Biblia and Billia, a Roman lady famous for her chastity. She married Duillius.

Biblis, a woman who became enamoured of her brother Caunus, and was changed into a fountain near Miletus. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 9, li. 662.

Biblina, a country of Thrace.

Biblus, a city of Phœnicia. Curtius, bk. 4.

Bibracte, a large town of the Ædui in Gaul, where Cæsar often wintered. Cæsar, Gallic War, bk. 7, ch. 55, &c.

Bibŭlus, a son of Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus by Portia, Cato’s daughter. He was Cæsar’s colleague in the consulship, but of no consequence in the state, according to this distich mentioned by Suetonius, Julius Cæsar, ch. 20:

——One of the friends of Horace bore that name. Bk. 1, satire 10, li. 86.

Bices, a marsh near the Palus Mœotis. Flaccus, bk. 6, li. 68.

Bicon, a Greek who assassinated Athenodorus, because he made himself master of a colony which Alexander had left at Bactra. Curtius, bk. 9, ch. 7.

Bicornĭger, a surname of Bacchus.

Bicornis, the name of Alexander among the Arabians.

Biformīs (two forms), a surname of Bacchus and of Janus. Bacchus received it because he changed himself into an old woman to fly from the persecution of Juno; or perhaps because he was represented sometimes as a young, and sometimes as an old, man.

Bifrons, a surname of Janus, because he was represented with two faces among the Romans, as acquainted with the past and future. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 7, li. 180.

Bilbĭlis, a town of Celtiberia, where Martial was born. Martial, bk. 1, ltr. 50.——A river of Spain. Justin, bk. 44, ch. 3.

Bimāter, a surname of Bacchus, which signifies that he had two mothers, because, when he was taken from his mother’s womb, he was placed in the thigh of his father Jupiter. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 4, li. 12.

Bingium, a town of Germany. Tacitus, Histories, bk. 4, ch. 70.

Bion, a philosopher and sophist of Borysthenes in Scythia, who rendered himself famous for his knowledge of poetry, music, and philosophy. He made everybody the object of his satire, and rendered his compositions distinguished for clearness of expression, for facetiousness, wit, and pleasantry. He died 241 B.C. Diogenes Laërtius, Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers.——A Greek poet of Smyrna, who wrote pastorals in an elegant style. Moschus, his friend and disciple, mentions in an elegiac poem that he died by poison, about 300 years B.C. His Idyllia are written with elegance and simplicity, purity and ease, and they abound with correct images, such as the view of the country may inspire. There are many good editions of this poet’s works, generally printed with those of Moschus, the best of which is that of Heskin, 8vo, Oxford, 1748.——A soldier in Alexander’s army, &c. Curtius, bk. 4, ch. 13.——A native of Propontis, in the age of Pherecydes.——A native of Abdera, disciple to Democritus. He first found out that there were certain parts of the earth where there were six months of perpetual light and darkness alternately.——A man of Soli, who composed a history of Æthiopia.——Another of Syracuse, who wrote nine books on rhetoric, which he called by the names of the muses, and hence Bionei sermones mentioned by Horace, bk. 2, ltr. 2, li. 60.—Diogenes Laërtius, bk. 4.

Birrhus. See: Cœlius.

Bisaltæ, a people of Scythia, or, according to some, of Thrace or Macedonia. Their country is called Bisaltia. Livy, bk. 45, ch. 29.—Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 10.

Bisaltes, a man of Abydos, &c. Herodotus, bk. 6, ch. 26.

♦Bisaltis, a patronymic of Theophane, by whom Neptune, under the form of a ram, had the golden ram. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 6, li. 117.—Hyginus, fable 18.

♦ ‘Bisaltes’ replaced with ‘Bisaltis’

Bisanthe, a town on the Hellespont. Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 137.

Biston, son of Mars and Callirhoe, built Bistonia in Thrace, whence the Thracians are often called Bistones. Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 110.—Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 14.—Lucan, bk. 7, li. 569.

Bistŏnis, a lake of Thrace near Abdera. Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 109.

Bithus. See: Bacchius.

Bithyæ, a certain race of women of Scythia, whose eyes, as Pliny reports, bk. 7, ch. 2, killed those who gazed upon them for some time.

Bithȳnia, a country of Asia Minor, formerly called Bebrycia. It was bounded by the Euxine on the north, on the south by Phrygia and Mysia, on the west by the Propontis, and the east by Paphlagonia. The country was first invaded by the Thracians, under Bithynus the son of Jupiter, who gave it the name of Bithynia. It was once a powerful kingdom. Strabo, bk. 12.—Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 75.—Mela, bks. 1 & 2. According to Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 9, the inhabitants were descended from Mantinea in Peloponnesus.

Bitias, a Trojan, son of Alcanor and Hiera, brought up in a wood sacred to Jupiter. He followed the fortune of Æneas, and, with his brother, was killed by the Rutuli in Italy. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 9, li. 672, &c.——One of Dido’s lovers, present when Æneas and the Trojans were introduced to the queen. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 1, li. 742.

Biton. See: Cleobis.

Bituītus, a king of the Allobroges, conquered by a small number of Romans, &c.—Valerius Maximus, bk. 9, ch. 6.—Florus, bk. 3, ch. 2.

Bituntum, a town of Spain. Martial, bk. 4, ltr. 55.

Bitŭrĭges, a people of Gaul, divided from the Ædui by the Ligeris. Cæsar, Gallic War, bk. 7, ch. 21.

Biturĭcum, a town of Gaul, formerly the capital of the Belgæ. Strabo, bk. 4.

Bizia, a citadel near Rhodope belonging to the kings of Thrace. Tereus was born there.

Blæna, a fruitful country of Pontus, where the general of Mithridates Eupator destroyed the forces of Nicomedes the Bithynian. Strabo, bk. 12.

Blæsii, two Romans who killed themselves because Tiberius deprived them of the priesthood. Tacitus, Annals, bk. 6, ch. 40.

Junius Blæsus, a governor of Gaul. Tacitus.

Blandenona, a place near Placentia. Cicero, bk. 2, ltr. 15, Letters to his brother Quintus.

