,
_Odyssey_, x.-xii.; Hyginus, _Fab._ 125). The Roman poets associated her
with the most ancient traditions of Latium, and assigned her a home on
the promontory of Circei (Virgil, _Aeneid_, vii. 10). The metamorphoses
of Scylla and of Picus, king of the Ausonians, by Circe, are narrated in
Ovid (_Metamorphoses_, xiv.).

_The Myth of Kirke_, by R. Brown (1883), in which Circe is explained
as a moon-goddess of Babylonian origin, contains an exhaustive summary
of facts, although many of the author's speculations may be proved
untenable (review by H. Bradley in _Academy_, January 19, 1884); see
also J.E. Harrison, _Myths of the Odyssey_ (1882); C. Seeliger in W.H.
Roscher's _Lexikon der Mythologie_.

CIRCEIUS MONS (mod. _Monte Circeo_), an isolated promontory on the S.W.
coast of Italy, about 80 m. S.E. of Rome. It is a ridge of limestone
about 31/2 m. long by 1 m. wide at the base, running from E. to W. and
surrounded by the sea on all sides except the N. The land to the N. of
it is 53 ft. above sea-level, while the summit of the promontory is 1775
ft. The origin of the name is uncertain: it has naturally been connected
with the legend of Circe, and Victor Berard (in _Les Pheniciens et
l'Odyssee_, ii. 261 seq.) maintains in support of the identification
that [Greek: Ahiaie], the Greek name for the island of Circe, is a
faithful transliteration of a Semitic name, meaning "island of the
hawk," of which [Greek: nesos Kirkes] is the translation. The difficulty
has been raised, especially by geologists, that the promontory ceased to
be an island at a period considerably before the time of Homer; but
Procopius very truly remarked that the promontory has all the appearance
of an island until one is actually upon it. Upon the E. end of the ridge
of the promontory are the remains of an enceinte, forming roughly a
rectangle of about 200 by 100 yds. of very fine polygonal work, on the
outside, the blocks being very carefully cut and jointed and right
angles being intentionally avoided. The wall stands almost entirely
free, as at Arpinum--polygonal walls in Italy are as a rule embanking
walls--and increases considerably in thickness as it descends. The
blocks of the inner face are much less carefully worked both here and at
Arpinum. It seems to have been an acropolis, and contains no traces of
buildings, except for a subterranean cistern, circular, with a beehive
roof of converging blocks. The modern village of S. F