliny avoided working on any writing that would attract attention to himself. His works on oratory in
3325-556: The Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24–79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( / ˈ p l ɪ n i / PLIN -ee ), was a Roman author, naturalist , natural philosopher , and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire , and a friend of the emperor Vespasian . He wrote the encyclopedic Naturalis Historia ( Natural History ), a comprehensive thirty-seven-volume work covering
3420-546: The Elder decided to investigate the eruption of Mount Vesuvius , and was sidetracked by the need for rescue operations and a messenger from his friend asking for assistance. Pliny's father took him to Rome to be educated in lawmaking. Pliny relates that he saw Marcus Servilius Nonianus . In AD 46, at about age 23, Pliny entered the army as a junior officer, as was the custom for young men of equestrian rank. Ronald Syme , Plinian scholar, reconstructs three periods at three ranks. Pliny's interest in Roman literature attracted
3515-567: The Germans") left off, was used as a source by other prominent Roman historians, including Plutarch , Tacitus , and Suetonius . Tacitus may have used Bella Germaniae as the primary source for his work, De origine et situ Germanorum ("On the Origin and Situation of the Germans"). Pliny the Elder died in AD 79 in Stabiae while attempting the rescue of a friend and her family from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius . Pliny's dates are pinned to
3610-645: The Labyrinth – even though both logic and literary descriptions make it clear that the Minotaur was trapped in a complex branching maze. Even as the designs became more elaborate, visual depictions of the mythological Labyrinth from the Roman era until the Renaissance are almost invariably unicursal. Branching mazes were reintroduced only when hedge mazes became popular during the Renaissance. In English,
3705-608: The Skotino cave, these caverns have smooth walls and columns, and appear to have been at least partially man-made. This site corresponds to a labyrinth symbol on a 16th-century map of Crete in a book of maps in the library of Christ Church, Oxford . A map of the caves themselves was produced by the French in 1821. The site was also used by German soldiers to store ammunition during the Second World War . Howarth's investigation
3800-591: The ancient Mahabharata epic. Lanka, the capital city of mythic Rāvana, is described as a labyrinth in the 1910 translation of Al-Beruni 's India (c. 1030 AD) p. 306 (with a diagram on the following page). By the White Sea , notably on the Solovetsky Islands , there have been preserved more than 30 stone labyrinths. The most remarkable monument is the Stone labyrinths of Bolshoi Zayatsky Island –
3895-523: The ancient world, created with the cities as a source of magical power. Lawrence Durrell 's The Dark Labyrinth depicts travelers trapped underground in Crete. Because a labyrinth can serve as a metaphor for situations that are difficult to be extricated from, Octavio Paz titled his book on Mexican identity The Labyrinth of Solitude , describing the Mexican condition as orphaned and lost. Pliny
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3990-405: The arena's missing floor. The full flowering of the medieval labyrinth came about from the twelfth through fourteenth centuries with the grand pavement labyrinths of the gothic cathedrals, notably Chartres , Reims and Amiens in northern France. The symbolism or purpose behind these is unclear, and may have varied from one installation to the next. Descriptions survive of French clerics performing
4085-488: The artist calls "Labyrinthine projection." The Italian painter Davide Tonato has dedicated many of his artistic works to the labyrinth theme. In modern imagery, the labyrinth of Daedalus is often represented by a multicursal maze, in which one may become lost. Mark Wallinger has created a set of 270 enamel plaques of unicursal labyrinth designs, one for every tube station in the London Underground , to mark
4180-449: The attention and friendship of other men of letters in the higher ranks, with whom he formed lasting friendships. Later, these friendships assisted his entry into the upper echelons of the state; however, he was trusted for his knowledge and ability, as well. According to Syme, he began as a praefectus cohortis , a "commander of a cohort " (an infantry cohort, as junior officers began in the infantry), under Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo , himself