Blandŭsia, a fountain on the borders of the country of the Sabines near Mandela, Horace’s country seat. Horace, bk. 3, ode 13.

Blastophœnīces, a people of Lusitania. Appian.

Blemmyes, a people of Africa, who, as is fabulously reported, had no heads, but had the eyes and mouth placed in the breast. Mela, bk. 1, ch. 4.

Blenīna, a town of Arcadia. Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 27.

Blitius Catulinus, was banished into the Ægean sea, after Piso’s conspiracy, &c. Tacitus, Annals, bk. 15, ch. 71.

Blucium, a castle where king Dejotarus kept his treasures in Bithynia. Strabo, bk. 12.

Boadicea. See: Boudicea.

Boæ and Boea, a town of Laconia. Pausanias, bk. 3, ch. 21.

Boagrius, a river of Locris. Strabo, bk. 9.

Bocalias, a river in the island of Salamis.

Boccar, a king of Mauritania. Juvenal, satire 4, li. 90, applies the word in a general sense to any native of Africa.

Bocchŏris, a wise king and legislator of Egypt. Diodorus, bk. 1.

Bocchus, a king of Gætulia, in alliance with Rome, who perfidiously delivered Jugurtha to Sylla the lieutenant of Marius. Sallust, Jugurthine War.—Paterculus, bk. 2, ch. 12.

Boduagnātus, a leader of the Nervii, when Cæsar made war against them. Cæsar, Gallic War, bk. 2, ch. 23.

Bodūni, a people of Britain who surrendered to Claudius. Dio Cassius, bk. 60.

Boea. See: Boæ.

Bœbe, a town of Thessaly. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 7, fable 5.——A lake of Crete. Strabo, bk. 9.

Bœbēis, a lake of Thessaly, near mount Ossa. Lucan, bk. 7, li. 176.

Bœbia lex, was enacted to elect four pretors every year.——Another to insure proprietors in the possession of their lands.——Another, A.U.C. 571, against using bribes at elections.

Boedromia, an Athenian festival instituted in commemoration of the assistance which the people of Athens received in the reign of Erechtheus, from Ion son of Xuthus, when their country was invaded by Eumolpus son of Neptune. The word is derived ἁπο του βοηδρομειν, coming to help. Plutarch in Theseus mentions it as in commemoration of the victory which Theseus obtained over the Amazons, in a month called at Athens Boedromion.

Bœotarchæ, the chief magistrates in Bœotia. Livy, bk. 42, ch. 43.

Bœotia, a country of Greece, bounded on the north by Phocis, south by Attica, east by Eubœa, and west by the bay of Corinth. It has been successively called Aonia, Mesapia, Hyantis, Ogygia, and Cadmeis, and now forms a part of Livadia. It was called Bœotia, from Bœotus son of Itonus; or, according to others, a bove, from a cow, by which Cadmus was led into the country where he built Thebes. The inhabitants were reckoned rude and illiterate, fonder of bodily strength than of mental excellence; yet their country produced many illustrious men, such as Pindar, Hesiod, Plutarch, &c. The mountains of Bœotia, particularly Helicon, were frequented by the Muses, to whom also many of their fountains and rivers were consecrated. Herodotus, bk. 2, ch. 49; bk. 5, ch. 57.—Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 3, li. 10.—Pausanias, bk. 9, ch. 1, &c.—Cornelius Nepos, bk. 7, ch. 11.—Strabo, bk. 9.—Justin, bk. 3, ch. 6; bk. 8, ch. 4.—Horace, bk. 2, ltr. 1, li. 244.—Diodorus, bk. 19.—Livy, bk. 27, ch. 30, &c.

Bœotus, a son of Itonus by Menalippa. Pausanias, bk. 9, ch. 1.

Bœorobistas, a man who made himself absolute among the Getæ, by the strictness of his discipline. Strabo, bk. 7.

Boethius, a celebrated Roman, banished and afterwards punished with death, on a suspicion of a conspiracy, by Theodoric king of the Ostrogoths, A.D. 525. It was during his imprisonment that he wrote his celebrated poetical treatise De consolatione philosophiæ, in five books. The best edition of his works is that of Hagenau, 4to, 1491, or that of Leiden, 1671, with the notis variorum.

Boetus, a foolish poet of Tarsus, who wrote a poem on the battle of Philippi. Strabo, bk. 14.——A river of Spain, more properly called Bætis. See: Bætis.

Boeus, one of the Heraclidæ.

Boges and Boes, a Persian who destroyed himself and family when besieged by the Athenians. Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 107.—Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 8.

Bogud, a king of Mauritania in the interest of Cæsar. Cæsar, Alexandrine War, ch. 59.

Bogus, a king of the Maurusii, present at the battle of Actium. Strabo, bk. 8.

Boii, a people of Celtic Gaul, who migrated into Cisalpine Gaul, and the north of Italy on the banks of the Po. Cæsar, Gallic War, bk. 1, ch. 28; bk. 7, ch. 17.—Silius Italicus, bk. 4, li. 158.

Bojocalus, a general of the Germans in the age of Tiberius, &c. Tacitus, Annals, bk. 13, ch. 55.

Bola, a town of the Æqui in Italy. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 6, li. 775.

Bolānus. See: Bollanus.

Bolbe, a marsh near Mygdonia. Thucydides, bk. 1, ch. 58.

Bolbitīnum, one of the mouths of the Nile, with a town of the same name. Naucrautis was built near it. Herodotus, bk. 1, ch. 17.

Bolgius, a general of Gaul, in an expedition against Ptolemy king of Macedonia. Pausanias, bk. 10, ch. 19.

Bolīna, a virgin of Achaia, who rejected the addresses of Apollo, and threw herself into the sea to avoid his importunities. The god made her immortal. There is a city which bears her name in Achaia. Pausanias, bk. 7, ch. 23.

Bolinæus, a river near Bolina. Pausanias, bk. 7, ch. 23.

Bolissus, a town and island near Chios. Thucydides, bk. 8, ch. 24.

