FRITILLUS
FRITILLUS (
φιμός,
πύργος), a dice-box. The dice were sometimes
thrown from the hand, but (to prevent cheating) more usually from a
dice-box. This was of a cylindrical shape, but, unlike those now in use,
tapered towards the top: hence it was called (
φιμός (Aeschin.
c. Timarch. § 59;
Diphil.
fr. 74 M.) from the resemblance to a muzzle;
perhaps also
κημός, a funnel (see the
Lexicons). Another name, from the tower-like shape, was
πύργος (see the epigram of Agathias quoted under
DUODECIM SCRIPTA
1. 23), in Latin
pyrgus (
Anthol.
Lat. 3.77, No. 915 Meyer, 193 Riese; Sidon. Apoll.
Epist. 8.12),
turricula (
Mart. 14.16),
phimus
(Hor.
Sat. 2.7, 15), but most commonly
fritillus (Senec.
Apocol. 14.4; 15.1;
Mart. 4.14,
14.1;
Juv. 14.5). It was furnished inside
with parallel indentations like steps (
gradus,
Auson.
Comm. Prof. 1.27; Sidon. Apoll.
l.c.; Anthol.
Lat. l.c.), which gave a better spin to the dice. The material
was wood (
δουράτεος, Agathias;
cava buxa, Auson.), ivory (Sidon. Apoll.), or horn
(Schol. Juv.
l.c.). Some have thought that the
phimus was a funnel used for dropping the
dice into the
fritillus or
pyrgus; see Salmasius on
Hist. Aug. 2.755 ff.,
ed. 1671, or the quotations in Orellius on Hor.
l.c., in Mayor on Juv.
l.c. There seems no
intelligible reason why two instruments should have been used; (
φιμὸς is the regular word for a dice-box in
classical Greek; and common-sense criticism cuts through such pedantries.
The notion is rightly rejected by Orellius, Marquardt, Becker and
Göll. In Agathias (
l.c.) the
ἠθμὸς is no doubt the funnel-shaped upper end
of the
πύργος, not a separate box. The
orca of Persius (
Sat. 3.50) has been identified with the fritillus, but probably
refers to a different game (Conington
ad loc.).
(Becker-Göll,
Gallus, 3.458;
Marquardt,
Privatl. 825; Guhl and Koner, ed. 5, pp. 353,
672.)
[
J.Y] [
W.W]
