Stephanus 66

66a whatever it falls upon—by these powers everything of the kind has been called pungent. But what has first been thinned by decay, and then slips into the narrow veins, meeting the earthen parts lodged there and whatever hold a measure of air, so that, set moving about one another, they churn, and churning tumble about, and entering into one another carve out hollows, stretched taut by what enters—66b which, when a moist shell has been wrapped round hollow air, now earthy, now pure, become moist vessels of air, hollow and round; and those of the pure kind, coming round transparent, were given the name of bubbles, while those of the earthy kind, moved and lifted up all together, took the byname of seething and leavening—the cause of these affections has been called acid. To everything said on this subject, 66c the opposite affection comes from an opposite cause: whenever what enters in the moist things, being by nature akin to the tongue's own state, anoints what has been roughened and smooths it, gathers what has been unnaturally packed together, releases what has been scattered, and above all settles everything into its nature by sweat—such a remedy of violent affections, grown pleasant and welcome to all, is called sweet. 66d

So much for these. About the power of the nostrils, there are no kinds in it. For the whole tribe of smells is half-born, and no simple kind has chanced upon a symmetry with anything such that it could take up a smell; but the veins about these organs of ours were framed narrower toward the kinds of earth and water, wider toward those of fire and air, and so none of them has ever perceived any smell of any of these: smells arise only from things being moistened, or decaying, or melting, or given off as vapor. For as 66e water changes into air and air into water, smells come to be in the interval between them; all smells together are smoke or mist—mist is what goes from air into water, smoke what goes from water into air. Hence all smells together have come to be finer than water, denser than air.

Timaeus: They make themselves felt, too, when someone stops his breath the other way and drags the air forcibly into himself; for then no smell filters in with it, and the breath, robbed of smells, alone

66a through everything they strike. Because of these powers, all such things were named pungent. The sharp taste works the other way. Particles thinned out first by decay slip into the narrow veins. There they act on the earthy parts lodged in them and on whatever holds a measure of air, so that, moving around these things, they are churned up. Churned, they tumble about and pass into one another, hollowing out other parts, stretched tight by what enters. 66b This means air shut in by a coat of moisture around it—sometimes earthy, sometimes pure—so that hollow, rounded vessels of water are formed. The ones from the pure moisture stay transparent, and were given the name bubbles. The ones from the earthy kind, which move and rise up together with it, were given the names fermentation and bubbling. And the cause of these conditions was given the name sharp. All that has been said about these has 66c an opposite condition from an opposite cause. When the makeup of what enters the moist parts is by nature suited to the tongue's own state, it smooths over what has been roughened, as if with a salve; it draws together what stands packed or has been scattered against nature; and above all it makes the body sweat in the natural way. Every such cure of violent conditions becomes pleasant and dear to everyone, and it is called sweet. 66d

That covers those senses. Next, the power of the nostrils: it has no distinct kinds. Every smell is only half-formed, and no single kind of thing has ever been fitted in the right proportion to give a smell. Our veins in that region were made narrower than the kinds of earth and water, and wider than those of fire and air. That is why none of these was ever sensed by smell on its own—only when some of them were damp, or rotting, or melting, or burned as incense. For smells come to be when 66e water changes into air, or air into water, in the space between the two. All smells together are smoke or mist. Mist is what passes from air into water; smoke is what passes from water into air. That is why all smells are finer than water and thicker than air.

Timaeus: This becomes clear whenever someone holds the nose shut and forces breath into himself. Then no smell passes through with it. The breath, emptied of smells, alone

66a and because of these properties all such are called pungent. Again, when particles already refined by putrefaction, entering into the narrow veins, are symmetrical with the particles of earth and air contained therein, so that they cause them to circulate round one another and ferment, then, in thus fermenting they change round and pass into fresh places, and thereby create fresh hollows which envelop the entering particles. By this means, the air being veiled in a moist film, 66b sometimes of earth, sometimes of pure moisture, moist and hollow and globular vessels of air are formed; and those formed of pure moisture are the transparent globules called by the name of bubbles, while those of the earthy formation which moves throughout its mass and seethes are designated boiling and fermenting; and the cause of these processes is termed acid.

An affection which is the opposite of all those last described 66c results from an opposite condition. Whenever the composition of the particles which enter into the moist parts is naturally akin to the state of the tongue, they oil its roughened parts and smooth it, contracting the parts that are unnaturally dilated or dilating those that are contracted, and thus settling them all, so far as possible, in their natural condition; and every such remedy of the forcible affections, being pleasant and welcome to everyone, is called sweet. 66d

For this subject, then, let this account suffice. Next, as regards the property of the nostrils, it does not contain fixed kinds. For the whole range of smells is a half-formed class, and no kind possesses the symmetry requisite for containing any smell; for our veins in these organs are of too narrow a construction for the kinds of earth and of water and too wide for those of fire and air, so that no one has ever yet perceived any smell from any of these, but only from substances which are in process of being moistened or putrefied or melted or vaporized. 66e For smells arise in the intermediate state, when water is changing into air or air into water, and they are all smoke or mist; and of these, the passage from air to water is mist, and the passage from water to air is smoke whence it is that all the smells are thinner than water and thicker than air.

Timaeus: Their nature is made clear whenever there is some block in the respiration and a man draws in his breath forcibly; for then no accompanying smell is strained through, but the breath passes in alone by itself isolated from the smells. So for these reasons the varieties of these smells have no name,