Bollānus, a man whom Horace represents, bk. 1, satire 9, li. 11, as of the most irascible temper and the most inimical to loquacity.

Bolus, a king of the Cimbri, who killed a Roman ambassador. Livy, bk. 67.

Bomienses, a people near Ætolia. Thucydides, bk. 3, ch. 96.

Bomilcar, a Carthaginian general, son of Amilcar. He was suspected of a conspiracy with Agathocles, and hung in the forum, where he had received all his dignity. Diodorus, bk. 26.—Justin, bk. 22, ch. 7.——An African, for some time the instrument of all Jugurtha’s cruelties. He conspired against Jugurtha, who put him to death. Sallust, Jugurthine War.

Bomonīcæ, youths that were whipped at the altar of Diana Orthia during the festivals of the goddess. He who bore the lash of the whip with the greatest patience, and without uttering a groan, was declared victorious, and received an honourable prize. Pausanias, bk. 3, ch. 16.—Plutarch, Lycurgus.

Bona Dea, a name given to Ops, Vesta, Cybele, and Rhea, by the Greeks; and by the Latins, to Fauna, or Fatua. This goddess was so chaste that no man but her husband saw her after her marriage; from which reason, her festivals were celebrated only in the night by the Roman matrons in the houses of the highest officers of the state, and all the statues of the men were carefully covered with a veil where the ceremonies were observed. In the latter ages of the republic, however, the sanctity of these mysteries was profaned by the introduction of lasciviousness and debauchery. Juvenal, satire 6, li. 313.—Propertius, bk. 4, poem 10, li. 25.—Ovid, de Ars Amatoria, bk. 3, li. 637.

Bonōnia, called also Felsina, a town on the borders of the Rhine, or Rheno, which falls into the Po. Valerius Maximus, bk. 8, ch. 1.—Silius Italicus, bk. 8, li. 599.

Bonosius, an officer of Probus, who assumed the imperial purple in Gaul.

Bonus Eventus, a Roman deity, whose worship was first introduced by the peasants. He was represented holding a cup in his right hand, and in his left, ears of corn. Varro, de Re Rustica, bk. 1.—Pliny, bk. 34, ch. 8.

Boosūra (bovis cauda), a town of Cyprus, where Venus had an ancient temple. Strabo.

Boōtes, a northern constellation near the Ursa Major, also called Bubulcus and Arctophylax. Some suppose it to be Icarus the father of Erigone, who was killed by shepherds for inebriating them. Others maintain that it is Arcas, whom Jupiter placed in heaven. Ovid, Fasti, bk. 3, li. 405.—Cicero, de Natura Deorum, bk. 2, ch. 42.

Bootus and Bœotus, a son of Neptune and Menalippe, exposed by his mother, but preserved by shepherds. Hyginus, fable 186.

Borea, a town taken by Sextus Pompey. Cicero, bk. 16, Letters to Atticus, ltr. 4.

Boreădes, the descendants of Boreas, who long possessed the supreme power and the priesthood in the island of the Hyperboreans. Diodorus, bks. 1 & 2.

Boreas, the name of the north wind blowing from the Hyperborean mountains. According to the poets, he was son of Astræus and Aurora, but others make him son of the Strymon. He was passionately fond of Hyacinthus [See: Hyacinthus], and carried away Orithyia, who refused to receive his addresses, and by her he had Zetes and Calais, Cleopatra and Chione. He was worshipped as a deity, and represented with wings and white hair. The Athenians dedicated altars to him, and to the winds, when Xerxes invaded Europe. Boreas changed himself into a horse, to unite himself with the mares of Dardanus, by which he had 12 mares so swift, that they ran or rather flew over the sea, without scarce wetting their feet. Homer, Iliad, bk. 20, li. 222.—Hesiod, Theogony, li. 379.—Apollodorus, bk. 3, ch. 15.—Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 189.—Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 6, li. 700.

Boreasmi, A festival at Athens in honour of Boreas, who, as the Athenians supposed, was related to them on account of his marriage with Orithyia the daughter of one of their kings. They attributed the overthrow of the enemy’s fleet to the respect which he paid to his wife’s native country. There were also sacrifices at Megalopolis in Arcadia, in honour of Boreas. Pausanias, Attica & Arcadia.

Boreus, a Persian, &c. Polyænus, bk. 7, ch. 40.

Borges, a Persian who burnt himself rather than submit to the enemy, &c. Polyænus, bk. 7, ch. 24.

Bornos, a place of Thrace. Cornelius Nepos, Alcibiades, ch. 7.

Borsippa, a town of Babylonia, sacred to Apollo and Diana. The inhabitants ate bats. Strabo, bk. 16.

Borus, a son of Perieres, who married Polydora the daughter of Peleus. Apollodorus, bk. 3, ch. 13.—Homer, Iliad, bk. 16, li. 177.

Borysthĕnes, a large river of Scythia, falling into the Euxine sea, now called the Dnieper, and inferior to no other European river but the Danube, according to Herodotus, bk. 4, ch. 45, &c.——There was a city of the same name on the borders of the river, built by a colony of Milesians, 655 years before the christian era. It was also called Olba Salvia. Mela, bk. 2, chs. 1 & 7.——A horse with which the emperor Adrian used to hunt. At his death he was honoured with a monument. Diodorus.

Bosphŏrus and Bospŏrus, two narrow straits, situate at the confines of Europe and Asia. One was called Cimmerian, and joined the Palus Mœotis to the Euxine, now known by the name of the straits of Caffa; and the other, which was called the Thracian Bosphorus, and by the moderns the straits of Constantinople, made a communication between the Euxine sea and the Propontis. It is 16 miles long, and one and a half broad, and where narrowest 500 paces or four stadia, according to Herodotus. The word is derived from Βοος πορος, bovis meatus, because, on account of its narrowness, an ox could easily cross it. Cocks were heard to crow, and dogs to bark, from the opposite banks, and in a calm day persons could talk one to the other. Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 12; bk. 6, ch. 1.—Ovid, Tristia, bk. 3, poem 4, li. 49.—Mela, bk. 1, ch. 1.—Strabo, bk. 12.—Herodotus, bk. 4, ch. 85.

