Laurel plaster and hive-smoke against bees and wasps

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Of the same: against bees. Against the insects — wasps, bees, hornets, tenthrēdones, bombylii, and bembices — plaster leaves of laurel, or of mallow, or of sisymbrium, or of coriander. Dung smeared on also works, and fig-sap with mulberry leaves, or calamint, or lentil anointed with oil. Root of wild cucumber boiled together with oil keeps the creatures unstruck...; therefore one must anoint them with galbanum and oil. Likewise this, being fumigated before the hives are opened, keeps them unstung; or anoint having rubbed melissa with oil; or fumigate dung or sage. Every insect sprinkled with oil is killed.

Greek

3.29 Τοῦ αὐτοῦ· πρὸς μελίσσασ Πρὸς δὲ τὰ ἔντομα, σφῆκας, μελίσσας, ἀνθρήνας, τενθρηδόνας, βομβυλίους, βέμβικας, δάφνης φύλλα κατάπλασσε ἢ μαλάχης ἢ σισυμβρίου ἢ κορίου. Ποιεῖ δὲ καὶ βόλβιτον καταχριόμενον ὀπός τε συκῆς σὺν συκαμίνου φύλλοις ἢ καλαμίνθη ἢ φακὸς σὺν ἐλαίῳ χριόμενος. Ἄπληκτα δὲ τὰ ζῷα τηρεῖ σικύου ἀγρίου ῥίζα ἐλαίῳ συνεψηθεῖσα <...> ὅθεν ἀλείφειν αὐτὰ χρὴ χαλβάνην σὺν ἐλαίῳ. Ὁμοίως δὲ τοῦτο καὶ θυμιώμενον πρὶν ἀνοῖξαι τὰ σμήνη ἀπλήκτους διατηρεῖ, ἢ μελισσόφυλλον ἐλαίῳ τρίψαντα ἀλείφειν, ἢ βόλβιτα θυμιᾶν ἢ ἐλελίσφακον. Πᾶν δὲ ἔντομον ἐλαίῳ ἐπιρρανθὲν ἀναιρεῖται.

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About this text

Julius Africanus's Miscellanies: history, science and craft, in the fragments that survive, with books 7, 2 and 3 in full and parts of books 4, 8, 9 and 13.

This volume gathers the translated fragments, drawn from books 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, and 13: poisons and antidotes, veterinary charms, military stratagems, and the farm and household lore of the ancient world.

Julius Africanus (c. 160–c. 240) was a Christian scholar of the early third century, best known for the Chronographiai — the first Christian attempt at a universal chronology from creation to his own day. He wrote from Emmaus in Palestine and moved in the highest Roman circles.

The Cesti ("embroidered girdles") were his wide-ranging miscellany of curiosities, spanning military science, farming, medicine, and natural marvels. Only fragments survive, quoted by later Byzantine writers.

Fresh English from PG 10 Greek of the Cesti fragmenta through 9.5.

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Translated from PG 10 Cesti fragmenta (Greek)

We have not yet re-checked this work against its source. We made this study translation with AI help. No scholar has yet certified it as faithful and complete. Open Greek on any section to see the source text. It is not a critical edition.

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