Apis

, one of the ancient kings of Peloponnesus, son of Phoroneus and Laodice. Some say that Apollo was his father, and that he was king of Argos, while others call him king of Sicyon, and fix the time of his reign above 200 years earlier, which is enough to show he is but obscurely known, if known at all. He was a native of Naupactum, and descended from Inachus. He received divine honours after death, as he had been munificent and humane to his subjects. The country where he reigned was called Apia; and afterwards it received the name of Pelasgia, Argia, or Argolis, and at last that of Peloponnesus, from Pelops. Some, amongst whom is Varro and St.  Augustine, have imagined that Apis went to Egypt with a colony of Greeks, and that he civilized the inhabitants, and polished their manners, for which they made him a god after death, and paid divine honours to him under the name of Serapis. This tradition, according to some of the moderns, is without foundation. Æschylus , Suppliant Maidens .— Augustine , City of God , bk. 18 , ch. 5 .— Pausanias , bk. 2 , ch. 5 .— Apollo dor us , bk. 2 , ch. 1 .――A son of Jason, born in Arcadia; he was killed by the horses of Ætolus. Pausanias , bk. 5 , ch. 1 .――A town of Egypt on the lake Mareotis.――A god of the Egyptians, worshipped under the form of an ox. Some say that Isis and Osiris are the deities worshipped under this name, because during their reign they taught the Egyptians agriculture. The Egyptians believed that the soul of Osiris was really departed into the ox, where it wished to dwell, because that animal had been of the most e ential service in the cultivation of the ground, which Osiris had introduced into Egypt. The ox that was chosen was always distinguished by particular marks: his body was black; he had a square white spot upon the forehead, the figure of an eagle upon the back, a knot under the tongue like a beetle; the hairs of his tail were double, and his right side was marked with a whitish spot, resembling the crescent of the moon. Without these, an ox could not be taken as the god Apis; and it is to be imagined that the priests gave these distinguishing characteristics to the animal on which their credit and even prosperity depended. The festival of Apis lasted seven days; the ox was led in a solemn proce ion by the priests, and every one was anxious to receive him into his house, and it was believed that the children who smelt his breath received the knowledge of futurity. The ox was conducted to the banks of the Nile with much ceremony, and if he had lived to the time which their sacred books allowed, they drowned him in the river, and embalmed his body, and buried it in solemn state in the city of Memphis. After his death, which sometimes was natural, the greatest cries and lamentations were heard in Egypt, as if Osiris was just dead; the priests shaved their heads, which was a sign of the deepest mourning. This continued till another ox appeared, with the proper characteristics to succeed as the deity, which was followed with the greatest acclamations, as if Osiris was returned to life. This ox, which was found to represent Apis, was left 40 days in the city of the Nile before he was carried to Memphis, during which time none but women were permitted to appear before him, and this they performed, according to their superstitious notions, in a wanton and indecent manner. There was also an ox worshipped at Helio polis, under the name of Mnevis; some suppose that he was Osiris, but others maintain that the Apis of Memphis was sacred to Osiris, and Mnevis to Isis. When Cambyses came into Egypt, the people were celebrating the festivals of Apis with every mark of joy and triumph, which the conqueror interpreted as an insult upon himself. He called the priests of Apis, and ordered the deity itself to come before him. When he saw that an ox was the object of their veneration, and the cause of such rejoicings, he wounded it on the thigh, ordered the priests to be chastised, and commanded his soldiers to slaughter such as were found celebrating such riotous festivals. The god Apis had generally two stables, or rather temples. If he ate from the hand, it was a favourable omen; but if he refused the food that was offered him, it was interpreted as unlucky. From this Germanic us, when he visited Egypt, drew the omens of his approaching death. When his oracle was consulted, incense was burnt on an altar, and a piece of money placed upon it, after which the people that wished to know futurity applied their ear to the mouth of the god, and immediately retired, stopping their ears till they had departed from the temple. The first sounds that were heard, were taken as the answer of the oracle to their questions. Pausanias , bk. 7 , ch. 22 .— Hero dot us , bks. 2 & 3.— Pliny , bk. 8 , ch. 38 , . — Strabo , bk. 7 .— Plutarch , Iside et Osiride .— Apollo dor us , bk. 1 , ch. 7 ; bk. 2 , ch. 1 .— Mela , bk. 1 , ch. 9 .— Pliny , bk. 8 , ch. 39 , . — Strabo , bk. 7 .— Ælian , Varia Hist or i a , bks. 4 & 6.— Diodorus , bk. 1 .