Boter, a freedman of Claudius. Suetonius, Claudius.

Bottia, a colony of Macedonians in Thrace. The people were called Bottiæi. Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 1.—Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 185, &c.—Thucydides, bk. 2, ch. 99.

Bottiæis, a country at the north of Macedonia, on the bay of Therma. Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 123, &c.

Boudicea, a queen in Britain, who rebelled upon being insulted by the Romans. She poisoned herself when conquered, A.D. 61. Tacitus, Annals, bk. 14, ch. 31.

Bouiānum, an ancient colony of the Samnites, at the foot of the Apennines not far from Beneventum. Livy, bk. 9, ch. 28.

Bovillæ, a town of Latium near Rome. Ovid, Fasti, bk. 3, li. 607.——Another in Campania.

Brachmanes, Indian philosophers, who derive their name from Brahma, one of the three beings whom God, according to their theology, created, and with whose assistance he formed the world. They devoted themselves totally to the worship of the gods, and were accustomed from their youth to endure labours, and to live with frugality and abstinence. They never ate flesh, and abstained from the use of wine, and all carnal enjoyments. After they had spent 37 years in the greatest trials, they were permitted to marry and indulge themselves in a more free and unbounded manner. According to modern authors, Brahma is the parent of all mankind, and he produced as many worlds as there are parts in the body, which they reckoned 14. They believed that there were seven seas, of water, milk, curds, butter, salt, sugar, and wine, each blessed with its particular paradise. Strabo, bk. 15.—Diodorus, bk. 17.

Bræsia, a daughter of Cinyras and Metharme. Apollodorus, bk. 3, ch. 14.

Branciădes, a surname of Apollo.

Branchĭdæ, a people of Asia, near the river Oxus, put to the sword by Alexander. They were originally of Miletus, near the temple of Branchus, but had been removed from thence by Xerxes. Strabo, bk. 11.—Curtius, bk. 7, ch. 5.——The priests of Apollo Didymæus, who gave oracles in Caria. Pliny, bk. 5, ch. 29.

Branchyllĭdes, a chief of the Bœotians. Pausanias, bk. 9, ch. 13.

Branchus, a youth of Miletus, son of Smicrus, beloved by Apollo, who gave him the power of prophecy. He gave oracles at Didyme, which became inferior to none of the Grecian oracles except Delphi, and which exchanged the name of Didymean for that of Branchidæ. The temple, according to Strabo, was set on fire by Xerxes, who took possession of the riches it contained, and transported the people into Sogdiana, where they built a city, which was afterwards destroyed by Alexander. Strabo, bk. 15.—Statius, Thebiad, bk. 3, li. 479.—Lucian, de Domo.

Braslæ, a town of Laconia. Pausanias, bk. 3, ch. 24.

Brasĭdas, a famous general of Lacedæmon, son of Tellus, who, after many great victories over Athens and other Grecian states, died of a wound at Amphipolis, which Cleon the Athenian had besieged, B.C. 422. A superb monument was raised to his memory. Pausanias, bk. 3, ch. 24.—Thucydides, bks. 4 & 5.—Diodorus, bk. 3.——A man of Cos. Theocritus, Idylls, poem 7.

Brasidēia, festivals at Lacedæmon, in honour of Brasidas. None but freemen born Spartans were permitted to enter the lists, and such as were absent were fined.

Brasĭlas, a man of Cos. Theocritus, poem 7.

Braure, a woman who assisted in the murder of Pittacus king of the Edoni. Thucydides, bk. 4, ch. 107.

Brauron, a town of Attica, where Diana had a temple. The goddess had three festivals called Brauronia, celebrated once every fifth year by 10 men, who were called ἱεροποιοι. They sacrificed a goat to the goddess, and it was usual to sing one of the books of Homer’s Iliad. The most remarkable that attended were young virgins in yellow gowns, consecrated to Diana. They were about 10 years of age, and not under five, and therefore their consecration was called δεκατευειν, from δεκα, decem; and sometimes ἀρκτευειν, as the virgins themselves bore the name of ἀρκτοι, bears, from this circumstance. There was a bear in one of the villages of Attica so tame, that he ate with the inhabitants, and played harmlessly with them. This familiarity lasted long, till a young virgin treated the animal too roughly, and was killed by it. The virgin’s brother killed the bear, and the country was soon after visited by a pestilence. The oracle was consulted, and the plague removed by consecrating virgins to the service of Diana. This was so faithfully observed, that no woman in Athens was ever married before a previous consecration to the goddess. The statue of Diana of Tauris, which had been brought into Greece by Iphigenia, was preserved in the town of Brauron. Xerxes carried it away when he invaded Greece. Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 46.—Strabo, bk. 9.

Brenni and Breuni, a people of Noricum. Horace, bk. 4, ode 14.

Brennus, a general of the Galli Senones, who invaded Italy, defeated the Romans at the river Allia, and entered their city without opposition. The Romans fled into the capitol, and left the whole city in the possession of the enemies. The Gauls climbed the Tarpeian rock in the night, and the capitol would have been taken had not the Romans been awakened by the noise of geese which were before the doors, and immediately repelled the enemy. Camillus, who was in banishment, marched to the relief of his country, and so totally defeated the Gauls, that not one remained to carry the news of their destruction. Livy, bk. 5, ch. 36, &c.—Plutarch, Camillus.——Another Gaul, who made an irruption into Greece with 150,000 men and 15,000 horse, and endeavoured to plunder the temple of Apollo at Delphi. He was destroyed, with all his troops, by the god, or more properly, he killed himself in a fit of intoxication, B.C. 278, after being defeated by the Delphians. Pausanias, bk. 10, chs. 22 & 23.—Justin, bk. 24, ch. 6, &c.

Brenthe, a ruined city of Arcadia. Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 28.

Brescia, a city of Italy, which had gods peculiar to itself.

Brettii, a people of Italy. Strabo, bk. 6.

