Psophis itself had
previously
borne the names of Ery-
wamthus and Phegea.
wamthus and Phegea.
Charles - 1867 - Classical Dictionary
, vol.
7.
--Joum.
ics Sav. , Avril, 1823, p. 219. --Magasin Encyclop. ,
1808, vol, 4, p. 153, 407. ) The canvass containing
this famous trial of skill became highly prized, and at
a later day was placed in the palace of the Caesars at
Rome. It was destroyed by a conflagration, together
with the edifice itself. Protogenes was employed for
seven years in finishing a picture of Ialysus, a cele-
brated huntsman, supposed to have been the son of
Apollo, and the founder of Rhodes. During all this
time the painter lived only upon lupines and water,
thinking that such aliments would leave him greater
Sights of fancy; but all this did not seem to make him
more successful in the perfection of his picture. He
was to represent in the piece a dog panting, and with
froth at his mouth; but this he never could do with
satisfaction to himself; and, when all his labours seem-
ed to be without success, he threw his sponge upon
the piece in a fit of anger. Chance alone brought to
perfection what the labours of art could not accom-
plish: the fall of the sponge upon the picture repre-
sented the froth at the mouth of the dog in the most
perfect and natural manner, and the piece was univer-
sally admired. The same story is told of Nealces
while engaged in painting a horse; and probably one
of these anecdotes has been copied from the other.
According to Pliny, Protogenes painted this picture
with four layers of colours, in such a way, that, when
one was destroyed by the hand of time, the layer un-
derneath would reproduce the piece in all its original
freshness and beauty. The account appears a diffi-
cult one to comprehend. Apelles, on seeing this pro-
duction of the pencil, is said to have broken out into
loud expressions of admiration; but what consoled
him was the reflection that his own pieces surpassed
those of Protogenes in grace. When Demetrius be-
sieged Rhodes, he refused to set fire to a part of the
city, which might have made him master of the whole,
because he was informed that this part contained some
of the finest productions of the pencil of the artist. Pro-
togenes himself occupied, during the siege, a house ir.
the suburbs, in the very midst of the enemy's lines;
and when Demetrius expressed his astonishment at the
feeling of security which the painter displayed, the lat-
ter replied, "I know very well that Demetrius is ma-
ting war upon the Rhodians, not upon the arts. " The
prince thereupon, for greater safety, posted a guard
? round his dwelling. --During the reign of Tiberius,
sketches and designs of Protogenes were to be seen at
Rome, which were regarded as models of the beau, ideal.
? ? His picture of Ialysus was brought from Greece, and
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? PR IT
PSA
dentins Amamus in a Strasburg manuscript. (Fabric,
Comment, ad Poet. , p. 7. --Leyser, Hist. Poet. , p.
10. )--The best editions of Prudentius are, that of
Weitzius, Hannov. , 1613, 8vo; that of Cellarius,
Hal. , 1703, 1739, 8vo; and that of Teollius, Parma,
1788, 2 vols. 4to. (Schbll, Hist. Lit. Horn. , vol. 3,
p. 72, seqq. -- Bohr, Gesch. Rom. lot. , vol. 2, p. 41,
MM. )
Prusa, a city of Bithynia, at the foot of Mount
Olympus, and hence called Prusa ad Olympum (Tlpov-
5u eiri r? 'OXi/my). Pliny asserts, without naming
his authority, that this town was founded by Hannibal
(6, 32). By which expression we are probably to un-
derstand that it was built at the instigation of -nis
great general, when he resided at the court of Pruaias,
from whom the name of the city seems evidently de-
rived. But Strabo, following a still more remote tra-
dition, affirms that it was founded by Prusias, who
made war against Croesus. (Slrah. , 5fii. ) InStepha-
nus, who copies Strabo, the latter name is altered to
Cyrus (s. v. Upovaa). But it is probable that both
readings are faulty, though it is not easy lo see what
substitution should be made. (Consult the French
Strabo, vol. 4, lib. 12, p. 82. ) Dio Chrysostom, who
was a native of Prusa, did not favour the tradition
which ascribed to it so early an origin as that author-
ized by the reading in Strabo. (Oral. , 43, p. 585. )
Stephanus informs us that Prusa was but a small
town. Strabo, however, states that it enjoyed a good
government. It continued to flourish under the Ro-
man empire, as may be seen from Pliny the younger
(10, 85); but under the Greek emperors it suffered
much from the wars carried on against the Turks.
(Meet. Ckon. , p. 180, D. , p. 339, A. ) It finally re-
mained in the hands of the descendants of Osman,
who made it the capital of their empire, under the cor-
rupted name of Brusa or Broussa. It is still one of
the most flourishing towns possessed by the infidels
in Anatolia. (Browne's Travels, in Walpole's Tur-
key, vol. 2, p. 108. -- Cramer's Asia Minor, vol. 1,
p. 178. )
Pkusias, I. king of Bithynia, son of Zielas, began
(o reign about B C. 228, and was still reigning B. C.
190, at the time of the war between the Romans and
Antiochus; for Polybius intimates that the Prusias
who was solicited by Antiochus had been reigning for
some time. (Polyb. , 21, 9. ) In B. C. 216'Prusias
defeated the Gauls in a great battle. (Polyb. , 5, 111. )
In B. C. 207 he invaded the territories of Attains I.
He was included in the treaty with Philip in B. C.
205. (Lit). , 29, 12. ) Strabo asserts that it was this,
the elder, Prusias with whom Hannibal sought refuge.
