A'PIOS TU'BERO'SA. See GROUND-NUT.
A'PIS (Gk. 'Arts). A sacred bull worshiped at Memphis by the ancient Egyptians. Ilis Egyptian name, Hap, is of uncertain etymology. Originally he may have been an independent local divinity, but in historical times he appears as the sacred animal of the god Ptah of :Mem phis. Later he was considered as an incarnation of Osiris. of Sokaris, or even of the sun; hut usually he was, through a false etymology, asso ciated with the Nile (Ha'pi). According to Greek accounts, he was not allowed to live longer than twenty-five years, and if he survived his allotted time was secretly drowned in a well. The bodies of the Apis bulls were carefully em balmed and were buried in subterranean rock hewn tombs, in the Serapeum at :Memphis (not to be confounded with the famous Serapeum of Alexandria), where Apis, under the name Serapis (a combination of Osiris and Apis), was worshiped as the patron of the dead. Three
tombs, with numerous Apis mummies, were dis covered by Mariette in 1851. After the death of an Apis bull, the country was searched, some times for years, until another was found bearing the sacred marks. As to the precise nature of these marks, traditions vary widely. The ani mal, however, must he black, with certain white spots, and a peculiar knot under the tongue. When found, he was solemnly conducted to Memphis and installed in the temple with great festivities. The day of his installation and that of his birth were celebrated annually, and oracles were derived from his movements and from the nature of his appetite. Even the cow which had become the mother of an Apis bull received divine honors. The sumptuous worship of this animal seems to have impressed the Greeks as more remarkable than that of any other sacred animal. For illustration, see EGYPT.