The Shrewmice However And The
Hawks They Carry Away To The City Of Buto, And The Ibises To
Hermopolis; The Bears (Which Are Not Commonly Seen) And The Wolves,
Not Much Larger In Size Than Foxes, They Bury On The Spot Where They
Are Found Lying.
Of the crocodile the nature is as follows:
- During the four most
wintry months this creature eats nothing: she has four feet and is an
animal belonging to the land and the water both; for she produces and
hatches eggs on the land, and the most part of the day she remains
upon dry land, but the whole of the night in the river, for the water
in truth is warmer than the unclouded open air and the dew. Of all the
mortal creatures of which we have knowledge this grows to the greatest
bulk from the smallest beginning; for the eggs which she produces are
not much larger than those of geese and the newly-hatched young one is
in proportion to the egg, but as he grows he becomes as much as
seventeen cubits long and sometimes yet larger. He has eyes like those
of a pig and teeth large and tusky, in proportion to the size of his
body; but unlike all other beasts he grows no tongue, neither does he
move his lower jaw, but brings the upper jaw towards the lower, being
in this too unlike all other beasts. He has moreover strong claws and
a scaly hide upon his back which cannot be pierced; and he is blind in
the water, but in the air he is of a very keen sight. Since he has his
living in the water he keeps his mouth all full within of leeches; and
whereas all other birds and beasts fly from him, the trochilus is a
creature which is at peace with him, seeing that from her he receives
benefit; for the crocodile having come out of the water to the land
and then having opened his mouth (this he is wont to do generally
towards the West Wind), the trochilus upon that enters into his mouth
and swallows down the leeches, and he being benefited is pleased and
does no harm to the trochilus. Now for some of the Egyptians the
crocodiles are sacred animals, and for others not so, but they treat
them on the contrary as enemies: those however who dwell about Thebes
and about the lake of Moiris hold them to be most sacred, and each of
these two peoples keeps one crocodile selected from the whole number,
which has been trained to tameness, and they put hanging ornaments of
molten stone and of gold into the ears of these and anklets round the
front feet, and they give them food appointed and victims of
sacrifices and treat them as well as possible while they live, and
after they are dead they bury them in sacred tombs, embalming them:
but those who dwell about the city of Elephantine even eat them, not
holding them to be sacred.
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