^Slrab. , 563. ) And the accounts of other writers
contain nothing to disprove this testimony. But if
the elder Prusias received Hannibal, he was still liv-
ing at the death of Hannibal in B. C. 183. (Clinton,
Fast. Hell. , vol. 2, p. 416, seq. )--II. The second of
the name appears to have ascended the throne of Bi-
thynia between B. C. 183 and B. C. 179. The two
reigns of Prusias I. and Prusias II. occupied a period
of about 79 years (B. C. 228-150). Prusias II. mar-
ried the sister of Perseus, king of Maccdon. (Appi-
an. Bell. Mithrad. , c. 2. ) He was surnamed 6 Ki>>>j/-
yoe. or The Hunter, and was long engaged in war
with Attalus, king of Pergamus. He is commonly
supposed to have been the monarch who abandoned
Hannibal when the latter was sought after by the Ro-1
? ? mans; though Strabo assigns this to Prusias I. This
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? PSO
f 8T
or paying them the suns of money which he had prom-
tied, but also in assigning them lands on the Syrian
frontier, where they formed, in fact, a military colony.
Psammitichus showed a great partiality for the Greeks
an all occasions; and, ifi a Syrian expedition, he gave
'. hem the place of honour on the right, while he as-
signed ihe left to the Egyptians. The discontent of
the national troops was so great at this, that a large
number of the military caste, amounting, it is said, to
340,000 men, left Egypt and retired to Ethiopia.
(Consult, on this subject, the learned note of St. Mar-
in, Biogr. Univ. , vol. 36, p. 180, seq. ) So strong
was the partiality of Psammitichus for everything
Greek, that he caused a number of children to be
trained up after the Grecian manner, and with these
he formed the caste of interpreters, whom Herodotus
found in his day existing in Egypt. Psammitichus
also embellished his capital with several beautiful
structures, and, among others, with the southern nro-
pylaia of the great temple of Vulcan. He carried on
a long war in Syria, and his forces are said to have
remained 29 years before the city of Azotus. It was
during this period, probably, that he arrested by pres-
ents the victorious career of the Scythians, who had
averrun Asia Minor, and were advancing upon Pales-
tine and Egypt. This event would seem to have
happened 626 B. C. , or in the 13lh year of the reign
of the Jewish king Josiah, when the prophet Isaiah
announced the approaching irruption of the Scythians
into the territories of Israel. Psammitichus died after
a reign of 54 years, leaving the crown to his son Ne-
cos. --Herodotus relates a very foolish story of Psam-
mitichus, who, it seems, was desirous of ascertaining
? vhat nation wis the most ancient in the world; or,
In ether words, what was the primitive language of
txen. In order to discover this, he took two newly-
bom children, and, having caused them to be placed
ia a lonely hut, directed a shepherd to nourish thorn
with the milk of goats, which animals were sent in to
them at stated times, and to take care himself never
to 'Jtter a word in their hearing. The object was to
ascertain what words they would first utter of them-
selves. At length, on one occasion, when the shep-
herd went in to them as usual, both the children, run-
ning up to him, called out Bckoa. Psammitichus, on
being informed of the circumstance, made inquiries
about the word, and found that it was the Phrygian
term for bread. He therefore concluded that th6
Phrygians were the most ancient of men! The truth
is, the cry which the children uttered (supposing the
story to be true) was bek (with the Greek termination
as given by Herodotus, bek-os), and the children had
learned it from the cry of the goats which suckled
hem. (Herod. , 3, 151, teqq. --St. Martin, in Biogr.
mtr. , vol. 36, p. 178, teqq. )--II. A descendant of
the preceding, who came to the throne about 400 B. C. ,
-s a kind of vassal-king to Persia. (St. Martin, in
Hiogr. Unit. , vol. 36, p. 181. )
Psophis, a very ancient city in the northwestern
fart of Arcadia. Pausanias places it at the foot of the
chain of Erymanthus, from which descended a river
of the same name, which flowed near the city, and, af-
ter receiving another small stream called Aroanius,
rained the Alpheus on the borders of Elis (8, 84).
Psophis itself had previously borne the names of Ery-
wamthus and Phegea. At the time of the Social war,
was in tho possession of the Eleana, on whose ter-
? ? utory it bordered, as well as on that of the Achaans;
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? no
PTOI. EM. ELn.
L:rn in ner favour. Jupiter takes pity on her and en-
dows her with immortality: Venus in reconciled, and
the marriage of Psyche with Cupid takes place amid
great joy in the skies. The offspring of their union
was a child, whom hi<< parents named Pleasure. (Apu-
Uius, Mil. , 4, 83, seqq. --Op. , ed Oudend. , vol. 1, p.
300, seqq. -- Keighlley's Mythology, p. 148, seqq. --
Among the various explanations that have been given
of this beautiful legend, the following appears the
most satisfactory : 1 his fable, it is said, is a represent-
ation of the human soul (i/w^y). The soul, which is
of divine origin, is here below subjected to error in its
prison-house, the body. Hence trials and purifications
are set before it, that it may become capable of a
higher view of things, and of true desire. Two loves
meet it: the earthly, a deceiver, who draws it down to
earthly things; the heavenly, who directs its view to
the original, fair and divine, and who, gaining the vic-
tory over his rival, leads off the soul as his bride.
[Hilt, Berlin Akaci, 1816. --Creuser, Symbolik, vol.