4275-558: The attention of Nero, who was a dangerous acquaintance. Under Nero, Pliny lived mainly in Rome. He mentions the map of Armenia and the neighbourhood of the Caspian Sea , which was sent to Rome by the staff of Corbulo in 58. He also witnessed the construction of Nero's Domus Aurea or "Golden House" after the Great Fire of Rome in 64. Besides pleading law cases, Pliny wrote, researched, and studied. His second published work
4370-469: The campaign against the Chatti of AD 50, at age 27, in his fourth year of service. Associated with the commander in the praetorium , he became a familiar and close friend of Pomponius, who also was a man of letters. At another uncertain date, Pliny was transferred back to Germania Inferior. Corbulo had moved on, assuming command in the east. This time, Pliny was promoted to praefectus alae , "commander of
4465-529: The charge of it to my heirs, lest I should have been suspected, during my lifetime, of having been unduly influenced by ambition. By this means I confer an obligation on those who occupy the same ground with myself; and also on posterity, who, I am aware, will contend with me, as I have done with my predecessors. Pliny's last work, according to his nephew, was the Naturalis Historia ( Natural History ), an encyclopedia into which he collected much of
4560-502: The classical labyrinth (or a similar pattern) interlinked around the center, squared off as the medium requires, but still recognisable. An image of the Minotaur or an allusion to the legend of the Minotaur appears at the center of many of these mosaic labyrinths. The four-axis medieval patterns may have developed from the Roman model, but are more varied in how the four quadrants of the design are traced out. The Minotaur or other danger
4655-558: The classical: it is radial in design, and the entrance is at the top, where traditional labyrinths have the entrance at the bottom (see below). The earliest appearances cannot be dated securely; the oldest is commonly dated to the 17th century. Unsubstantiated claims have been made for the early appearance of labyrinth figures in India, such as a prehistoric petroglyph on a riverbank in Goa purportedly dating to circa 2500 BC. Other examples have been found among cave art in northern India and on
4750-473: The customs of our forefathers ( veterum more interdiu ). Pliny the Younger wanted to convey that Pliny the Elder was a "good Roman", which means that he maintained the customs of the great Roman forefathers. This statement would have pleased Tacitus. Two inscriptions identifying the hometown of Pliny the Younger as Como take precedence over the Verona theory. One ( CIL V 5262 ) commemorates the younger's career as
4845-505: The dedication. The only certain fact is that Pliny died in AD 79. Natural History is one of the largest single works to have survived from the Roman Empire and was intended to cover the entire field of ancient knowledge, based on the best authorities available to Pliny. He claims to be the only Roman ever to have undertaken such a work. It encompasses the fields of botany , zoology , astronomy , geology, and mineralogy , as well as
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#17327798894844940-629: The double axe is not a weapon and always accompanies goddesses or women and not a male god. The association with "labrys" lost some traction when Linear B was deciphered in the 1950s, and an apparent Mycenaean Greek rendering of "labyrinth" appeared as da-pu₂-ri-to ( 𐀅𐀢𐀪𐀵 ). This may be related to the Minoan word du-pu₂-re , which appears in Linear A on libation tablets and in connection with Mount Dikte and Mount Ida , both of which are associated with caverns. Caverns near Gortyna ,
5035-443: The economy on a sound footing. He needed in his administration all the loyalty and assistance he could find. Pliny, apparently trusted without question, perhaps (reading between the lines) recommended by Vespasian's son Titus , was put to work immediately and was kept in a continuous succession of the most distinguished procuratorships, according to Suetonius . A procurator was generally a governor of an imperial province. The empire
5130-461: The entrances of buildings, suggesting that they may have served a similar apotropaic purpose. In their cross-cultural study of signs and symbols, Patterns that Connect , Carl Schuster and Edmund Carpenter present various forms of the labyrinth and suggest various possible meanings, including not only a sacred path to the home of a sacred ancestor, but also, perhaps, a representation of the ancestor him/herself: "...many [New World] Indians who make
