Etymology

The noun μηρός, 'thigh' is derived from i.e. *mēms-ro, cf. Latin membrum, membra, "members of the body, limbs" (< pit. *memsro), st.irl. mír "portion of meat, piece, scrap". According to Brent Vein, *mēms-ro is a backward derivation from the collective noun *mēms-reh2 (Vein 2002). According to a more likely interpretation, *mēms-ro is an adjective ('meaty') which became a unofficial word at an early stage, continued by Greek, Latin and Irish forms. These words, unlike the continuation words i.e. *mē(m)s-(o)-, have undergone a process of specialisation and mean 'part of meat, bite, portion' or 'muscular member, thigh'. It can therefore be assumed that the semantic evolution of the word *mēms-ro went as follows: "meaty" > "muscular limb, member of the body" > "thigh" > (in the context of slaughter) "leg" (cf. pol. "udo" / "udziec" - "thigh of a large animal intended for consumption").

Statements

In the Homeric epic, μηρούς as a sacrificial term appears only in the context of the first phase of the ritual process, i.e. the preparation of the part of the sacrificial animal destined for the gods: after the μηρούς is cut off, it is wrapped with fat on both sides and raw pieces of meat from other parts of the animal are laid on top. Later it seems to be synonymous with the word → μηρία ➚, which it replaces over time.

In the epic the expression μηρούς τ᾽ ἐξέταμον, "they cut the legs" (Il. 1.464 = Il. 2.427 = Od. 12.364 (3x), cf. ἐκ μηρία τάμνον, with the thesis, Od. 3.456) occurs only in extended descriptions depicting the course of the sacrificial ritual (typical scene). The verb ἐκτάμνειν may suggest cutting out the bare bones and cleansing the meat, but it can also mean simply 'to cut off, to chop off the legs (from the body)'. In the typical scenes we find a repetitive arrangement of verses describing the procedure for preparing the legs (μηρούς) for burning (Il. 1.464-5 = Il. 2.427-8 = Od. 12. 364-5): μηρούς τ᾽ ἐξέταμον κατά τε κνίσῃ ἐκάλυψαν / δίπτυχα ποιήσαντες, ἐπ᾽ αὐτῶν δ᾽ ὠμοθέτησαν, "they cut out the legs and covered them with fat (peritoneal membranes) / on two sides wrapping, on these they laid pieces of raw meat", cf. variant in Nestor's description of the sacrifice to Athena (Od. 3.456b-457, see comment ad. loc. ): ἄφαρ δ᾽ ἐκ μηρία τάμνον / πάντα κατὰ μοῖραν, κατά τε κνίσῃ ἐκάλυψαν, "they cut out the femurs / all according to the doli, and covered them with fat (of the peritoneal membrane)". Also in the post-classical period, the typically Greek custom of cutting out the legs / femurs of an animal sacrificed and burning them on the altar are expressed by the phrases τοὺς μηροὺς ἐκτέμνειν, "cut out the legs" (Paus. 1.24.2; 2.11.7), τοὺς μηροὺς καύειν, "burn the legs" (Paus. 2.10.1) and τοὺς μηροὺς θύειν, "to sacrifice the legs" (Paus. 2.10.5), cf. Pirenne-Delforge 2008, 187-197.