3, p. 673. )
Psvlli, a people cf Libya near the Syrtes, very ex-
pen in curing the venomous bite of serpents, which
had no fatal effect upon them. They were destroyed
by the Nasamones, a neighbouring people. It seems
very probable that the Nasamones circulated the idle
story respecting the destruction of the Psylli, which
Herodotus relates, without, however, giving credit to
it. He states that a south wind had dried up all the
reservoirs of the Psylli, and that the whole country,
as far as the Syrtes, was destitute of water. They re-
solved, accordingly, after a public consultation, to
make an expedition against the south wind , but, hav-
ing reached the deserts, the south win<: overwhelmed
them beneath the sands. (Lucan, 9, 804, 937. --He-
-od. , 4, 172. --Pausan. , 9, 28. )
Pteria, a small territory, forming part of Cappa-
docia according to Herodotus (1, 76), or, more prop-
erly speaking, of Paphlagonia, and in the vicinity of
the city of Sinope. Here the first battle took place
oetween Crcesus and Cyrus. (Herod. , 1. c. -- Lar-
cher, Hist. Herod. , vol. 8, p. 468. )
Prot. EM. SiDs, I. surnamed Soter, and sometimes
Lagi (i. e. , son of Lagus), king of Egypt, and son of
Arsinoe, who, when pregnant by Philip of Macedonia,
married Lagus. (Vid. Lagus. ) Ptolemy was edu-
cated in the court of tho King of Macedonia. Ho be-
came one of the friends and associates of Alexander,
and, when that monarch invaded Asia, the son of Ar-
jinoe attended him as one of his generals. During
ihe expedition he behaved with uncommon valour;
ne killed one of the Indian monarchs in single com-
bat, and it was to his prudence and courage that Alex-
ander was indebted for thq reduction of the rock Aor-
nus. After the conqueror's death, in the general di-
vision of the Macedonian empire. Ptolemy obtained
as his share the government of Egypt, with Libya,
and part of the neighbouring territories of Arabia. In
this appointment the governor soon gained the esteem
of the people by acts of kindness, by benevolence and
clemency, though he did not assume the title of inde-
pendent monarch till seventeen years after. He made
himself master of Coelosyria, Phoenicia, and the neigh-
bouring coast of Syria; and when he had reduced Je-
rusalem, he carried above 100,000 prisoners to Egypt,
to people the extensive city of Alexandres, which be-
came the capital of his dominions. After he had ren-
? ? dered these prisoners the most attached and faithful of
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? PTOLEM^US.
PTOLEM. tX'S.
married wilh the consent of Phihdelphue. With the
most rapid success lie conquered Syria and Cilicia,
and advanced as far as Bactriana and the confines of
India; but a sedition at home stopped his progress,
and he retimed to Egypt loaded with the spoils of
conquered nations. Among the immense riches
which he brought, he had many statues of the Egyp-
tian gods, which Cambyscs had carried away into Per-
lia when he conquered Egypt. These were restored
to the temples, and the Egyptians called their sover-
eign Euergetes (or Benefactor), in acknowledgment
of his attention, beneficence, and religious zeal for the
gids of his country. The last years of Ptolemy's
reign were passed in peace if we except the refusal
of the Jews to pay the tribute of 20 silver talents
which their ancestors had always paid to the Egyptian
monarchs. Euergetes died 221 years before Christ,
after a reign of 25 years; and, like his two illustrious
predecessors, was the patron of learning. --IV. The
fourth, succeeded his father Euergetes on the throne of
Egypt, and received the surname of PhilopatoT, prob-
ably from the regard which he manifested for the mem-
ory of his father; though, according to some authori-
ties, he destroyed him by poison. He began his reign
with acts of the greatest cruelty, and he successively
sacrificed to his avarice his own mother, his wife, his
sister, and his brother. He received, in derision, the
name of Typhon. from his evil morals, and that of
Gollus, because he appeared in the streets of Alex-
andres with all the gestures of the priests of Cybele.
In the midst of his pleasures Philopator was called to
war against Antiochus, king of Syria, and at the head
of a powerful army he soon invaded his enemy's ter-
ritories, and might have added the kingdom of Syria to
Egypt if he had made a prudent use of the victories
which attended his arms. In the latter part of his
reign, the Romans, whom a dangerous war w'th Car-
tnagc had weakened, but, at the same time, roused to
superior activity, renewed, for political reasons, the
treaty of alliance which had been made with the
Egyptian monarchs. Philopator at last, weakened and
enervated by intemperance and continued debauchery,
died in the 37th year of his age, after a reign of 17
years, 204 years before the Christian era. --V. The
fifth, succeeded his father Philopator as king of Egypt,
though only in the fourth year of his age. During the
years of his minority he was under the protection of
Sosicius and of Aristomenes, by whose prudent ad-
ministration Antiochus was dispossessed of the prov-
inces of Ccelosyria and Palestine, which he had con-
quered in war. The Romans also renewed their al-
liance with him after their victories over Hinnibal,
and the conclusion of the second Punic war. This
flattering embassy induced Aristomenes to ofTtt the
care of the patronage of the young monarch to the
Romans; but the regent was confirmed in his honour-
able office, and, by making a treaty of alliance with
the people of Achaia, he convinced the Egyptians that
he was qualified to wield the sceptre and to govern
the nation. But, now that Ptolemy had reached his
14th year, according to the laws and customs of
Egypt, the years of his minority nod expired. He re-
ceived the surname of Epiphanes, or Illustrious, and
was Crowned at Alexandres with the greatest solem-
nity, and the faithful Aristomenes resigned into his
h'Tida an empire which he had governed with honour
to himself and with credit to his sovereign. Young
? ? Pi ilemy was no sooner delivered from the shackles of
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? PTOLEM. EUS.
PTOLEiVLfcLS.
? nd it was at last agreed that Physcon should marry the
queen, and that her son should succeed on the throne
at his death. The nuptials were accordingly cele-
brated, but on that very day the tyrant murdered Cle-
opatra's son in her arms. He ordered himself to be
called Euergetu, but the Alexandreans refused to do
it, and stigmatized him with the appellation of Kaktr-
fctcs, or Evil-doer, a surname which he deserved by
his tyranny and oppression. A aeries of barbarities
rendered him odious; but, as no one attempted to rid
Egypt of her tyrant, the Alexandreans abandoned their
habitations, and fled from a place which continually
streamed with the blood of their massacred fcllow-
citizens. If their migration proved fatal to the com-
merce and prosperity of Alexandres, it was of the most
essential service to the countries where they retired;
and the numbers of Egyptians that sought a safe asy-
lum in Greece and Asia, introduced among the inhab-
itants of those countries the different professions that
were practised with success in the capital of Egypt.