5225-420: The exploitation of those resources. It remains a standard work for the Roman period and the advances in technology and understanding of natural phenomena at the time. His discussions of some technical advances are the only sources for those inventions, such as hushing in mining technology or the use of water mills for crushing or grinding grain. Much of what he wrote about has been confirmed by archaeology . It
5320-593: The exposed portion of the tomb is intractable; Pliny, it seems clear, had not observed this structure himself, but is quoting the historian and Roman antiquarian Varro . A design essentially identical to the 7-course "classical" pattern appeared in Native American culture, the Tohono O'odham people labyrinth which features I'itoi , the "Man in the Maze." The Tonoho O'odham pattern has two distinct differences from
5415-500: The extracts to his nephew. When composition of Natural History began is unknown. Since he was preoccupied with his other works under Nero and then had to finish the history of his times, he is unlikely to have begun before 70. The procuratorships offered the ideal opportunity for an encyclopedic frame of mind. The date of an overall composition cannot be assigned to any one year. The dates of different parts must be determined, if they can, by philological analysis (the post mortem of
5510-519: The façade of the Como Cathedral celebrates him as a native son. He had a sister, Plinia, who married into the Caecilii and was the mother of his nephew, Pliny the Younger, whose letters describe his work and study regimen in detail. In one of his letters to Tacitus ( avunculus meus ), Pliny the Younger details how his uncle's breakfasts would be light and simple ( levis et facilis ) following
5605-404: The fifth century, Symmachus had little hope of finding a copy. Like Caligula, Nero seemed to grow gradually more insane as his reign progressed. Pliny devoted much of his time to writing on the comparatively safe subjects of grammar and rhetoric. He published a three-book, six-volume educational manual on rhetoric, entitled Studiosus , "The Student". Pliny the Younger says of it: "The orator
5700-412: The ground are large enough that the path can be walked. Unicursal patterns have been used historically both in group ritual and for private meditation, and are increasingly found for therapeutic use in hospitals and hospices. Labyrinth is a word of pre-Greek origin whose derivation and meaning are uncertain. Maximillian Mayer suggested as early as 1892 that labyrinthos might derive from labrys ,
5795-563: The imperial magistrate and details his considerable charitable and municipal expenses on behalf of the people of Como. Another (CIL V 5667) identifies his father Lucius' village as present-day Fecchio (tribe Oufentina), a hamlet of Cantù , near Como. Therefore, Plinia likely was a local girl and Pliny the Elder, her brother, was from Como. Gaius was a member of the Plinia gens : the Insubric root Plina still persists, with rhotacism , in
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#17327798894845890-433: The knowledge of his time. Some historians consider this to be the first encyclopedia written. It comprised 37 books. His sources were personal experience, his own prior works (such as the work on Germania), and extracts from other works. These extracts were collected in the following manner: One servant would read aloud, and another would write the extract as dictated by Pliny. He is said to have dictated extracts while taking
5985-403: The labyrinth regard it as a sacred symbol, a beneficial ancestor, a deity. In this they may be preserving its original meaning: the ultimate ancestor, here evoked by two continuous lines joining its twelve primary joints." Schuster also observes the common theme of the labyrinth being a refuge for a trickster; in India, the demon Ravana has dominion over labyrinths, the trickster Djonaha lives in
6080-464: The labyrinth's coils might ensure a safe fishing expedition. There are also stone labyrinths on the Isles of Scilly , although none is known to date from before the nineteenth century. There are examples of labyrinths in many disparate cultures. The symbol has appeared in various forms and media ( petroglyphs , classic-form, medieval-form, pavement, turf, and basketry) at some time throughout most parts of
6175-498: The labyrinth. Oxford University geographer Nicholas Howarth believes that "Evans's hypothesis that the palace of Knossos is also the Labyrinth must be treated sceptically." Howarth and his team conducted a search of an underground complex known as the Skotino cave but concluded that it was formed naturally. Another contender is a series of tunnels at Gortyn , accessed by a narrow crack but expanding into interlinking caverns. Unlike