Briăreus, a famous giant, son of Cœlus and Terra, who had 100 hands and 50 heads, and was called by men Ægeon, and only by the gods Briareus. When Juno, Neptune, and Minerva conspired to dethrone Jupiter, Briareus ascended the heavens, and seated himself next to him, and so terrified the conspirators by his fierce and threatening looks that they desisted. He assisted the giants in their war against the gods, and was thrown under mount Ætna, according to some accounts. Hesiod, Theogony, li. 148.—Apollodorus, bk. 1, ch. 1.—Homer, Iliad, bk. 1, li. 403.—Virgil, Æneid, bk. 6, li. 287; bk. 10, li. 565.——A Cyclops, made judge between Apollo and Neptune, in their dispute about the isthmus and promontory of Corinth. He gave the former to Neptune, and the latter to Apollo. Pausanias, bk. 2, ch. 1.

Brias, a town of Pisidia.

Brigrantes, a people in the northern parts of Britain. Juvenal, satire 14, li. 196.—Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 43.

Brigrantīnus, a lake of Rhœtia between the Alps, now the lake of Constance. The town on its eastern banks is now Bregentz in the Tyrol, anciently called Brigantium. Pliny, bk. 9, ch. 17.

Brilessus, a mountain of Attica. Thucydides, bk. 2, ch. 23.

Brīmo (terror), a name given to Proserpine and Hecate. Propertius, bk. 2, poem 2, li. 11.

Brisēis, a woman of Lyrnessus, called also Hippodamia. When her country was taken by the Greeks, and her husband Mines and brother killed in the fight, she fell to the share of Achilles in the division of the spoils. Agamemnon took her away some time after from Achilles, who made a vow to absent himself from the field of battle. Briseis was very faithful to Achilles; and when Agamemnon restored her to him, he swore he had never offended her chastity. Homer, Iliad, bks. 1, 2, &c.—Ovid, Heroides, poem 3; De Ars Amatoria, bks. 2 & 3.—Propertius, bk. 2, poems 8, 20, & 22.—Pausanias, bk. 5, ch. 24.—Horace, bk. 2, ode 4.

Brises, a man of Lyrnessus, brother to the priest Chryses. His daughter Hippodamia was called Briseis, from him.

Briseus, a surname of Bacchus, from his nurse Briso, or his temple at Brisa, a promontory at Lesbos. Persius, bk. 1, li. 76.

Britanni, the inhabitants of Britain. See: Britannia.——A man in Gallia Belgica. Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 17.

Britannia, an island in the northern ocean, the greatest in Europe, conquered by Julius Cæsar during his Gallic wars, B.C. 55, and first known to be an island by Agricola, who sailed round it. It was a Roman province from the time of its conquest till the 448th year of the christian era. The inhabitants, in the age of Cæsar, used to paint their bodies, to render themselves more terrible in the eyes of their enemies. The name of Britain was unknown to the Romans before Cæsar conquered it. Cæsar, Gallic War, bk. 4.—Diodorus, bk. 5.—Pausanias, bk. 1, ch. 33.—Tacitus, Agricola, ch. 10.—Pliny, bk. 34, ch. 17.

Britannĭcus, a son of Claudius Cæsar by Messalina. Nero was raised to the throne in preference to him, by means of Agrippina, and caused him to be poisoned. His corpse was buried in the night; but it is said that a shower of rain washed away the white paint which the murderer had put over his face, so that it appeared quite black, and discovered the effects of poison. Tacitus, Annals.—Suetonius, Nero, ch. 33.

Britomartis, a beautiful nymph of Crete, daughter of Jupiter and Charme, who devoted herself to hunting, and became a great favourite of Diana. She was loved by Minos, who pursued her so closely, that, to avoid his importunities, she threw herself into the sea. Pausanias, bk. 2, ch. 30; bk. 3, ch. 14.——A surname of Diana.

Britomarus, a chief of the Galli Insubres conquered by Æmilius. Florus, bk. 2, ch. 4.

Britŏnes, the inhabitants of Britain. Juvenal, satire 15, li. 124.

Brixellum, a town in Italy near Mantua, where Otho slew himself when defeated. Tacitus, Histories, bk. 2, ch. 32.

Brixia, a town of Italy beyond the Po, at the north of Cremona, now Brescia. Justin, bk. 20, ch. 5.

Brizo, the goddess of dreams worshipped in Delos.

Brocubēlus, a governor of Syria, who fled to Alexander, when Darius was murdered by Bessus. Curtius, bk. 5, ch. 13.

Bromius, a surname of Bacchus, from βρεμειν, frendere, alluding to the groans which Semele uttered when consumed by Jupiter’s fire. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 4, li. 11.——A son of Ægyptus. Apollodorus, bk. 2, ch. 1.

Bromus, one of the Centaurs. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 12, li. 459.

Brongus, a river falling into the Ister. Herodotus, bk. 4, ch. 49.

Brontēs (thunder), one of the Cyclops. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 8, li. 425.

Brontīnus, a Pythagorean philosopher.——The father of Theano the wife of Pythagoras. Diogenes Laërtius.

Broteas and Ammon, two men famous for their skill in the cestus. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 5, li. 107.——One of the Lapithæ.

Brotheus, a son of Vulcan and Minerva, who burned himself to avoid the ridicule to which his deformity subjected him. Ovid, Ibis, li. 517.

Bructēri, a people of Germany, inhabiting the country at the east of Holland. Tacitus, Annals, bk. 1, ch. 51.

Brumālia, festivals celebrated at Rome in honour of Bacchus, about the month of December. They were first instituted by Romulus.

Brundusium, now Brundisi, a city of Calabria, on the Adriatic sea where the Appian road was terminated. It was founded by Diomedes after the Trojan war, or, according to Strabo, by Theseus, with a Cretan colony. The Romans generally embarked at Brundusium for Greece. It is famous for the birth of the poet Pacuvius and the death of Virgil, and likewise for its harbour, which is capacious and sheltered by the land, and by a small island at the entrance, against the fury of the winds and waves. Little remains of the ancient city, and even its harbour has now been choked up by the negligence of the inhabitants. Justin, bk. 3, ch. 4; bk. 12, ch. 2.—Strabo, bk. 5.—Cæsar, Civil War, bk. 1, ch. 24.—Cicero, Letters to Atticus, bk. 4, ltr. 1.