Physcon endeavoured to repeople the city which his
cruelty had laid desolate; but the fear of sharing the
fate of its former inhabitants prevailed more than the
promise of riches, rights, and immunities. The king,
at last, disgusted with Cleopatra, repudiated her, and
married her daughter by Phitomelor, called also Cleo-
patra. He still continued to exercise the greatest cru-
elty upon his subjects; but the prudence and vigilance
of his ministers kept the people in tranquillity, till all
Egypt revolted when the king had basely murdered all
the young men of Alexandrea. Without friends or
support it: Egypt, he fled to Cyprus, and Cleopatra,
the divorced queen, ascended the throne. In his ban-
ishment Physcon dreaded lest the Alexandreans should
also place the crown on the head of his son, by his sis-
ter Cleopatra, who was the governor of Gyrene; and
under these apprehensions he sent for the young
prince, called Memphitis, to Cyprus, and murdered him
as soon as he reached the shore. To make the bar-
barity more complete, he sent the limbs of Memphitis
to Cleopatra, and they were received as the queen was
going to celebrate her birthday. Soon after this he
invaded Egypt with an army, and obtained a victory
over the forces of Cleopatra, who, being left without
friends or assistance, (led to her eldest daughter Cleo-
patra, who had married Demetrius, king of Syria.
This decisive blow restored Physcon to his throne,
where he continued to reign for some time, hated by
his subjects and feared by his enemies. He died at
Alexandrea in the 67th year of his age, after a reign
of 29 years, about 116 years before Christ. This
prince, notwithstanding his cruel disposition, was a
lover of learning, and received from some the appella-
tion of Philologist. Aristarchus was his preceptor, and
be is said also to have made important additions to the
Alexandrean library, as well in original manuscripts
as in copies. --VIII. The eighth, surnamed Soter II,
succeeded his father Physcon as king of Egypt. He
had no sooner ascended the throne than his mother
Cleopatra, who reigned conjointly with him, expelled
him to Cyprus, and placed the crown on the head of
his brother Ptolemy Alexander, her favourite son.
Soter, banished from Egypt, became king of Cyprus;
and soon after he appeared at the head of a large army,
to make war against Alexander Jannteus, king of Ju-
dasa, through whose assistance and intrigue he had
been expelled by Cleopatra. The Jewish monarch
? ? was conquered, and 50,000 of his men were left on the
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? PTOLE. NLLUS.
JTOLEJLEUS.
>he elder of Lia daughters, and to ascend with her the
vacant throne. As these children wore young, the
dying monarch recommended them to the protection
and paternal care of the Romans; and accordingly
Pompey the Great was appointed by the senate to be
their patron and their guardian. Their reign was as
turbulent as that of their predecessors, and it is re-
markable for no uncommon events; only we may ob-
serve that the young queen was the Cleopatra who
*oon after became so celebrated. --XIII. The thir-
teenth, ascended the throne of Egypt conjointly with
his sister Cleopatra, whom he had married according to
the directions of his father Auletes. (Vid. Cleopatra
VII. )--XIV. Apion, king of Cyrene, was the illegiti-
mate son of Ptolemy Physcon. After a reign of twenty
years he died; and, as he had no children, he made the
Romans heirs of his dominions. The Romans pre-
sented his subjects with their independence. --XV.
Ceraunus, a son of Ptolemy Soter by Eurydice, the
daughter of Antipater. Unable to succeed to the
throne of Egypt, Ceraunus fled to the court of Seleu-
cus, where he was received with friendly marks of at-
tention. Seleucus was then king of Macedonia, an
empiro which he had lately acquired by the death of
Lysimachus in a battle in Phrygia; but his reign was
short; and Ceraunus perfidiously murdered him, and
ascended his throne 280 B. C. The murderer, how-
ever, could not be firmly established in Macedonia as
long as Arsinoe the widow, and the children of I. vsim-
achus, were alive, and entitled to claim his kingdom
as the lawful possession of their father. To rernove
tl. tse obstacles, Ceraunus made offers of marriage to
Arisnoe, who was his own sister. The queen at first
refused, but the protestations and solemn promises of
the usurper at last prevailed upon her to consent.
The nuptials, however, were no sooner celebrated than
Ceraunus murdered the two young princes, and con-
firmed his usurpation by rapine and cruelty. But now
three powerful princes claimed the kingdom of Mace-
donia as their own: Antiochus, the son of Seleucus;
Antigonus, the son of Demetrius; and Pyrrhus, the
king of Epirus. These enemies, however, were soon
removed; Ceraunus conquered Antigonus in the field
of battle, and stopped the hostilities of his two other
rivals by promises and money. He did not long re-
main inactive: a barbarian army of Gauls claimed a
tribute from him, and the monarch immediately march-
ed to meet them in the field. The battle was long and
bloody. The Macedonians might have obtained the
victory if Ceraunus had shown more prudence. He
was thrown down from his elephant, and taken prison-
er by the enemy, who immediately tore his body to
pieces. Ptolemy had been king of Macedonia only
eighteen months. {Justin, 24, ice. -- Pausan. , 10,
10. --XVI. An illegitimate son of Ptolemy Soter II. ,
or Lathyrus, king of Cyprus, of which he was tyran-
nically dispossessed by the Romans. Cato was at the
head of the forces which were sent against Ptolemy by
the senate, and the Roman general proposed to the
monarch to retire from the throne, and to pass the rest
of his days in the obscure office of high-priest in the
temple of Venus at Paphos. This offer was rejected
with the indignation which it merited, and the monarch
poisoned himself at the approach of the enemy. The
treasures found in the island amounted to the enor-
mous sum of ? 1,356,250 sterling, which were carried
to Rome by the cocquerors. --XVII. A son of Pyr-
? ? rhus, king of Epirus, by Antigone, the daughter of
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? PTOLEM. EUS
PTOLEMY US.
exists a <<. hc >>iin of Olympiodorus (m I'hira , Plot. --
Bouilland, Ttstimonia dc Ptolcmao, p. 205. ), which in-
forms us ihat Ptolemy passed 40 years of his life iv
irrtooto tov K. avu6ov (** in the wings of Canobus"),
occupied with astronomical observations, and that he
placed columns there on which he caused to be cut the
theorems of which he bad been the author. An in-
scription has come down to us which illustrates this
remark of Olympiodorus: Otui Xurf/pt KXavdwc 0ro/? -
? uaioc dfifdc kcu vito8ioti?