Outside of the epic, technical descriptions of the preparation of parts of the sacrifice intended for the gods appear primarily in comedy, where, due to their ambiguity, the terms μερώ or μερός 'thigh / leg' can take on sexual overtones. At the same time, these texts bring information about other parts of the animal intended for the gods wrapped in a fatty peritoneal membrane. From the Ferekrates Confluence, it appears that the gods receive the μερώ hidden under the "numerous θυλήματα" peeled from the meat, together with ὀσφῦς and σπόνδυλος (fr. 28 Kassel-Austin = fr. 23 Kock: εὖ τὼ μηρὼ περιλέψαντες [κομιδῇ] μέχρι βουβώνων <κρέα πάντα> / καὶ τὴν ὀσφὺν κομιδῇ ψιλήν, λοιπὸν τὸν σπόνδυλον αὐτὸν / εἶτ᾽ ἀλλήλους αἰσχυνόμενοι θυλήμασι κρύπτετε πολλοῖς {text broken! : "[meat] from the legs eaten down to the bone [whole] / And this bone quite bare with the rest of the neck / you give deceitfully to us like mangy dogs / for shame that someone will see, whole under cover (transl. K. Bartol)" or "you grab both legs, up to the groin / Carefully cutting out the meat; from the hip the bone completely naked, / Also, having cleaned the spine as if with a saw, / you throw to us as if to dogs, and out of shame in front of each other / you cover it again with a sacrificial gift. (translated by Janina Niemirska-Pliszczyńska)'. In Eubulos (fr. 127 Kassel-Austin fr. 130 Kock) the gods complain that humans sacrifice to them "only tail and thigh (τὴν κέρκον μόνην / καὶ μηρὸν)", with an explicit reference to pederastic anal relations.

Epigraphic sources provide us with evidence of the use of the noun μηρούς to denote the part of a sacrificial animal intended for the gods. The earliest comes from Miletus (c. 500 BC), where a double-sided inscribed stele was found on the site of the Dauphinion with an inscription containing an oracle from Apollo regulating the cult of Heracles (LSAM 42). The state of preservation of the document does not allow us to draw far-reaching conclusions; nevertheless, on page B we read the recommendation to burn the hind legs (B, l. 2: μηροὶ καίωνται) and the location of something near the femur (B, ll. 3-4: π̣[α|ρ]ὰ τοῖς μηρίοισ[ι -| πα]ρατιθέναι). The lack of context prevents the presentation of a hypothesis to explain the hesitation between μηροί and μηρία. The inscription of Demu Phrearrhioi (c. 300-250 BC. ) on the local worship of the Eleusinian gods prescribes the performance of some act on the altars (ἐπὶ δὲ τοὺς βωμοὺς), presumably the burning, 'μηροὺς μασχαλίσματα ἡμίκαιραν, "legs, pieces cut off from the shoulder, half-head (SEG XXXV = NGSL 3, ll. 16-8)', see Lupu 2005, 166-168.

In the classical era, the first testimonies of mantic practices accompanying burning appear, and consequently detailed descriptions of the anomalies of the burning process of the part dedicated to the gods. The evil omens are described in detail by Tiresias in Sophocles' Antigone (S.Ant. xx-xx ): ἀλλ᾽ ἐπὶ σποδῷ μυδῶσα κηκὶς μηρίων ἐτήκετο κἄτυφε κἀνέπτυε, καὶ μετάρσιοι χολαὶ διεσπείροντο, καὶ καταρρυεῖς μηροὶ καλυπτῆς ἐξέκειντο πιμελῆς, "but from the legs oozed / bubbling on the ashes and flowed, / And smoked, and sizzled, and bile splashed high, / the slimy sacrificial legs emerged from under the fat covering them. "

Catalogue of attestations (only occurrences of the word μηροί in the context of a blood sacrifice):

1. femurs:

a. to cut out, to cut off

μηρούς + ἐκτάμνειν "cut off the thighs, cut out the femurs (?)":Il. 1.464 = Il. 2.427 = Od. 12.364; Paus. 1.24.2; 2.11.7

b. cleaned (of flesh)

μηρώ + περιλέπειν "to peel, cleanse (from meat)": Pherecr. fr. 28 Kassel-Austin = fr. 23 Kock

c. to burn (on an altar):

μηροὺς + καύειν: Paus. 2.10.1

μηροί + καίεσθαι: LSAM 42, B, l. 2.

2. femurs, legs:

a. sacrificed

μηρόν or μηρούς + θύειν, "to sacrifice the leg(s)": Euboulos, fr. 127 Kassel-Austin = fr. 130 Kock; Paus. 2.10.