Brutidius, a man dragged to prison in Juvenal’s age, on suspicion of his favouring Sejanus. Juvenal, satire 10, li. 82.

Brutii, a people in the furthest parts of Italy, who were originally shepherds of the Lucanians, but revolted, and went in quest of a settlement. They received the name of Brutii, from their stupidity and cowardice in submitting, without opposition, to Annibal in the second Punic war. They were ever after held in the greatest disgrace, and employed in every servile work. Justin, bk. 23, ch. 9.—Strabo, bk. 6.—Diodorus, bk. 16.

Brutŭlus, a Samnite, who killed himself, upon being delivered to the Romans for violating a treaty. Livy, bk. 8, ch. 39.

Brutus Lucius Junius, a son of Marcus Junius and Tarquinia, second daughter of Tarquin Priscus. The father, with his eldest son, were murdered by Tarquin the Proud, and Lucius, unable to revenge their death, pretended to be insane. The artifice saved his life; he was called Brutus for his stupidity, which he, however, soon after showed to be feigned. When Lucretia killed herself, B.C. 509, in consequence of the brutality of Tarquin, Brutus snatched the dagger from the wound, and swore, upon the reeking blade, immortal hatred to the royal family. His example animated the Romans. The Tarquins were proscribed by a decree of the senate, and the royal authority vested in the hands of consuls chosen from patrician families. Brutus, in his consular office, made the people swear they never would again submit to kingly authority; but the first who violated their oath were in his own family. His sons conspired with the Tuscan ambassador to restore the Tarquins; and when discovered, they were tried and condemned before their father, who himself attended at their execution. Some time after, in a combat that was fought between the Romans and Tarquins, Brutus engaged with Aruns, and so fierce was the attack that they pierced one another at the same time. The dead body was brought to Rome, and received as in triumph; a funeral oration was spoken over it, and the Roman matrons showed their grief by mourning a year for the father of the republic. Florus, bk. 1, ch. 2.—Livy, bk. 1, ch. 56; bk. 2, ch. 1, &c.—Dionysius of Halicarnassus, bks. 4 & 5.—Cornelius Nepos, Atticus, ch. 8.—Eutropius on Tarquin.—Virgil, Æneid, bk. 6, li. 818.—Plutarch, Brutus & Cæsar.——Marcus Junius, father of Cæsar’s murderer, wrote three books on civil law. He followed the party of Marius, and was conquered by Pompey. After the death of Sylla, he was besieged in Mutina by Pompey, to whom he surrendered, and by whose orders he was put to death. He had married Servilia, Cato’s sister, by whom he had a son and two daughters. Cicero, On Oratory, ch. 55.—Plutarch, Brutus.——His son of the same name by Servilia, was lineally descended from Junius Brutus, who expelled the Tarquins from Rome. He seemed to inherit the republican principles of his great progenitor, and in the civil wars joined himself to the side of Pompey, though he was his father’s murderer, only because he looked upon him as more just and patriotic in his claims. At the battle of Pharsalia, Cæsar not only spared the life of Brutus, but he made him one of his most faithful friends. He, however, forgot the favour because Cæsar aspired to tyranny. He conspired with many of the most illustrious citizens of Rome against the tyrant, and stabbed him in Pompey’s Basilica. The tumult which this murder occasioned was great; the conspirators fled to the capitol, and by proclaiming freedom and liberty to the populace, they re-established tranquillity in the city. Antony, whom Brutus, contrary to the opinion of his associates, refused to seize, gained ground in behalf of his friend Cæsar, and the murderers were soon obliged to leave Rome. Brutus retired into Greece, where he gained himself many friends by his arms, as well as by persuasion, and he was soon after pursued thither by Antony, whom young Octavius accompanied. A battle was fought at Philippi. Brutus, who commanded the right wing of the republican army, defeated the enemy; but Cassius, who had the care of the left, was overpowered, and as he knew not the situation of his friend, and grew desperate, he ordered one of his freedmen to run him through. Brutus deeply deplored his fall, and in the fulness of his grief called him the last of the Romans. In another battle, the wing which Brutus commanded obtained a victory; but the other was defeated, and he found himself surrounded by the soldiers of Antony. He, however, made his escape, and soon after fell upon his sword, B.C. 42. Antony honoured him with a magnificent funeral. Brutus is not less celebrated for his literary talents, than his valour in the field. When he was in the camp, the greatest part of his time was employed in reading and writing; and the day which preceded one of his most bloody battles, while the rest of his army was under continual apprehensions, Brutus calmly spent his hours till the evening, in writing an epitome of Polybius. He was fond of imitating the austere virtues of Cato, and in reading the histories of nations he imbibed those principles of freedom which were so eminently displayed in his political career. He was intimate with Cicero, to whom he would have communicated his conspiracy, had he not been apprehensive of his great timidity. He severely reprimanded him in his letters for joining the side of Octavius, who meditated the ruin of the republic. Plutarch mentions that Cæsar’s ghost made its appearance to Brutus in his tent, and told him that he would meet him at Philippi. Brutus married Portia the daughter of Cato, who killed herself by swallowing burning coals when she heard the fate of her husband. Cornelius Nepos, Atticus.—Paterculus, bk. 2, ch. 48.—Plutarch, Brutus, &c.; Cæsar, ch. 1.—Florus, bk. 4.——Decimus Junius Albinus, one of Cæsar’s murderers, who, after the battle of Mutina, was deserted by the legions, with which he wished to march against Antony. He was put to death by Antony’s orders, though consul elect.——Junius, one of the first tribunes of the people. Plutarch.——One of Carbo’s generals.

Bryas, a general of the Argives against Sparta, put to death by a woman, to whom he had offered violence. Pausanias, bk. 2, ch. 20.——A general in the army of Xerxes. Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 72.

Bryaxis, a marble sculptor, who assisted in making the Mausoleum. Pausanias, bk. 1, ch. 40.