ics Sav. , Avril, 1823, p. 219. --Magasin Encyclop. ,
1808, vol, 4, p. 153, 407. ) The canvass containing
this famous trial of skill became highly prized, and at
a later day was placed in the palace of the Caesars at
Rome. It was destroyed by a conflagration, together
with the edifice itself. Protogenes was employed for
seven years in finishing a picture of Ialysus, a cele-
brated huntsman, supposed to have been the son of
Apollo, and the founder of Rhodes. During all this
time the painter lived only upon lupines and water,
thinking that such aliments would leave him greater
Sights of fancy; but all this did not seem to make him
more successful in the perfection of his picture. He
was to represent in the piece a dog panting, and with
froth at his mouth; but this he never could do with
satisfaction to himself; and, when all his labours seem-
ed to be without success, he threw his sponge upon
the piece in a fit of anger. Chance alone brought to
perfection what the labours of art could not accom-
plish: the fall of the sponge upon the picture repre-
sented the froth at the mouth of the dog in the most
perfect and natural manner, and the piece was univer-
sally admired. The same story is told of Nealces
while engaged in painting a horse; and probably one
of these anecdotes has been copied from the other.
According to Pliny, Protogenes painted this picture
with four layers of colours, in such a way, that, when
one was destroyed by the hand of time, the layer un-
derneath would reproduce the piece in all its original
freshness and beauty. The account appears a diffi-
cult one to comprehend. Apelles, on seeing this pro-
duction of the pencil, is said to have broken out into
loud expressions of admiration; but what consoled
him was the reflection that his own pieces surpassed
those of Protogenes in grace. When Demetrius be-
sieged Rhodes, he refused to set fire to a part of the
city, which might have made him master of the whole,
because he was informed that this part contained some
of the finest productions of the pencil of the artist. Pro-
togenes himself occupied, during the siege, a house ir.
the suburbs, in the very midst of the enemy's lines;
and when Demetrius expressed his astonishment at the
feeling of security which the painter displayed, the lat-
ter replied, "I know very well that Demetrius is ma-
ting war upon the Rhodians, not upon the arts. " The
prince thereupon, for greater safety, posted a guard
? round his dwelling. --During the reign of Tiberius,
sketches and designs of Protogenes were to be seen at
Rome, which were regarded as models of the beau, ideal.
? ? His picture of Ialysus was brought from Greece, and
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? PR IT
PSA
dentins Amamus in a Strasburg manuscript. (Fabric,
Comment, ad Poet. , p. 7. --Leyser, Hist. Poet. , p.
10. )--The best editions of Prudentius are, that of
Weitzius, Hannov. , 1613, 8vo; that of Cellarius,
Hal. , 1703, 1739, 8vo; and that of Teollius, Parma,
1788, 2 vols. 4to. (Schbll, Hist. Lit. Horn. , vol. 3,
p. 72, seqq. -- Bohr, Gesch. Rom. lot. , vol. 2, p. 41,
MM. )
Prusa, a city of Bithynia, at the foot of Mount
Olympus, and hence called Prusa ad Olympum (Tlpov-
5u eiri r? 'OXi/my). Pliny asserts, without naming
his authority, that this town was founded by Hannibal
(6, 32). By which expression we are probably to un-
derstand that it was built at the instigation of -nis
great general, when he resided at the court of Pruaias,
from whom the name of the city seems evidently de-
rived. But Strabo, following a still more remote tra-
dition, affirms that it was founded by Prusias, who
made war against Croesus. (Slrah. , 5fii. ) InStepha-
nus, who copies Strabo, the latter name is altered to
Cyrus (s. v. Upovaa). But it is probable that both
readings are faulty, though it is not easy lo see what
substitution should be made. (Consult the French
Strabo, vol. 4, lib. 12, p. 82. ) Dio Chrysostom, who
was a native of Prusa, did not favour the tradition
which ascribed to it so early an origin as that author-
ized by the reading in Strabo. (Oral. , 43, p. 585. )
Stephanus informs us that Prusa was but a small
town. Strabo, however, states that it enjoyed a good
government. It continued to flourish under the Ro-
man empire, as may be seen from Pliny the younger
(10, 85); but under the Greek emperors it suffered
much from the wars carried on against the Turks.
(Meet. Ckon. , p. 180, D. , p. 339, A. ) It finally re-
mained in the hands of the descendants of Osman,
who made it the capital of their empire, under the cor-
rupted name of Brusa or Broussa. It is still one of
the most flourishing towns possessed by the infidels
in Anatolia. (Browne's Travels, in Walpole's Tur-
key, vol. 2, p. 108. -- Cramer's Asia Minor, vol. 1,
p. 178. )
Pkusias, I. king of Bithynia, son of Zielas, began
(o reign about B C. 228, and was still reigning B. C.
190, at the time of the war between the Romans and
Antiochus; for Polybius intimates that the Prusias
who was solicited by Antiochus had been reigning for
some time. (Polyb. , 21, 9. ) In B. C. 216'Prusias
defeated the Gauls in a great battle. (Polyb. , 5, 111. )
In B. C. 207 he invaded the territories of Attains I.
He was included in the treaty with Philip in B. C.
205. (Lit). , 29, 12. ) Strabo asserts that it was this,
the elder, Prusias with whom Hannibal sought refuge.
^Slrab. , 563. ) And the accounts of other writers
contain nothing to disprove this testimony. But if
the elder Prusias received Hannibal, he was still liv-
ing at the death of Hannibal in B. C. 183. (Clinton,
Fast. Hell. , vol. 2, p. 416, seq. )--II. The second of
the name appears to have ascended the throne of Bi-
thynia between B. C. 183 and B. C. 179. The two
reigns of Prusias I. and Prusias II. occupied a period
of about 79 years (B. C. 228-150). Prusias II. mar-
ried the sister of Perseus, king of Maccdon. (Appi-
an. Bell. Mithrad. , c. 2. ) He was surnamed 6 Ki>>>j/-
yoe. or The Hunter, and was long engaged in war
with Attalus, king of Pergamus. He is commonly
supposed to have been the monarch who abandoned
Hannibal when the latter was sought after by the Ro-1
? ? mans; though Strabo assigns this to Prusias I. This
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? PSO
f 8T
or paying them the suns of money which he had prom-
tied, but also in assigning them lands on the Syrian
frontier, where they formed, in fact, a military colony.
