CESTUS
CESTUS (
κεστός). In Horn.
Il. 14.214, an adj., applied to the girdle
(
ἱμάς) of Aphrodite, on which were
embroidered all manner of enticements to love (Schol. ap. Ebeling). It means
“perforated ;”
i.e., with holes made by the
needle--“embroidered,”
acu pictus--and is derived from the same root
(viz. kas =
ferire) as
κεάζω (Fick,
Vergl. Worterb. 1.531), or
κεντέω for
κενστός (all ancient gramm., Pott, Ahrens). It is to be
considered the same as the
στρόφιον, ταινία, μίτρα,
στηθοδεσμός,
fascia pectoralis, mammillare, which is found on
statues of Aphrodite worn next the skin ( “ceston de Veneris sinu
calentem,”
Mart. 14.206: cf. K. O. Müller,
Arch. der Kunst, § § 339. 3, 377. 5;
and Baumeister,
Denkmäler, &c. p. 366, fig.
393). It was accordingly made of some soft substance (Catull. 64, 65;
Prop. 5.9,
48). In
Mart. 14.66
pellis is probably what we should call kid. Its
object was to support and sometimes
[p. 1.408]compress too
full bosoms, like the modem corset, but it was not used, like the latter, to
pinch in the figure. The Greeks and Romans were strangers to this injurious
practice (Baumeister,
l.c.; Becker-Göll,
Charikles, 3.226 ;
Gallus,
3.251). Accordingly, every girl did not wear one. Winckelmann (ap.
Müller,
l.c.) and Saglio
(
Dict. 1.1176) consider that, owing to its splendour, the
κεστὸς of Aphrodite was a belt worn
outside the dress. Sometimes Aphrodite is
represented as holding the
κεστὸς in her
hand (
Arch. Zeit. 1866, 261; cf.
Mart.
6.13); sometimes Cupid wore it on his neck (
Mart. 14.206).
[
L.C.P]
