aether — Lewis & Short
aether, ĕris (sometimes Gr.
I gen. aetheros; acc. reg. Gr. aethera; and so Stat. S. 4, 225; id. Th. 3, 525;
but poetry and prose of that per. also use aetherem,Tert. adv. Marc. 1, 13; cf. Serv. ad Verg. A. 1, 58; plur. in late Lat. aethera, Ven. Fort. Carm. 3, 9, 7), m., = ai)qh/r [v. aestas], the upper, pure, bright air, the ether.
I In gen.
A Lit. (opp. aër, the lower atmospheric air): restat ultimus omnia cingens et coërcens caeli complexus, qui idem aether vocatur, extrema ora et determinatio mundi;
in quo cum admirabilitate maxima igneae formae cursus ordinatos definiunt,Cic. N. D. 2, 40:
(astra) oriuntur in ardore caelesti, qui aether vel caelum nominatur,id. ib. 2, 15.—
B Transf., in the poets,
1 Heaven: Id, quod nostri caelum memorant, Graii perhibent aethera, Pac. ap. Varr. L. L. 5, § 17 Müll. (Trag. Rel. p. 87 Rib.): famā super aethera notus, Verg. A. 1, 379:
rex aetheris altus Juppiter,id. ib. 12, 140:
regna profundi aetheros,Stat. Th. 3, 524. —
2 Air, in gen.: clamor ad caelum volvendus per aethera vagit, Enn. ap. Varr. L. L. 7, § 104 Müll. (Ann. v. 520 Vahl.):
ignem ignes procudunt aetheraque aether,Lucr. 2, 1115: ferar per liquidum aethera Vates, * Hor. C. 2, 20, 2:
nudoque sub aetheris axe,Verg. A. 2, 512; 8, 28:
apes liquidum trans aethera vectae,id. ib. 7, 65; Sil. 2, 513 al.—*
3 In opp. to the lower world, the upper world, the earth:
aethere in alto duros perferre labores,Verg. A. 6, 436.—*
4 The brightness surrounding a deity:
aethere plena corusco Pallas,Val. Fl. 5, 183.—
II Aether personified, son of Chaos, and father of Cœlum, Cic. N. D. 3, 17 al.; also Jupiter, Cic. Ac. 2, 41. So in the poets often:
pater Aether,Lucr. 1, 250:
pater omnipotens Aether,Verg. G. 2, 325.