Bryce, a daughter of Danaus by Polyxo. Apollodorus, bk. 2, ch. 1.

Brygres, a people of Thrace, afterwards called Phryges. Strabo, bk. 7.

Brygri, a people of Macedonia, conquered by Mardonius. Herodotus, bk. 6, ch. 45.

Brysea, a town of Laconia. Pausanias, bk. 3, ch. 20.

Bubacēne, a town of Asia. Curtius, bk. 5.

Bubāces, a eunuch of Darius, &c. Curtius, bk. 5, ch. 11.

Bubăris, a Persian who married the daughter of Amyntas, against whom he had been sent with an army. Justin, bk. 7, ch. 13.

Bubastiăcus, one of the mouths of the Nile.

Bubastis, a city of Egypt, in the eastern parts of the Delta, where cats were held in great veneration, because Diana Bubastis, who is the chief deity of the place, is said to have transformed herself into a cat when the gods fled into Egypt. Herodotus, bk. 2, chs. 59, 137, & 154.—Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 9, li. 690.

Bubăsus, a country of Caria, whence Bubasides applied to the natives. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 9, li. 643.

Bubon, an inland city of Lycia. Pliny, bk. 5, ch. 27.

Bucephăla, a city of India near the Hydaspes, built by Alexander in honour of his favourite horse Bucephalus. Curtius, bk. 9, ch. 3.—Justin, bk. 12, ch. 8.—Diodorus, bk. 17.

Bucephălus, a horse of Alexander’s, whose head resembled that of a bull, whence his name (βους κεφαλος, bovis caput). Alexander was the only one who could mount on his back, and he always knelt down to take up his master. He was present in an engagement in Asia, where he received a heavy wound, and hastened immediately out of the battle, and dropped down dead as soon as he had set down the king in a safe place. He was 30 years old when he died, and Alexander built a city which he called after his name. Plutarch, Alexander.—Curtius.—Arrian, bk. 5, ch. 3.—Pliny, bk. 8, ch. 42.

Buciliānus, one of Cæsar’s murderers. Cicero, Letters to Atticus, ch. 14.

Bucolĭca, a sort of poem which treats of the care of the flocks, and of the pleasures and occupations of the rural life, with simplicity and elegance. The most famous pastoral writers of antiquity are Moschus, Bion, Theocritus, and Virgil. The invention of Bucolics, or pastoral poetry, is attributed to a shepherd of Sicily.

Bucolĭcum, one of the mouths of the Nile, situate between the Sebennytican and Mendesian mouths, and called by Strabo, Phatniticum. Herodotus, bk. 2, ch. 17.

Bucolion, a king of Arcadia, after Lais. Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 5.——A son of Laomedon and the nymph Calybe.——A son of Hercules and Praxithea. He was also called Bucolus.——A son of Lycaon king of Arcadia. Apollodorus, bks. 2 & 3.

Bucŏlus, a son of Hercules and Marse.——A son of Hippocoon. Apollodorus, bks. 2 & 3.

Budii, a nation of Media. Herodotus.

Budīni, a people of Scythia. Herodotus.

Budōrum, a promontory of Salamis. Thucydides, bk. 2, ch. 94.

Bulbus, a Roman senator, remarkable for his meanness. Cicero, Against Verres.

Bulis, a town of Phocis, built by a colony from Doris, near the sea, above the bay of Corinth. Pausanias, bk. 10, ch. 37.——A Spartan given up to Xerxes, to atone for the offence which his countrymen had done in putting the king’s messengers to death. Herodotus, bk. 7, ch. 134, &c.

Bullatius, a friend of Horace to whom the poet addressed, bk. 1, ltr. 11, in consequence of his having travelled over part of Asia.

Bullis, a town of Illyricum, near the sea, south of Apollonia. Livy, bk. 36, ch. 7; bk. 44, ch. 30.

Bumellus, a river of Assyria. Curtius, bk. 4, ch. 9.

Bunea, a surname of Juno.

Bunus, a son of Mercury and Alcidamea, who obtained the government of Corinth when Ætes went to Colchis. He built a temple to Juno. Pausanias, bk. 2, chs. 3 & 4.

Bupălus, a statuary of Clazomenæ. See: Anthermus.

Buphăgus, a son of Japetus and Thornax killed by Diana, whose virtue he had attempted. A river of Arcadia bears his name. Pausanias, bk. 8, ch. 24.——A surname of Hercules, given him on account of his gluttony.

Buphŏnia, a festival in honour of Jupiter at Athens, where an ox was immolated. Pausanias, bk. 1, ch. 24.—Ælian, Varia Historia, bk. 8, ch. 3.

Buprāsium, a city, country, and river of Elis. Homer.

Bura, a daughter of Jupiter, or, according to others, of Ion and Helice, from whom Bura or Buris, once a flourishing city in the bay of Corinth, received its name. This city was destroyed by the sea. Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 15, li. 293.—Pausanias, bk. 7, ch. 25.—Strabo, bks. 1 & 8.—Diodorus, bk. 15.

Buraicus, an epithet applied to Hercules, from his temple near Bura.——A river of Achaia. Pausanias, bk. 7, ch. 25.

Burrhus Afranius, a chief of the pretorian guards, put to death by Nero.——A brother-in-law of the emperor Commodus.

Bursa, a capital city of Bithynia, supposed to have been called Prusa, from its founder Prusias. Strabo, bk. 12.

Bursia, a town of Babylonia. Justin, bk. 12, ch. 13.

Busa, a woman of Apulia who entertained 1000 Romans after the battle of Cannæ. Valerius Maximus, bk. 4, ch. 8.

Busæ, a nation of Media. Herodotus, bk. 1.

Busīris, a king of Egypt, son of Neptune and Libya, or Lysianassa, who sacrificed all foreigners to Jupiter with the greatest cruelty. When Hercules visited Egypt, Busiris carried him to the altar bound hand and foot. The hero soon disentangled himself, and offered the tyrant, his son Amphidamas, and the ministers of his cruelty, on the altar. Many Egyptian princes have borne the same name. One of them built a town called Busiris, ♦in the middle of the Delta, where Isis had a famous temple. Herodotus, bk. 2, chs. 59 & 61.—Strabo, bk. 17.—Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 9, li. 132; Heroides, poem 9, li. 69.—Plutarch, Theseus.—Virgil, Georgics, bk. 3, li. 5.—Apollodorus, bk. 2, ch. 5.

