The presbyter John, whom Papias quotes, says distinctly that "he neither heard the Lord nor accompanied Him" (Eusebius, loc. cit.); and this positive statement is fatal to the tradition, which does not appear until about two hundred and fifty years afterwards, that he was one of the seventy disciples (Epiphanius, pseudo-Origen De recta in Deum fide, and the author of the Paschal Chronicle).
The traditional Western day for the Christmas festival, 25th December, goes back as far as Hippolytus, loc. cit.; the traditional Eastern day, 6th January, as far as the Basilidian Gnostics (but in their case only as a celebration of the Baptism), mentioned by Clement of Alexandria, loc. cit.
Philochorus in his Atthis (ap. Macrobius loc. cit.) further identified this divinity, at whose sacrifices men and women exchanged garments, with the moon.
And this conclusion Cyril had already come to (loc. cit.).
P. Lesson, who had previously (loc. cit.) made some blunders about it, placed it (Traite d'Ornithologie, p. 12), though only, as he says, "par analogie et a priori," in his first division of birds, "Oiseaux Anomaux," which is equivalent to what we now call Ratitae, making of it a separate family "Nullipennes."
