tween the Peloponiuiteus aiul Attioa, and separ- ated from the Oiilf of Corinth by the Istlimus of Coriiitli (Map: Greece, D 6). In the Gulf of jEgina arc the islands of Salaniis and vEgina.
ÆGINE'TA. I'AVUS (Ok. nci-Pof) (seventh century A.i). ). A Greek pliysieian. Imrn in the island of .Kjiina. from which he took his
name. Of the details of his life little is known,
save that he was a great traveler; his medical
works wore highly prized, though they were little
more than comi>ilatioiis from earlier writers.
The chief of these is still extant, /)(• A'c Mcdica
Libri ^Jcptrm, last edited by Brian (Paris, 185.5).
This work was translated into Arabic; there
is an English version by Adams (London,
1834). See Krumbacher, Bi/zantiniichc Littrra-
turtiiachifhlc, Jiagcs (Ul, lil'd (.Munich, 1897).
ÆG'INE'TAN SCULP'TURES. The small island of Ægina holds an important position in the history of early Grecian art, as the seat of a fiimous school of bronze workers, whose most celebrated artist was Onatas (about 400-4ti0 B.C.). Tlip school was especially noted for its statues of athletes, and seems to be connected with the I'eloponnesian art. On an eminence in the northeastern part of the island stand the ruins of a temple, where in 1811 excavations conducted by Cockerell, Haller, Foster, and Linckh brought to light fragments of sculpture,
which were bought by the Crown Prince, Louis of Bavaria, and after restoration (not always correct I by Thorwaldsen, set up in the Glyptothek at ^lunich. The statues are somewhat under life size, and once decorated the pediments of the temple. Each group re|Hcsented a battle over a fallen warrior in the presence of Athena,
and it is probable that one represented the Trojan expedition of Hercules, the other that of Agamemnon, as in both of them .Eginetan heroes. Telamon and Ajax, were prominent. These are among the best works of archaic Greek art, of which they were foi' a long time almost the only exami>les. The artist was evidently used
to working in bronze, and his technique is more appropriate to metal than stone. The anatomy of the figures is carefully modeled, but the treatment is somewhat dry and hard, in spite of an evident effort to give a realistic character to the groups. The sculptures of the eastern pediment show a decided superiority in this respect, and in particular have nearly lost the
"archaic smile" which appears in the companion
group. In 11)01, Professor A. Furtwiingler began new excavations on this site in behalf of the Prince Regent of Bavaria. These excavations have yielded a ninnber of important fragments of the pediment sculptures, as well as of other statues and some inscriptions, of which one
indicates that the temple was not dedicated to Athena, as had been believed, but to an /Kginetan goddess, Apluca, of whom little is otherwise known, but who is shown by the discoveries to have been worshiped by women as a special helper in need and as a guardian of little children. Other biiildings besides the temple have been found, including traces of an earlier sanctuary. It is clear that the place was a seat of worship from the Jlycenaan age, but was abandoned in the Hellenistic and Koman times. Consult for an account of the new excavations: Cockerell, The Temples of ^ligina and Uassw (London, 18G0); Furtwiinglcr, Kurze Besehreihuiuj dcr
Glyptothclc (Munich, 1900) , and Sitzunysbcrichte
der liniierischcn AlLtidemie (1901).
ÆGIR, a'jir. A Norse deity who presides
over stormy oceans and entertains the gods with
foaming ale. His wife is Han, who has charge
of those lost at sea. They have nine daughters,
the waves of the sea, whose names suggest the
dillcrcnt appearances of the ocean.
Æ'GIS (Gk. a'iyi(, aigis, a rushing storm, from
diaaeiv, uixsviii, to move violently, or aijic, aigis,
a goat-skin). Ir 'he Greek epic, the shield of
Zeus, which had been fashioned by Hephiestus.
Later writers explained it as the skin of the
goat .Xmalthea, which had suckled Zeus, and
with the Gorgon's bead in the centre. (See GoR-
GO.) In works of art it is sometimes borne by
Zeus, and is a regular attribute of Æthena.
ÆGIS'THUS (Gk. Aiyia^oc, Aigisthos). The
son of Thyestes, adopted son of Atreus. During
the absence of Agamemnon at Troy he seduced
Clytemnestra, wife of Aganiemnon. and on the
return of Agamemnon the guilty pair murdered
him. yEgisthus was subseqtiently killed by
Agamemnon's son Orestes. The story forms the
subject of the Orestean trilogy of .-Eschylus.
See ATREfs; Ag.memnon; Okestes.
Æ'GIUM (Gk. Alytov, Aigion). A town of
Achaia, near the coast and west of the mouth
of the Selinus River. According to one legend
it was the birthplace of Zeus, who was the prin-
cipal divinitj' of the place. After the destruc-
tion of Helice, yEgium became the chief cit.v of
the Acha'an League, and the delegates of the
league had their place of meeting in a grove
near the town. The modern town is Vostitza,
officially called by its ancient name.
Æ'GLE, c'gle (Gk. ly^, Aigle. Radiance, a
Greek divinity). A genus of plants of the nat-
ural order Rutaccic. -Egle nuirmelos, the tree
which produces the hhel fruit of India, has ter-
natc, peliolate, oblong-ovate leaves, and the
flowers in panicles. It is found from the south
of India to the base of the Himalaya Mountains.
The fruit is delicious, fragrant, and nutritious.
In an imperfectly ripened state it is an astrin-
gent of great efTect in cases of diarrhiea and
dysentery,;ind as such has lately been introduced
into English medical practice. The root, bark,
and leaves are also used as medicinals. The
Dutch in Ceylon prepare:i perfume from the
rind of the fruit, and the mucus of the seed is
employed as a cement for many purposes.
Æ'GOSPOT'AMOS (Gk. A/yof, Aigos, gen. of ali, aix, she-goat -|- norafidc, potamos, river). A river anil town on the eastern coast of the Thracian Chersonese. The Laceda>monians under Lysandcr here surprised and captured the
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WESTEKN PEDIKENT Or TUB TEMFLS OF FAIXA9 AT .£OINA.