[81] Aristoph. Av. 785 ff. οὐδέν ἐστ’ ἄμεινον οὐδ’ ἥδιον ἢ φῦσαι πτερά. | αὐτίχ’ ὑμῶν τῶν θεατῶν εἴ τις ἦν ὑπόπτερος, | εἶτα πεινῶν τοῖς χοροῖσι τῶν τραγῳδῶν ἤχθετο, | ἐκπτόμενος ἂν οὗτος ἠρίστησεν ἐλθὼν οἴκαδε, | κᾆτ’ ἂν ἐμπλησθεὶς ἐφ’ ἡμᾶς αὖθις αὖ κατέπτετο. Müller (Griech. Bühn., p. 322) and others take ἐφ’ ἡμᾶς to mean generally ‘to us in the theatre’. But in that case there would be no point in the sentence. There is obviously a contrast between ὑμεῖς, the spectators, and ἡμεῖς the comic chorus. The same contrast is emphasized in the previous group of trochaics, vv. 753-68. Lipsius accepts the change of τραγῳδῶν to τρυγῳδῶν (‘the other comic choruses’ as opposed to ἡμεῖς, the Birds), and infers that all the comedies were performed in one day by themselves (Ber. der K. S. Ges. der Wiss. zu Leipzig, philol.-histor. Classe, 1885, p. 417). But the change is quite gratuitous and makes the whole passage feeble and obscure. [82] [See p. 69.] [83] [Either connected with ληνός ‘wine-press’ or λῆναι = βάκχαι, vid. Appendix C.] [84] [See Appendix C for authorities and for a discussion of the site of the Lenaeum and its relation to the temple of Dionysus ἐν Λίμναις.] [85] [See Appendix C.] [86] Bekk. Anecd. p. 235, 6; C. I. A. ii. 834 b, col. 2, where the expenditure on the Lenaea is placed about the middle of the sixth prytany, i.e. in Gamelion. [Nilsson, Studia de Dionysiis Atticis, pp. 1-37, confirms the date here given, after a very full discussion.] [87] Plat. Symp. 223 c; Theophrast. Char. 3. [88] Aristoph. Ach. 501 ff. [89] Dem. Meid. § 10 καὶ ἡ ἐπὶ Ληναίῳ πομπὴ καὶ οἱ τραγῳδοὶ καὶ οἱ κωμῳδοί. That there were no dithyrambs at the Lenaea is proved by this passage, and by C. I. A. ii. 553, which enumerates the festivals at which dithyrambic choruses competed, viz. City Dionysia, Thargelia, Prometheia, Hephaesteia. C. I. A. ii. 1367, recording a dithyrambic victory at the Lenaea, is of comparatively late date. [90] Suidas s.v. τὰ ἐκ τῶν ἁμαξῶν σκώμματα. [91] C. I. A. ii. 972 (see Appendix B). [92] Hence in Diod. Sic. xv. 74 δεδιδαχότος Ληναίοις τραγῳδίαν (of Dionysius’ victory in 367), the expression διδάσκειν τραγῳδίαν probably means ‘to compete in the tragic contests’, and implies nothing as to the number of plays presented. Cf. Plat. Symp. 173 A ὅτε τῇ πρώτῃ τραγῳδίᾳ ἐνίκησεν Ἀγάθων, ‘won his first tragic victory’. [93] Athen. p. 217 A. [94] Diod. Sic. xv. 74; Plut. X Orat. 839 D; C. I. A. ii. 977 b, c (see Appendix B). [95] [C. I. A. ii. 1289 shows that tragedy was still performed in B.C. 307-306. This is the last mention of it. (Capps, Amer. Journ. Arch., iv. p. 76.)] [96] C. I. A. iii. 1160. [97] See above, p. 20, note 2.