6270-462: The last years of Nero's reign (67–68) focused on form rather than on content. He began working on content again probably after Vespasian's rule began in AD 69, when the terror clearly was over and would not be resumed. It was to some degree reinstituted (and later cancelled by his son Titus) when Vespasian suppressed the philosophers at Rome, but not Pliny, who was not among them, representing, as he says, something new in Rome, an encyclopedist (certainly,
6365-580: The latter to inherit the entire estate. The adoption is called a "testamental adoption" by writers on the topic, who assert that it applied to the name change only, but Roman jurisprudence recognizes no such category. Pliny the Younger thus became the adopted son of Pliny the Elder after the latter's death. For at least some of the time, however, Pliny the Elder resided in the same house in Misenum with his sister and nephew (whose husband and father, respectively, had died young); they were living there when Pliny
6460-542: The local surname "Prina". He did not take his father's cognomen , Celer, but assumed his own, Secundus. As his adopted son took the same cognomen, Pliny founded a branch, the Plinii Secundi. The family was prosperous; Pliny the Younger's combined inherited estates made him so wealthy that he could found a school and a library, endow a fund to feed the women and children of Como, and own numerous estates around Rome and Lake Como, as well as enrich some of his friends as
6555-622: The many turf mazes in the UK, such as survive at Wing , Hilton , Alkborough , and Saffron Walden . Over the same general period, some 500 or more non-ecclesiastical labyrinths were constructed in Scandinavia . These labyrinths, generally in coastal areas, are marked out with stones, most often in the simple 7- or 11-course classical forms. They often have names which translate as " Troy Town ." They are thought to have been constructed by fishing communities: trapping malevolent trolls or winds in
6650-467: The movements of the horse to assist the javelin -man in throwing missiles while astride its back. During this period, he also dreamed that the spirit of Drusus Nero begged him to save his memory from oblivion. The dream prompted Pliny to begin forthwith a history of all the wars between the Romans and the Germans, which he did not complete for some years. At the earliest time that Pliny could have left
6745-461: The phrase "chemin de Jerusalem" (path to Jerusalem) dates to the late 18th century when it was used to describe mazes at Reims and Saint-Omer . The accompanying ritual, depicted in Romantic illustrations as involving pilgrims following the maze on their knees while praying, may have been practiced at Chartres during the 17th century. The cathedral labyrinths are thought to be the inspiration for
6840-586: The province of Africa , most likely as a procurator. Among other events or features that he saw are the provoking of rubetae , poisonous toads ( Bufonidae ), by the Psylli ; the buildings made with molded earthen walls, "superior in solidity to any cement;" and the unusual, fertile seaside oasis of Gabès (then Tacape), Tunisia, currently a World Heritage Site . Syme assigns the African procuratorship to AD 70–72. The procuratorship of Hispania Tarraconensis
6935-539: The reader". As this is the only geographic region for which he gives this information, Syme hypothesizes that Pliny contributed to the census of Hither Hispania conducted in 73/74 by Vibius Crispus, legate from the Emperor, thus dating Pliny's procuratorship there. During his stay in Hispania, he became familiar with the agriculture and especially the gold mines of the north and west of the country. His descriptions of
7030-412: The reconstruction, but in all cases the names come through. Whether he was an augur and whether she was named Grania Marcella are less certain. Jean Hardouin presents a statement from an unknown source that he claims was ancient, that Pliny was from Verona and that his parents were Celer and Marcella. Hardouin also cites the conterraneity (see below) of Catullus . How the inscription got to Verona
7125-520: The reign of terror was at an end, as was the interlude in Pliny's obligation to the state. At the end of AD 69, after a year of civil war consequent on the death of Nero, Vespasian , a successful general, became emperor. Like Pliny, he had come from the equestrian class, rising through the ranks of the army and public offices and defeating the other contenders for the highest office. His main tasks were to re-establish peace under imperial control and to place
