Alexandros : to Hellenikon Paidion

Thanks, yes, I thought I’d seen the Philinna text before. It’s in Page’s “Greek Literary Papyri” Loeb.

As Paul Maas said in the article on it that you linked to, “The φεῦγε type is one of the earliest and most frequent in charms for diseases; cf. …” (incl. Aristotle with εις κορακας).

While he mentions Philinna as a name instanced in Aristophanes’ Clouds (where you also have Thessalian witches drawing down the moon), I’m a bit surprised he didn’t make the link with Philip’s wife Philinna of Larisa, the only Thessalian Philinna known to me and surely the only one with a claim to fame. (I haven’t properly checked the LGPN, but a quick name search gives only ten Philinnas in the enormous vol. III.B which includes all of central Greece.) I wonder if the Syrian Gadarene is a known too.

I don’t see any holy mountain. The headache is told to go to τὰ ἄγρια ὄρη. The idea is to get it well away from people, same as with Mt. Ararat.