E. Cobham Brewer 18101897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
A woman of dangerous blandishments. The allusion is to the
fabulous sirens said by Greek and Latin poets to entice seamen
by the sweetness of their song to such a degree that the
listeners forgot everything and died of hunger (Greek, sirenes,
entanglers). In Homeric mythology there were but two sirens;
later writers name three, viz. Parthenope, Ligea, and Leucosia;
but the number was still further augmented by those who loved
lords many and gods many. There were several sirens up and down
the coast; one at Panormus, another at Naples, others at
Surrentum, but the greatest number lived in the delightful
Capreæ, whence they passed over to the rocks [Sirennusæ] which
bear their name.Inquiry into the Life of Homer. Sirens. Plato
says there are three kinds of sirensthe celestial, the
generative, and the cathartic. The first are under the
government of Jupiter, the second under the government of
Neptune, and the third under the government of Pluto. Wh