Serbonian, a.
(sɜːˈbəʊnɪən)
[f. Gr. σερβωνί-ς (λίµνη) + -an.]
Serbonian bog: Milton's name for Lake Serbonis in Lower Egypt, a marshy tract (now dry) covered with shifting sand. Hence used allusively.
| 1667 Milton P.L. ii. 592 A gulf profound as that Serbonian Bog Betwixt Damiata and mount Casius old, Where Armies whole have sunk. 1790 Burke Fr. Rev. Sel. Wks. II. 231 In the ‘Serbonian bog’ of this base oligarchy they are all absorbed, sunk, and lost for ever. 1903 Morley Gladstone viii. vii. III. 121 The Serbonian bog of Egyptian finance. |