♦ extraneous ‘and’ removed

Buta, a town of Achaia. Diodorus, bk. 20.

Buteo, a surname of Marcus Fabius. Livy, bk. 30, ch. 26.——A Roman orator. Seneca.

Butes, one of the descendants of Amycus king of the Bebryces, very expert in the combat of the cestus. He came to Sicily, where he was received by Lycaste, a beautiful harlot, by whom he had a son called Eryx. Lycaste, on account of her beauty, was called Venus; hence Eryx is often called the son of Venus.—Virgil, Æneid, bk. 5, li. 372.——One of the Argonauts. Apollodorus, bk. 1, ch. 9.——A Trojan slain by Camilla. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 11, li. 690.——A son of Boreas who built Naxos. Diodorus, bk. 5.——A son of Pandion and Zeuxippe, priest of Minerva and Neptune. He married Chthonia daughter of Erechtheus. Apollodorus, bk. 3, ch. 14, &c.——An armbearer to Anchises, and afterwards to Ascanius. Apollo assumed his shape when he descended from heaven to encourage Ascanius to fight. Butes was killed by Turnus. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 9, li. 647; bk. 12, li. 632.——A governor of Darius, besieged by Conon the Athenian.

Buthrōtum, now Butrinto, a seaport town of Epirus, opposite Corcyra, visited by Æneas, in his way from Troy to Italy. Virgil, Æneid, bk. 3, li. 293.—Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 1.

Buthrōtus, a river in Italy, near Locri.

Buthyreus, a noble statuary, disciple to Myron. Pliny, bk. 34, ch. 8.

Butoa, an island in the Mediterranean, near Crete. Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 12.

Butorĭdes, an historian who wrote concerning the pyramids. Pliny, bk. 36, ch. 12.

Butos, a town of Egypt, where there was a temple of Apollo and Diana, and an oracle of Latona. Herodotus, bk. 2, chs. 59 & 63.

Butuntum, an inland town of Apulia. Pliny, bk. 3, ch. 11.

Butus, a son of Pandion.

Buzȳges, an Athenian who first ploughed with harnessed oxen. Demophoon gave him the Palladium, with which Diomedes had entrusted him to be carried to Athens. Polyænus, bk. 1, ch. 5.

Byblesia and Bybassia, a country of Caria. Herodotus, bk. 1, ch. 174.

Byblia, a name of Venus.

Byblii, a people of Syria. Apollodorus, bk. 2, ch. 1.

Byblis, a daughter of Miletus and Cyanea. She fell in love with her brother Caunus, and when he refused to gratify her passion, she destroyed herself. Some say that Caunus became enamoured of her, and fled from his country to avoid incest; and others report that he fled from his sister’s importunities, who sought him all over Lycia and Caria, and at last sat down all bathed in tears, and was changed into a fountain of the same name. Ovid, de Ars Amatoria, bk. 1, li. 284; Metamorphoses, bk. 9, li. 451.—Hyginus, fable 243.—Pausanias, bk. 7, ch. 5.——A small island in the Mediterranean.

Byblus, a town of Syria, not far from the sea, where Adonis had a temple. Strabo, bk. 16.

Bylliones, a people of Illyricum.

Byrrhus, a robber, famous for his dissipation. Horace, bk. 1, satire 4, li. 69.

Byrsa, a citadel in the middle of Carthage, on which was the temple of Æsculapius. Asdrubal’s wife burnt it when the city was taken. When Dido came to Africa, she bought of the inhabitants as much land as could be encompassed by a bull’s hide. After the agreement, she cut the hide in small thongs, and inclosed a large piece of territory, on which she built a citadel which she called Byrsa (Βυρσα, a hide). Virgil, Æneid, bk. 1, li. 371.—Strabo, bk. 17.—Justin, bk. 18, ch. 5.—Florus, bk. 2, ch. 15.—Livy, bk. 34, ch. 62.

Byzacium, a country of Africa.

Byzantium, a town situate on the Thracian Bosphorus, founded by a colony of Megara, under the conduct of Byzas, 658 years before the christian era. Paterculus says it was founded by the Milesians, and by the Lacedæmonians according to Justin, and according to Ammianus by the Athenians. The pleasantness and convenience of its situation were observed by Constantine the Great, who made it the capital of the eastern Roman empire, A.D. 328, and called it Constantinopolis. A number of Greek writers, who have deserved or usurped the name of Byzantine historians, flourished at Byzantium, after the seat of the empire had been translated thither from Rome. Their works, which more particularly relate to the time in which they flourished, and are seldom read but by those who wish to form an acquaintance with the revolutions of the lower empire, were published in one large collection, in 36 vols., folio, 1648, &c., at Paris, and recommended themselves by the notes and supplements of du Fresne and du Cange. They were likewise printed at Venice, 1729, in 28 vols., though perhaps this edition is not so valuable as that of the French. Strabo, bk. 1.—Paterculus, bk. 2, ch. 15.—Cornelius Nepos, Pausanias, Alcibiades, & Timotheus.—Justin, bk. 9, ch. 1.—Tacitus, Annals, bk. 12, chs. 62 & 63.—Mela, bk. 2, ch. 2.—Marcellinus, bk. 22, ch. 8.

Byzas, a son of Neptune king of Thrace, from whom it is said Byzantium receives its name. Diodorus, bk. 4.

Byzeres, a people of Pontus, between Cappadocia and Colchis. Dionysius Periegetes.—Flaccus, bk. 5, li. 153.

Byzes, a celebrated artist in the age of Astyages. Pausanias, bk. 5, ch. 10.

Byzia, a town in the possession of the kings of Thrace, hated by swallows, on account of the horrible crimes of Tereus. Pliny, bk. 4, ch. 11.