Psammitichus showed a great partiality for the Greeks
an all occasions; and, ifi a Syrian expedition, he gave
'. hem the place of honour on the right, while he as-
signed ihe left to the Egyptians. The discontent of
the national troops was so great at this, that a large
number of the military caste, amounting, it is said, to
340,000 men, left Egypt and retired to Ethiopia.
(Consult, on this subject, the learned note of St. Mar-
in, Biogr. Univ. , vol. 36, p. 180, seq. ) So strong
was the partiality of Psammitichus for everything
Greek, that he caused a number of children to be
trained up after the Grecian manner, and with these
he formed the caste of interpreters, whom Herodotus
found in his day existing in Egypt. Psammitichus
also embellished his capital with several beautiful
structures, and, among others, with the southern nro-
pylaia of the great temple of Vulcan. He carried on
a long war in Syria, and his forces are said to have
remained 29 years before the city of Azotus. It was
during this period, probably, that he arrested by pres-
ents the victorious career of the Scythians, who had
averrun Asia Minor, and were advancing upon Pales-
tine and Egypt. This event would seem to have
happened 626 B. C. , or in the 13lh year of the reign
of the Jewish king Josiah, when the prophet Isaiah
announced the approaching irruption of the Scythians
into the territories of Israel. Psammitichus died after
a reign of 54 years, leaving the crown to his son Ne-
cos. --Herodotus relates a very foolish story of Psam-
mitichus, who, it seems, was desirous of ascertaining
? vhat nation wis the most ancient in the world; or,
In ether words, what was the primitive language of
txen. In order to discover this, he took two newly-
bom children, and, having caused them to be placed
ia a lonely hut, directed a shepherd to nourish thorn
with the milk of goats, which animals were sent in to
them at stated times, and to take care himself never
to 'Jtter a word in their hearing. The object was to
ascertain what words they would first utter of them-
selves. At length, on one occasion, when the shep-
herd went in to them as usual, both the children, run-
ning up to him, called out Bckoa. Psammitichus, on
being informed of the circumstance, made inquiries
about the word, and found that it was the Phrygian
term for bread. He therefore concluded that th6
Phrygians were the most ancient of men! The truth
is, the cry which the children uttered (supposing the
story to be true) was bek (with the Greek termination
as given by Herodotus, bek-os), and the children had
learned it from the cry of the goats which suckled
hem. (Herod. , 3, 151, teqq. --St. Martin, in Biogr.
mtr. , vol. 36, p. 178, teqq. )--II. A descendant of
the preceding, who came to the throne about 400 B. C. ,
-s a kind of vassal-king to Persia. (St. Martin, in
Hiogr. Unit. , vol. 36, p. 181. )
Psophis, a very ancient city in the northwestern
fart of Arcadia. Pausanias places it at the foot of the
chain of Erymanthus, from which descended a river
of the same name, which flowed near the city, and, af-
ter receiving another small stream called Aroanius,
rained the Alpheus on the borders of Elis (8, 84).
Psophis itself had previously borne the names of Ery-
wamthus and Phegea. At the time of the Social war,
was in tho possession of the Eleana, on whose ter-
? ? utory it bordered, as well as on that of the Achaans;
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? no
PTOI. EM. ELn.
L:rn in ner favour. Jupiter takes pity on her and en-
dows her with immortality: Venus in reconciled, and
the marriage of Psyche with Cupid takes place amid
great joy in the skies. The offspring of their union
was a child, whom hi<< parents named Pleasure. (Apu-
Uius, Mil. , 4, 83, seqq. --Op. , ed Oudend. , vol. 1, p.
300, seqq. -- Keighlley's Mythology, p. 148, seqq. --
Among the various explanations that have been given
of this beautiful legend, the following appears the
most satisfactory : 1 his fable, it is said, is a represent-
ation of the human soul (i/w^y). The soul, which is
of divine origin, is here below subjected to error in its
prison-house, the body. Hence trials and purifications
are set before it, that it may become capable of a
higher view of things, and of true desire. Two loves
meet it: the earthly, a deceiver, who draws it down to
earthly things; the heavenly, who directs its view to
the original, fair and divine, and who, gaining the vic-
tory over his rival, leads off the soul as his bride.
[Hilt, Berlin Akaci, 1816. --Creuser, Symbolik, vol.
