Who was Silenus?
In the Middle Ages and early Renaissance, the Silene were not recognized as a single genus, but known under such Latin designations as Lychnis, a “red-flowered plant”, Viscaria, a “viscous or sticky plant”, and Muscipula, a “mousetrap”. Linnaeus established the genus when he named the English catchfly, Silene anglica. The generic name honors a little known character from Greek mythology, but a player in one of its most famous stories. Silenus, a member of the older race of satyrs, had befriended the young Dionysus (Bacchus, “noisy god”) while he lived with Nysa and the other Nyseides (nymphs also known as the Hyades, See What’s in a Name, October 5, 2001). Silenus became foster-father, tutor, and in later years, a follower of the wild child and last god to join the Olympians.