7220-495: The scholars). The closest known event to a single publication date, that is, when the manuscript was probably released to the public for borrowing and copying, and was probably sent to the Flavians, is the date of the Dedication in the first of the 37 books. It is to the imperator Titus. As Titus and Vespasian had the same name, Titus Flavius Vespasianus, earlier writers hypothesized a dedication to Vespasian. Pliny's mention of
7315-483: The second book of her Earthsea series, The Tombs of Atuan , in which the series hero Ged is captured by the book's protagonist Tenar on his trip to the Kargish Empire – the spiritual power of the "Nameless Ones" is vested at least in part in the labyrinth. Australian author Sara Douglass incorporated some labyrinthine ideas in her series The Troy Game , in which the Labyrinth on Crete is one of several in
7410-478: The service, Nero , the last of the Julio-Claudian dynasty , had been emperor for two years. He did not leave office until AD 68, when Pliny was 45 years old. During that time, Pliny did not hold any high office or work in the service of the state. In the subsequent Flavian dynasty , his services were in such demand that he had to give up his law practice, which suggests that he had been trying not to attract
7505-476: The strength of a passage in the Iliad , it has been suggested that the palace was the site of a dancing-ground made for Ariadne by the craftsman Daedalus , where young men and women, of the age of those sent to Crete as prey for the Minotaur, would dance together. By extension, in popular legend the palace is associated with the myth of the Minotaur. In the 2000s, archaeologists explored other potential sites of
7600-399: The term labyrinth is generally synonymous with maze . As a result of the long history of unicursal representation of the mythological Labyrinth, however, many contemporary scholars and enthusiasts observe a distinction between the two. In this specialized usage, maze refers to a complex branching multicursal puzzle with choices of path and direction, while a unicursal labyrinth has only
7695-642: The third episode, "And The Horns of a Dilemma", of The Librarians . See Labyrinth (disambiguation) for a further list of titles. The Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges was entranced with the idea of the labyrinth, and used it extensively in his short stories (such as "The House of Asterion" in The Aleph ). His use of it has inspired other authors (e.g. Umberto Eco 's The Name of the Rose , Mark Z. Danielewski's House of Leaves ). Additionally, Roger Zelazny 's fantasy series The Chronicles of Amber features
7790-719: The turnings, one loses track of direction and of the outside world, and thus quiets the mind. Labyrinths have on various occasions been used in Christian tradition as a part of worship. The earliest known example is from a fourth-century pavement at the Basilica of St Reparatus, at Orleansville, Algeria, with the words "Sancta Eclesia" [ sic ] at the center, though it is unclear how it might have been used in worship. In medieval times, labyrinths began to appear on church walls and floors around 1000 AD. The most famous medieval labyrinth, with great influence on later practice,
7885-513: The various methods of mining appear to be eyewitness judging by the discussion of gold mining methods in his Natural History . He might have visited the mine excavated at Las Médulas . The last position of procurator, an uncertain one, was of Gallia Belgica , based on Pliny's familiarity with it. The capital of the province was Augusta Treverorum ( Trier ), named for the Treveri surrounding it. Pliny says that in "the year but one before this"
7980-504: The video game industry, and countless video games include such a feature. For example, the 1994 video game Marathon features many maze-like passages the player must navigate. A number of film, game, and music creations feature labyrinths. For instance, the avant-garde multi-screen film In the Labyrinth presents a search for meaning in a symbolic modern labyrinth. The well-received 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth draws heavily upon labyrinth legend for symbolism. A magical labyrinth appears in
8075-605: The world, from Native North and South America to Australia, Java , India, and Nepal . Starting in the late 20th century, there has been a resurgence of interest in labyrinths and a revival in labyrinth building, of both unicursal and multicursal patterns. Approximately 6,000 labyrinths have been registered with the Worldwide Labyrinth Locator; these are located around the world in private properties, libraries, schools, gardens, and recreational areas, as well as famous temples and cathedrals. The labyrinth
