CTCWeb Glossary: D (dactylic hexameter to dux)

dadoukhos - in Ancient Greece, a torch-bearer in the Eleusinian Mysteries; these torch-bearers were chosen from among the kerykes.

Daphne

- a nymph and the daughter of the shape shifting river god Peneus; according to the Greek myth of Daphne, Apollo teased young Eros about his abilities as an archer, claiming that no one so small could make a difference with his arrows; Eros grew angry at this insult and shot two arrows from his bow, one at Apollo and one that happened to hit Daphne; the arrow that struck Apollo was tipped with gold, which caused him to wildly lust after Daphne; the arrow that struck Daphne was blunt and lead tipped, which caused her to have no desire to love anyone; Apollo chased Daphne wanting her to love him, but she ran from him; she knew she would grow tired and Apollo would catch her so she called for her father to help and he transformed his daughter into a laurel tree; Apollo still loved Daphne and claimed the tree as his own wearing its leaves in her memory; the laurel tree is a symbol of Apollo.

Darius

- Darius III (Darius Codomannus) becomes king of Persia in 335 BCE having been raised to the throne by the eunuch Bagoas; he was a member of the Achaemenid dynasty; Darius is defeated by Alexander the Great at the battle of Issus in 333 BCE and at the battle of Gaugamela in 331 BCE despite the fact that the Persian forces greatly outnumbered Alexander's army; in 330 BCE, after fleeing from Alexander to Ecbatana and then eastward to Bactria, Darius is murdered by the satrap of Bactria, Bessus; Darius' death marks the end of the Persian empire.

Dark Age - a period of ancient Greek history from approximately 1200 to 850 BCE.

Deidameia - the daughter of Lycomedes, king of the Dolopians; together with her sisters they are known at the daughters of Lycomedes; in the Trojan saga, the seer Calchas foresaw that the Greeks would never defeat the Trojans without the aid of Achilles; Achilles' mother, Thetis, sought to hide Achilles because she knew he would die if he fought at Troy; Thetis disguised Achilles as a girl named Pyrrha and hid him amongst the daughters of Lycomedes; while amongst the daughters, Achilles and Deidameia had a son, Pyrrhus (presumably named after Pyrrha, the name of the disguised Achilles).

Deiphobus (see entry (2) in Perseus Encyclopedia) - son of Priam and Hecuba, brother of Hektor; after Paris' death he married Helen winning her hand by defeating his older brother Helenus.

deliberative speeches - speeches that consider a course of action both negatively and positively in order to help make a decision; the Roman Senate would hear deliberative speeches in order to decide future actions, just as the American Congress does.

Delphic oracle

- shrine at Delphi where the Pythia (Apollo's priestess) gave advice and prophecies to visitors; for more information, see the Perseus Historical Overview "5.12. The Oracle at Delphi and Colonization."

demagogue - in ancient times 'a leader of the people', dem(os) + agogos; an orator or political leader who gains power and popularity by appealing to the passions and prejudices of the people.

Demeter

- goddess of agriculture, mother goddess of the Earth; daughter of Cronus and Rhea; mother of Persephone.

Demetrius I - (337-283 BCE) part of the Antigonid dynasty of Macedonian leaders; a great warrior who launched campaigns against Egypt and Greece; he won at the Battle of Salamis, bringing victory over the Egyptians; he was forced into exile in 288 BCE by Pyrrhus of Epirus and combined forces.

Demetrius II - (161-125 BCE) king of Syria; Demetrius II attempted to sustain Seleucid control of Syria and Palestine; he was captured during a battle in 139 BCE by Mithridates I; after being liberated from capture, he ruled Syria; he died in battle near Tyre in 125 BCE.

denarius - (Latin) a Roman silver coin; this coin was the equivalent initially of ten asses, but was later equal to about sixteen.

denomination - class or kind of coin named for its value in the region(s) that used it. Denominations include: daric, decadrachm, diobol, distater, drachm, hecte, hexas, litra, obol, onkia, siglos, shekal stater, trite and more including the -nth denominations of the values listed.

departure - a scene of men going off to war in which family and friends participate in the preparations for the parting; see Boston 00.343 (image) for an example of a departure scene.

depositio barbae

- the first time a Roman boy shaved his beard; this was a ritual occasion and the shaving of the beard was part of a religious ceremony; for the emperors Nero and Caligula, the depositio barbae and the toga virilis, another rite of passage for a Roman male, occurred simultaneously.

deus ex machina

- (Latin) literally “god out of a machine” ; indicates an otherwise unexplainable ending that can resolve any troubling matter; in ancient Greek drama, particularly that of Euripides, a god emerged with the help of a mechanical crane who could tie together the loose ends of a tricky situation, thereby resolving the drama.

diadem

- a crown or cloth band worn around the head; for an example, see Harvard 4.1908 (image).

diaulos

– in ancient Greek athletics, a running race of 400 meters or two stades.

Diana

- the Roman goddess of fertility, the moon, nature and childbirth; portrayed in art as a huntress; identified with Artemis.

Dido (Elissa)

- queen and founder of Carthage allowed to take as much land as she could enclose in the hide of a bull; loved by Aeneas, tragic heroine of the Aeneid.

die axis - axis's degree coordinate for the tool used for shaping and punching coin metal; distinctions between coins that have the same imprint pattern can be made by looking at their die axes.

dinos

- a deep round bowl used for mixing wine and cooking; see the Perseus Encyclopedia entry for dinos for more information and an image.