3, p. 673. )
Psvlli, a people cf Libya near the Syrtes, very ex-
pen in curing the venomous bite of serpents, which
had no fatal effect upon them. They were destroyed
by the Nasamones, a neighbouring people. It seems
very probable that the Nasamones circulated the idle
story respecting the destruction of the Psylli, which
Herodotus relates, without, however, giving credit to
it. He states that a south wind had dried up all the
reservoirs of the Psylli, and that the whole country,
as far as the Syrtes, was destitute of water. They re-
solved, accordingly, after a public consultation, to
make an expedition against the south wind , but, hav-
ing reached the deserts, the south win<: overwhelmed
them beneath the sands. (Lucan, 9, 804, 937. --He-
-od. , 4, 172. --Pausan. , 9, 28. )
Pteria, a small territory, forming part of Cappa-
docia according to Herodotus (1, 76), or, more prop-
erly speaking, of Paphlagonia, and in the vicinity of
the city of Sinope. Here the first battle took place
oetween Crcesus and Cyrus. (Herod. , 1. c. -- Lar-
cher, Hist. Herod. , vol. 8, p. 468. )
Prot. EM. SiDs, I. surnamed Soter, and sometimes
Lagi (i. e. , son of Lagus), king of Egypt, and son of
Arsinoe, who, when pregnant by Philip of Macedonia,
married Lagus. (Vid. Lagus. ) Ptolemy was edu-
cated in the court of tho King of Macedonia. Ho be-
came one of the friends and associates of Alexander,
and, when that monarch invaded Asia, the son of Ar-
jinoe attended him as one of his generals. During
ihe expedition he behaved with uncommon valour;
ne killed one of the Indian monarchs in single com-
bat, and it was to his prudence and courage that Alex-
ander was indebted for thq reduction of the rock Aor-
nus. After the conqueror's death, in the general di-
vision of the Macedonian empire. Ptolemy obtained
as his share the government of Egypt, with Libya,
and part of the neighbouring territories of Arabia. In
this appointment the governor soon gained the esteem
of the people by acts of kindness, by benevolence and
clemency, though he did not assume the title of inde-
pendent monarch till seventeen years after. He made
himself master of Coelosyria, Phoenicia, and the neigh-
bouring coast of Syria; and when he had reduced Je-
rusalem, he carried above 100,000 prisoners to Egypt,
to people the extensive city of Alexandres, which be-
came the capital of his dominions. After he had ren-
? ? dered these prisoners the most attached and faithful of
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? PTOLEM^US.
PTOLEM. tX'S.
married wilh the consent of Phihdelphue. With the
most rapid success lie conquered Syria and Cilicia,
and advanced as far as Bactriana and the confines of
India; but a sedition at home stopped his progress,
and he retimed to Egypt loaded with the spoils of
conquered nations. Among the immense riches
which he brought, he had many statues of the Egyp-
tian gods, which Cambyscs had carried away into Per-
lia when he conquered Egypt. These were restored
to the temples, and the Egyptians called their sover-
eign Euergetes (or Benefactor), in acknowledgment
of his attention, beneficence, and religious zeal for the
gids of his country. The last years of Ptolemy's
reign were passed in peace if we except the refusal
of the Jews to pay the tribute of 20 silver talents
which their ancestors had always paid to the Egyptian
monarchs. Euergetes died 221 years before Christ,
after a reign of 25 years; and, like his two illustrious
predecessors, was the patron of learning. --IV. The
fourth, succeeded his father Euergetes on the throne of
Egypt, and received the surname of PhilopatoT, prob-
ably from the regard which he manifested for the mem-
ory of his father; though, according to some authori-
ties, he destroyed him by poison. He began his reign
with acts of the greatest cruelty, and he successively
sacrificed to his avarice his own mother, his wife, his
sister, and his brother. He received, in derision, the
name of Typhon. from his evil morals, and that of
Gollus, because he appeared in the streets of Alex-
andres with all the gestures of the priests of Cybele.
In the midst of his pleasures Philopator was called to
war against Antiochus, king of Syria, and at the head
of a powerful army he soon invaded his enemy's ter-
ritories, and might have added the kingdom of Syria to
Egypt if he had made a prudent use of the victories
which attended his arms. In the latter part of his
reign, the Romans, whom a dangerous war w'th Car-
tnagc had weakened, but, at the same time, roused to
superior activity, renewed, for political reasons, the
treaty of alliance which had been made with the
Egyptian monarchs. Philopator at last, weakened and
enervated by intemperance and continued debauchery,
died in the 37th year of his age, after a reign of 17
years, 204 years before the Christian era. --V. The
fifth, succeeded his father Philopator as king of Egypt,
though only in the fourth year of his age. During the
years of his minority he was under the protection of
Sosicius and of Aristomenes, by whose prudent ad-
ministration Antiochus was dispossessed of the prov-
inces of Ccelosyria and Palestine, which he had con-
quered in war. The Romans also renewed their al-
liance with him after their victories over Hinnibal,
and the conclusion of the second Punic war. This
flattering embassy induced Aristomenes to ofTtt the
care of the patronage of the young monarch to the
Romans; but the regent was confirmed in his honour-
able office, and, by making a treaty of alliance with
the people of Achaia, he convinced the Egyptians that
he was qualified to wield the sceptre and to govern
the nation. But, now that Ptolemy had reached his
14th year, according to the laws and customs of
Egypt, the years of his minority nod expired. He re-
ceived the surname of Epiphanes, or Illustrious, and
was Crowned at Alexandres with the greatest solem-
nity, and the faithful Aristomenes resigned into his
h'Tida an empire which he had governed with honour
to himself and with credit to his sovereign. Young
? ? Pi ilemy was no sooner delivered from the shackles of
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? PTOLEM. EUS.
PTOLEiVLfcLS.
? nd it was at last agreed that Physcon should marry the
queen, and that her son should succeed on the throne
at his death. The nuptials were accordingly cele-
brated, but on that very day the tyrant murdered Cle-
opatra's son in her arms. He ordered himself to be
called Euergetu, but the Alexandreans refused to do
it, and stigmatized him with the appellation of Kaktr-
fctcs, or Evil-doer, a surname which he deserved by
his tyranny and oppression. A aeries of barbarities
rendered him odious; but, as no one attempted to rid
Egypt of her tyrant, the Alexandreans abandoned their
habitations, and fled from a place which continually
streamed with the blood of their massacred fcllow-
citizens. If their migration proved fatal to the com-
merce and prosperity of Alexandres, it was of the most
essential service to the countries where they retired;
and the numbers of Egyptians that sought a safe asy-
lum in Greece and Asia, introduced among the inhab-
itants of those countries the different professions that
were practised with success in the capital of Egypt.
