NOMOPHY´LACES
NOMOPHY´LACES (
νομοφύλακες) were certain magistrates or official persons of high
authority, whose duty it was to see that nothing unconstitutional was
proposed, and to punish those who acted unconstitutionally (
Xen. Oec. 9, 14;
Cic. de Leg. 3.2. 0, 46): they
had also to provide for the safe custody of written laws and records
(
C. I. G. 3794). Generally speaking, they were intended
to uphold the established order of things against hasty innovators (cf.
Plat.
Leg. vi. p. 755 A). We find them at Abdera, Mylasa,
Chalcedon, Corcyra (see the inscr. cited by Gilbert,
Staatsalt. ii. p. 337): but the office sometimes has a
different title,
νομοδεῖκται at Andania
(Dittenberg, 388, 11.4) and
θεσμοφύλακες at
Elis (
Thuc. 5.47). At Sparta there were five
νομοφύλακες and a
γραμματοφύλαξ4 or keeper of records, who in some
inscriptions is ranked with his superiors, so that the number appears to be
six. (See Gilbert, i. p. 27.)
At Athens this supervision had originally belonged to the Areiopagus, and,
when Ephialtes deprived that body of its power [
AREIOPAGUS Vol. I. p. 177], it seemed necessary to
have some “guardians of the law” who should be a check upon too
rapid legislation, by protesting against propositions which were detrimental
to the state or subversive of the constitution. (
Lex. Cantab.
s. v.; Phot. s.v. Schömann,
Antiq. p. 342; Grote,
Hist. 5.503, ch. xlvi.; E. Curtius,
Hist. ii. p. 385.) These were a board of
seven Nomophylaces, chosen annually by lot, who sat beside the Proedri in
the senate and in the assembly. They were abolished in the archonship of
Eucleides, when the Areiopagus regained some of its supervising powers, but
were instituted again by Demetrius of Phalerum. Some writers hold this to
have been the first institution of nomophylaces at Athens (see Gilbert,
Staatsalt. i. p. 153). It may be observed that the
importance of the board was really small, since the control which belonged
to them was in practice superseded by the GRAPHE
PARANOMON; and this may account for our hearing nothing of their
activity.
[
C.R.K] [
G.E.M]