Diocletian

- born in 245, Diocletian assumed power as Roman emperor in 284; an astute administrator, he decided that the key to governing the vast Roman empire was to divide it; he ruled with Maximian in 285, and then added two more "junior emperors" in 293, one of whom was Constantius, the father of Constantine; in 305 he abdicated and retired; Diocletian is probably best known for his ten-year persecution of the Christians, which made him the frequent villain in Christian literature in the Middle Ages; Diocletian died in 313.

Diodorus Siculus - historian who lived under Caesar and Augustus; born in Agyrium (Agira) in Sicily; wrote world history, Bibliotheke, in 40 books to Caesar's Gallic War, of which 1-8 and 11-20 are extant and the remaining books are fragmentary.

Diomedes - a former suitor of Helen and Greek warrior at Troy who meets, but does not fight Glaukos (Iliad); (2) king of Thrace, son of Ares and Pyrene who owned man eating mares and is killed by Herakles.

Diotima - a priestess (it is unknown whether she was fictional or real) from whom Socrates claims to have learned about love in the Symposium of Plato.

Discordia - (Latin) "strife"; Discordia was also a goddess who embodied strife.

discus

- originally made of stone, later discuses were made of bronze, iron, or lead in ancient Greek times; the ancient discus looked a lot like the ones used today; it weighed between 1.3 and 6.6 kilograms and was anywhere from 17 to 32 centimeters in diameter; boys threw a different, smaller discus than the men.

distaff - a staff with a notch at one end through which wool is drawn by hand; for an example, see Harvard 1920.44.54 (images).

dithyramb - a song sung by a chorus in honor of Dionysus; there were dithyramb competitions held at the Rural and City Dionysia.

dixi - (Latin) literally “I have spoken”; indicates the point that ends debate.

dolichos

- in ancient Greek athletics, an running race of 1,400 to 1,800 meters.

Domitia Longina - wife of emperor Domitian and daughter of Domitius Corbulo; initially she was married to Lucius Aelius Lamia; however, when the emperor Domitian saw her, he became infatuated; he arranged for her divorce from her first husband and married her in 70 CE; she was divorced from Domitian and exiled in 83 CE because she was caught having an affair with an actor; she is suspected of having participated in the assassination of Domitian in 96 CE.

Domitian - (51-96 CE) Roman emperor; son of Vespasian and brother of Titus; in 83 CE, Domitian adds the name “Germanicus” to his own; although he initially did not have great political responsibilities, he managed to be named Titus’ successor; Domitian did not prove to have great economic, military or political successes; his interests lay in the areas of sport and arts; under his reign, the Colosseum was finished and he established the Capitoline Games in 86 CE; this unpopular emperor was assassinated in 96 CE; after his death, the senate voted to damn his memory (damnatio memoriae).

Domitius Corbulo - Roman military officer and politician; Corbulo held various political offices, including consul and praetor under Nero’s reign; he also reorganized the military in the east and gained control of Sylria and Cappadocia-Galatia; because of Corbulo’s success and popularity, Nero compelled him to commit suicide in 66 CE.

domus

- (Latin) Latin word for house, home, or palace; in ancient Roman times, the pater familias was the head of the Roman household; the domus' floor plan was symmetrical; the fauces, the jaws or entryway of the house, opened into the atrium which was the central hall usually followed by the tablinum, the reception area where guests were greeted; in front of the tablinum lay the impluvium, the pool that collected rain from the compluvium, or skylight that was a source for light and air; the cubicula, bedrooms or studies, ran along the sides of the central axis; the triclinium (dining room), kitchen, and the garden were situated in the rear of the house.

dos - (Latin) a dowry; the amount of money or goods that is allotted to a woman and her husband upon marriage.

drama - a literary work which presents a story by means of dialogue and action.

Drusus - Nero Claudius Drusus (38 BCE-9 BCE), son of Livia and brother of Tiberius, stepson to Augustus; called "Drusus the Elder"; he fathered Germanicus and Claudius; he was popular with the Roman people; he was skilled militarily and fought against hte Raetians and in Germania; he died because of injuries sustained after falling off of his horse in 9 BCE.

Drusus - Tiberius Drusus Julius Caesar (13 BCE-23 CE), son of Tiberius; called "Drusus the Younger"; made joint consul with Tiberius in 21 CE; husband to Livia Julia; he was poisoned in 23 CE by Livia Julia and Sejanus.

duodecim scripta

- (Latin) duodecim scripta means "twelve lines"; two players sat across from each other and placed 15 black or white pieces (presumably stacked) on the first square on their side of the game board; each player tossed a set of three dice from a cup and moved their pieces according to the value of the throw; the object was to get all one's pieces across the board to the final square; if you landed on a square that had an opponent's piece already on it, that piece would return to (their) square one; if two or more opponent's pieces were already on the square, then it could not be occupied; this game has a great deal in common with modern Backgammon and with Egyptian Senet.

duoviri sacris faciundis - (Latin) the two Roman priests entrusted with keeping the libri Sibyllini, the collection of the Sibyl’s prophecies.

dux - (Latin) “general, leader”; this term is linked to the Latin verb duco, to lead; in the Aeneid, Aeneas grows to be comfortable in his position as dux, developing from a man who bemoans his fate and survival at his first appearance in the text to a more confident leader.