Physcon endeavoured to repeople the city which his
cruelty had laid desolate; but the fear of sharing the
fate of its former inhabitants prevailed more than the
promise of riches, rights, and immunities. The king,
at last, disgusted with Cleopatra, repudiated her, and
married her daughter by Phitomelor, called also Cleo-
patra. He still continued to exercise the greatest cru-
elty upon his subjects; but the prudence and vigilance
of his ministers kept the people in tranquillity, till all
Egypt revolted when the king had basely murdered all
the young men of Alexandrea. Without friends or
support it: Egypt, he fled to Cyprus, and Cleopatra,
the divorced queen, ascended the throne. In his ban-
ishment Physcon dreaded lest the Alexandreans should
also place the crown on the head of his son, by his sis-
ter Cleopatra, who was the governor of Gyrene; and
under these apprehensions he sent for the young
prince, called Memphitis, to Cyprus, and murdered him
as soon as he reached the shore. To make the bar-
barity more complete, he sent the limbs of Memphitis
to Cleopatra, and they were received as the queen was
going to celebrate her birthday. Soon after this he
invaded Egypt with an army, and obtained a victory
over the forces of Cleopatra, who, being left without
friends or assistance, (led to her eldest daughter Cleo-
patra, who had married Demetrius, king of Syria.
This decisive blow restored Physcon to his throne,
where he continued to reign for some time, hated by
his subjects and feared by his enemies. He died at
Alexandrea in the 67th year of his age, after a reign
of 29 years, about 116 years before Christ. This
prince, notwithstanding his cruel disposition, was a
lover of learning, and received from some the appella-
tion of Philologist. Aristarchus was his preceptor, and
be is said also to have made important additions to the
Alexandrean library, as well in original manuscripts
as in copies. --VIII. The eighth, surnamed Soter II,
succeeded his father Physcon as king of Egypt. He
had no sooner ascended the throne than his mother
Cleopatra, who reigned conjointly with him, expelled
him to Cyprus, and placed the crown on the head of
his brother Ptolemy Alexander, her favourite son.
Soter, banished from Egypt, became king of Cyprus;
and soon after he appeared at the head of a large army,
to make war against Alexander Jannteus, king of Ju-
dasa, through whose assistance and intrigue he had
been expelled by Cleopatra. The Jewish monarch
? ? was conquered, and 50,000 of his men were left on the
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? PTOLE. NLLUS.
JTOLEJLEUS.
>he elder of Lia daughters, and to ascend with her the
vacant throne. As these children wore young, the
dying monarch recommended them to the protection
and paternal care of the Romans; and accordingly
Pompey the Great was appointed by the senate to be
their patron and their guardian. Their reign was as
turbulent as that of their predecessors, and it is re-
markable for no uncommon events; only we may ob-
serve that the young queen was the Cleopatra who
*oon after became so celebrated. --XIII. The thir-
teenth, ascended the throne of Egypt conjointly with
his sister Cleopatra, whom he had married according to
the directions of his father Auletes. (Vid. Cleopatra
VII. )--XIV. Apion, king of Cyrene, was the illegiti-
mate son of Ptolemy Physcon. After a reign of twenty
years he died; and, as he had no children, he made the
Romans heirs of his dominions. The Romans pre-
sented his subjects with their independence. --XV.
Ceraunus, a son of Ptolemy Soter by Eurydice, the
daughter of Antipater. Unable to succeed to the
throne of Egypt, Ceraunus fled to the court of Seleu-
cus, where he was received with friendly marks of at-
tention. Seleucus was then king of Macedonia, an
empiro which he had lately acquired by the death of
Lysimachus in a battle in Phrygia; but his reign was
short; and Ceraunus perfidiously murdered him, and
ascended his throne 280 B. C. The murderer, how-
ever, could not be firmly established in Macedonia as
long as Arsinoe the widow, and the children of I. vsim-
achus, were alive, and entitled to claim his kingdom
as the lawful possession of their father. To rernove
tl. tse obstacles, Ceraunus made offers of marriage to
Arisnoe, who was his own sister. The queen at first
refused, but the protestations and solemn promises of
the usurper at last prevailed upon her to consent.
The nuptials, however, were no sooner celebrated than
Ceraunus murdered the two young princes, and con-
firmed his usurpation by rapine and cruelty. But now
three powerful princes claimed the kingdom of Mace-
donia as their own: Antiochus, the son of Seleucus;
Antigonus, the son of Demetrius; and Pyrrhus, the
king of Epirus. These enemies, however, were soon
removed; Ceraunus conquered Antigonus in the field
of battle, and stopped the hostilities of his two other
rivals by promises and money. He did not long re-
main inactive: a barbarian army of Gauls claimed a
tribute from him, and the monarch immediately march-
ed to meet them in the field. The battle was long and
bloody. The Macedonians might have obtained the
victory if Ceraunus had shown more prudence. He
was thrown down from his elephant, and taken prison-
er by the enemy, who immediately tore his body to
pieces. Ptolemy had been king of Macedonia only
eighteen months. {Justin, 24, ice. -- Pausan. , 10,
10. --XVI. An illegitimate son of Ptolemy Soter II. ,
or Lathyrus, king of Cyprus, of which he was tyran-
nically dispossessed by the Romans. Cato was at the
head of the forces which were sent against Ptolemy by
the senate, and the Roman general proposed to the
monarch to retire from the throne, and to pass the rest
of his days in the obscure office of high-priest in the
temple of Venus at Paphos. This offer was rejected
with the indignation which it merited, and the monarch
poisoned himself at the approach of the enemy. The
treasures found in the island amounted to the enor-
mous sum of ? 1,356,250 sterling, which were carried
to Rome by the cocquerors. --XVII. A son of Pyr-
? ? rhus, king of Epirus, by Antigone, the daughter of
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? PTOLEM. EUS
PTOLEMY US.
exists a <<. hc >>iin of Olympiodorus (m I'hira , Plot. --
Bouilland, Ttstimonia dc Ptolcmao, p. 205. ), which in-
forms us ihat Ptolemy passed 40 years of his life iv
irrtooto tov K. avu6ov (** in the wings of Canobus"),
occupied with astronomical observations, and that he
placed columns there on which he caused to be cut the
theorems of which he bad been the author. An in-
scription has come down to us which illustrates this
remark of Olympiodorus: Otui Xurf/pt KXavdwc 0ro/? -
? uaioc dfifdc kcu vito8ioti?