8170-493: Was The Life of Pomponius Secundus , a two-volume biography of his old commander, Pomponius Secundus. Meanwhile, he was completing his monumental work, Bella Germaniae , the only authority expressly quoted in the first six books of the Annales of Tacitus , and probably one of the principal authorities for the same author's Germania . It disappeared in favor of the writings of Tacitus (which are far shorter), and, early in
8265-615: Was created in Chartres Cathedral . The use of labyrinths has recently been revived in some contexts of Christian worship. Many churches in Europe and North America have constructed permanent, typically unicursal, labyrinths, or employ temporary ones (e.g., painted on canvas or outlined with candles). For example, a labyrinth was set up on the floor of St Paul's Cathedral for a week in March 2000. Some conservative Christians disapprove of labyrinths, considering them pagan practices or " New Age " fads. Labyrinths and mazes have been embraced by
8360-481: Was destroyed in antiquity and can only be partially reconstructed. During the nineteenth century, the remains of this ancient Egyptian structure were discovered at Hawara in the Faiyum Oasis by Flinders Petrie at the foot of the pyramid of the twelfth-dynasty pharaoh Amenemhat III (reigned c. 1860 BC to c. 1814 BC). Pliny the Elder 's Natural History (36.90) lists the legendary Smilis , reputed to be
8455-457: Was going to Emperor Vespasian (for he also made use of the night), then he did the other duties assigned to him. In this passage, Pliny the Younger conveys to Tacitus that his uncle was ever the academic, always working. The word ibat (imperfect, "he used to go") gives a sense of repeated or customary action. In the subsequent text, he mentions again how most of his uncle's day was spent working, reading, and writing. He notes that Pliny "was indeed
8550-470: Was next. A statement by Pliny the Younger that his uncle was offered 400,000 sesterces for his manuscripts by Larcius Licinius while he (Pliny the Elder) was procurator of Hispania makes it the most certain of the three. Pliny lists the peoples of "Hither Hispania", including population statistics and civic rights (modern Asturias and Gallaecia ). He stops short of mentioning them all for fear of "wearying
8645-401: Was perpetually short of, and was always seeking, officeholders for its numerous offices. Throughout the latter stages of Pliny's life, he maintained good relations with Emperor Vespasian. As is written in the first line of Pliny the Younger's Avunculus Meus : Ante lucem ibat ad Vespasianum imperatorem (nam ille quoque noctibus utebatur), deinde ad officium sibi delegatum . Before dawn he
8740-580: Was shown on a documentary produced for the National Geographic Channel . In Book II of his Histories , Herodotus applies the term "labyrinth" to a building complex in Egypt "near the place called the City of Crocodiles ", that he considered to surpass the pyramids . The structure, which may have been a collection of funerary temples such as are commonly found near Egyptian pyramids,
8835-477: Was sole emperor, but was awarded for a military victory, in this case that in Jerusalem in 70. Aside from minor finishing touches, the work in 37 books was completed in AD 77. That it was written entirely in 77 or that Pliny was finished with it then cannot be proved. Moreover, the dedication could have been written before publication, and it could have been published either privately or publicly earlier without
8930-539: Was thus multi-ethnic and the Plinies could have come from anywhere. Whether any conclusions can be drawn from Pliny's preference for Greek words, or Julius Pokorny 's derivation of the name from north Italic as "bald" is a matter of speculative opinion. No record of any ethnic distinctions in Pliny's time is apparent—the population considered themselves to be Roman citizens. Pliny the Elder did not marry and had no children. In his will, he adopted his nephew, which entitled
9025-503: Was to hold the Minotaur , the monster eventually killed by the hero Theseus . Daedalus had so cunningly made the Labyrinth that he could barely escape it after he built it. Although early Cretan coins occasionally exhibit branching (multicursal) patterns, the single-path (unicursal) seven-course "Classical" design without branching or dead ends became associated with the Labyrinth on coins as early as 430 BC, and similar non-branching patterns became widely used as visual representations of
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