Classical strumpets

Thanks to Richard George for his kind compliment and wellthought-out remarks [ FT349:69]. Herewith, a few addenda to my Strumpeting: I deliberately left out Sthenelais and many other ladies from the Greek Anthology, wishing to give space to real-life ones; these others are usually thought to be poetic fictions. The Greek verb Paton translates at the end of verse two does indeed mean ‘breathing out’. However, in the authoritative modern edition of Hermann Beckby, there is a different textual reading. Instead of ereugomenen (Paton), Becky has ameregomenen meaning “to squeeze out”. This eliminates the issue of gold and its smell, and much better suits the poem as a whole. Its point is that whoever wrote it (yes, could be Macedonius, though Marcus Argentarius and Rufinus – my own preference – have been canvassed – plenty of other Anthology erotocists are just as possible) is boasting that the girl grants him her favours for nothing, whereas others who want her have to pay; she squeezes out gold from these clients.

William Roger Paton is something of a mystery. Biographical details are available in his Dictionary of British Classicists entry. Al- though married with children, he mixed with such raffish characters as Oscar Wilde and the notorious pæderast Oscar Browning, from whom he might well have learned the ins and outs of refined sexual practices: the year 1916 does not imply innocence of such matters. As to Martial’s Philænis (also the name of the author of an ancient sex manual), yes, she might have used a dildo. On the other hand, various websites claim enormously enlarged clitorises – at least one is on display at YouTube. Regarding Suillius Cæsoninus, I see nothing specific in Tacitus’s Latin to indicate that he had a sexual encounter with Messalina. There were other men present at her orgy, any one of whom could have buggered him. Barry Baldwin Calgary, Alberta