Note 259 — TAR, TOR, TARIT.

Cerberus was the name of a place, as well as Triton and Torone, though esteemed the dog of hell. We are told by [259]Eusebius, from Plutarch, that Cerberus was the Sun: but the term properly signified the temple, or place, of the Sun. The great luminary was styled by the Amonians both Or and Abor; that is, light, and the parent of light: and Cerberus is properly Kir-Abor, the place of that Deity. The same temple had different names, from the diversity of the God's titles who was there worshipped. It was called TorCaph-El; which was changed to τρικεφαλος, just as Cahen-Caph-El was rendered κυνοκεφαλος: and Cerberus was hence supposed to have had three heads. It was also styled Tor-Keren, Turris Regia; which suffered a like change with the word above, being expressed τρικαρηνος: and Cahen Ades, or Cerberus, was hence supposed to have been a triple-headed monster. That these idle figments took their rise from names of places, ill expressed and misinterpreted, may be proved from Palæphatus. He abundantly shews that the mistake arose hence, though he does not point out precisely the mode of deviation. He first speaks of Geryon, who was supposed to have had three heads, and was thence styled τρικεφαλος. [260]Ην δε τοιονδε τουτο· πολις εστιν εν τῳ Ευξινῳ ποντῳ Τρικαρηνια καλουμενη κλ. The purport of the fable about Geryones is this: There was, upon the Pontus Euxinus, a city named Tricarenia; and thence came the history Γηρυονου του Τρικαρηνου, of Geryon the Tricarenian; which was interpreted, a man with three heads. He mentions the same thing of Cerberus. [261]Λεγουσι περι Κερβερου, ὡς κυων ην, εχων τρεις κεφαλας· δηλον δε ὁτι και ὁυτος απο της πολεως εκληθη Τρικαρηνος, ὡσπερ ὁ Γηρυονης. They say of Cerberus, that he was a dog with three heads: but it is plain that he was so called from a city named Tricaren, or Tricarenia, as well as Geryones. Palæphatus says, very truly, that the strange notion arose from a place. But, to state more precisely the grounds of the mistake, we must observe, that from the antient Tor-Caph-El arose the blunder about τρικεφαλος; as, from Tor-Keren, rendered Tricarenia, was formed the term τρικαρηνος: and these personages, in consequence of it, were described with three heads.