The God Amor

Book:
The Yale Literary Magazine. Estados Unidos: Herrick & Noyes., 1836.
ANTIQUARIAN RESEARCHES
As these papers are written according to no definite plan the present number shall
commence with the description of a gem with which all are somewhat familiar
CUPIDO A PAPILIONIBUS VECTUS Incis in Corneola
Fabrettus [probably Raphael Fabrettus] a distinguished antiquarian remarks that

among the ancients the smallest devices were not without their meaning but I
hesitate to assent to this opinion since many representations were doubtless merely
fanciful or the work of unskillful artists though such were less common than at the
present day The gem now under consideration may be supposed to belong to this class
but on examination it will be found to emblematize many ancient dogmas Amor holds
in his right hand a torch in his left the reins which guide a pair of butterflies
yoked to his chariot Above him are a star and crescent To what mystic superstition
can these symbols be referred They are consistent with the Platonic ordinances
Formerly it was unlawful to reveal aught of the sacred mysteries these were veiled
in ambiguity Apuleius and Fulgentius first di vulged the fable of Cupid and Psyche
which the ancients caused to be represented on many of their monuments uz
corresponds merely with Anima and Papilio whence my thologists universally
represent the soul by a butterfly or a nymph with butterfly wings in reference
either to its ethereal nature or to its divinity and immortality The double wings
imply either a two fold natural instinct elevating the soul to things above or a
two fold appetite the one controlled the other uncontrolled by reason which latter
is the opinion of Zoroastres the prince of ancient theo logians Amor guides the
chariot of the spirits according to Plato who calls him Celestial Love the leader
and guide of the soul for which office the gods have given him a body as a vehicle
Un der this idea Joannes Picust has thus platonically interpreted the gem illud
scientiarum monstrum In a soul well cultivated the appetite is governed by a purer
love called intellectual here repre sented under the figure of reins for which the
artist is evidently indebted to Plato With respect to the star and crescent before
mentioned God says Plato assigns some souls a place in the moon others in the
remaining planets and in the stars the meas ures of time This divine philosopher
has also described at length the ascent of souls to and their descent from the
stars By an up right elevated torch the god Amor emblematizes the life of man and
his death by an inverted torch and he is here represented as conveying spirits from
heaven in his corporeal vehicle".
PSYCHE A DELPHINIS VECTA (Incis in Corneola)

We have elsewhere remarked that the immortality of the soul was represented under
the image of Psyche with butterfly wings In this beautiful gem the soul is
exhibited as being conveyed to Elysium in a pinnace drawn by dolphins Platonists
and poets make mention of two Elysiums the one celestial in the eighth heaven the
other terrestrial in the loftiest region of the earth be yond the ocean Psyche is
seen upon the medal in an upright posture Freed from the embrace of Cupid with
placid counte nance she guides the bark directing the dolphins the emblems of love
to the region of repose where she shall no longer be burdened Iwith the cares of
the world The fable of Psyche and the manner in which she became em blematic of the
soul is worthy our attention and the student will pardon the writer for an allusion
to what may be new to those who are not familiar with mythology The name of this
lovely nymph may obviously be derived from yuz and perhaps all the fables re
specting her are allegorical referring to the soul Cupid early became enamored of
her beauty and naturally found his highest en joyment in her society Venus enraged
that her son should be thus withdrawn from the world sought satisfaction in the
death of
Psyche but Jupiter at the request of Cupid conferred upon her an immortal existence
Hence she is a fit emblem of the soul's immortality She is often represented as
being wafted to heaven on the wings of a butterfly so delicate an insect being
selected to emblematize the upward tendency of the soul.
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Coles, Elisha. Dictionary, English-Latin, and Latin-English, Containing All Things
Necessary for the Translating of Either Language Into the Other. To which End Many
Things that Were Erroneous are Rectified, Many Superfluities Retrenched, and Very
Many Defects Supplied ... By Elisha Coles ... Reino Unido: S. Ballard, R. Ware, W.
Innys and F. Richardson, 1755.
Parrani, a people in Hellespont who worshipped the god Amor.
//
Parian, a People in Hellespont who worshipped the god Amor.

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Book:

CUPIDO A PAPILIONIBUS VECTUS Incis in Corneola

Fabrettus [probably Raphael Fabrettus] a distinguished antiquarian remarks that

PSYCHE A DELPHINIS VECTA (Incis in Corneola)

Parrani, a people in Hellespont who worshipped the god Amor.

Parian, a People in Hellespont who worshipped the god Amor.

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