The Humbugs of the World · Chapter
Apollonius of Tyana explained
This chapter recounts the life and exploits of Apollonius of Tyana, an ancient sage or charlatan from Cappadocia, born about four years before Christ.
What happens
This chapter recounts the life and exploits of Apollonius of Tyana, an ancient sage or charlatan from Cappadocia, born about four years before Christ. It describes his miraculous birth, his education under the Pythagorean system (including a five-year vow of silence and abstinence from beans), his residence in the temple of Aesculapius, and his subsequent lecturing tours through Pamphylia, Cilicia, Antioch, Ephesus, and beyond. The narrative highlights his confrontations with grain speculators, his journey to Babylon and India, his encounters with demons and kings, his miraculous feats (such as ending a plague by stoning a beggar who turned into a dog), his conversation with the ghost of Achilles, and his clairvoyant announcement of Domitian's assassination. The chapter concludes by noting that Cagliostro later claimed to have traveled with Apollonius, who would then have been nearly 1784 years old.
Themes in this chapter
Definition and Nature of Humbug
The chapter presents Apollonius as a prime example of ancient humbug, blending genuine philosophy with miraculous claims and deliberate deception.
Gullibility and Human Nature
The narrative emphasizes the credulity of ancient peoples who accepted Apollonius's miracles and divine status, paralleling modern gullibility.
Religion and Superstition
Apollonius's association with temples, divine honors, and supernatural events illustrates the intersection of religion and superstition in ancient imposture.
Characters to notice
- Apollonius Tyanaeus
The central figure of the chapter, an ancient sage or impostor from Tyana, whose life and miraculous deeds are detailed.
- Count Alessandro di Cagliostro
Mentioned at the end as claiming to have been a fellow-traveler with Apollonius, suggesting Apollonius lived to an extreme age.
- Dr. Benjamin Brandreth
Referenced in a comparison between the temple of Aesculapius and the Brandreth House on Broadway, noting that Aesculapius did not bestow universal pills.
Key passages
“The annals of ancient history are peculiarly rich in narratives of pretension and imposition, and either owing to the greater ignorance and credulity of mankind, or the superior skill of gifted but unscrupulous men in those days, present a few examples that even surpass the most remarkable products of the modern science of humbug.”
Ancient history is full of stories of fraud and deception, which sometimes outdo even the best modern humbugs, whether due to people's greater ignorance or the cleverness of ancient tricksters.
Barnum sets up Apollonius as a historical rival to contemporary humbugs.
“The Earth, the common mother of all, is just. But, ye being unjust, would make her a bountiful mother to yourselves alone. Leave off your dishonest traffic, or ye shall be no longer permitted to live.”
The earth is fair to everyone, but you are unfair by hoarding its bounty. Stop your dishonest dealings or you will be killed.
Apollonius's public denunciation of grain speculators, which led to their capitulation.
“Have courage, good Stephanus! Strike! strike! Kill the tyrant!”
Be brave, Stephanus! Strike! Kill the tyrant!
Apollonius's clairvoyant cry during a discourse at Ephesus, coinciding with Domitian's assassination in Rome.