Copy 1, Volume 1

Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology / Edited by William Smith.

Date:
1844-1849
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology / Edited by William Smith. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    25/1138 (page 7)
    ACESTES. reign name into one more convenient to him, and that the real name of Sichaeus was Sicharbas, which seems to be identical with Acerbas. [Dido ; Pygmalion. ] [L. S.] ACERRO'NIA, a friend of Agrippina, the mother of Nero, was drowned in b. c. 59, when an unsuccessful attempt was made at the same time to drown Agrippina. (Tac. Ann. xiv. 4 ; Dion Cass, lxi. 13.) CN. ACERRO'NIUS PROCULUS, consul A. d. 37, the year in which Tiberius died (Tac. Ann. vi. 45; Suet. Tib. 73), was perhaps a de¬ scendant of the Cn. Acerronius, whom Cicero mentions in his oration for Tullius, b. c. 71, as a vir optimus. (16, &c.) ACERSE'COMES (’A/cepcre/afycijs), a surname of Apollo expressive of his beautiful hair which was never cut or shorn. (Horn. II. xx. 39 ; Pind. Pyth. iii. 26.) [L. S.] ACESANDER (’AKtaavdpos) wrote a history of Cyrene. (Schol. ad Apoll. iv. 1561, 1750 ; ad Pind. Pyth. iv. init. 57.) Plutarch (Symp. v. 2. § 8) speaks of a work of his respecting Libya (-rrepl Ai€vrjs), which may probably be the same work as the history of Cyrene. The time at which he lived is unknown. A'CESAS (’AK€(ras), a native of Salami's in Cyprus, famed for his skill in weaving cloth with variegated patterns (polymiiarius). He and his son Helicon, who distinguished himself in the same art are mentioned by Athenaeus. (ii. p. 48, b.) Zenobius speaks of both artists, but says that Acesas (or, as he calls him Aceseus, ’A/cecreus) was a native of Patara, and Helicon of Carystus. He tells us also that they were the first who made a peplus for Athena Polias. When they lived, we are not informed ; but it must have been before the time of Euripides and Plato, who mention this peplus. (Eur. Hec. 468; Plat. Euthyphr. § 6.) A specimen of the workmanship of these two artists was preserved in the temple at Delphi, bearing an inscription to the effect, that Pallas had imparted marvellous skill to their hands. [C. P. M.J ACE'SIAS (’A/cecrias), an ancient Greek physi¬ cian, whose age and country are both unknown. It is ascertained however that he lived at least four hundred years before Christ, as the proverb Akecri'as laaaro, Acesias cured him, is quoted on the authority of Aristophanes. This saying (by which only Acesias is known to us,) was used when any person’s disease became worse instead of better under medical treatment, and is mentioned by Suidas (.s. v. ’AKecrias), Zenobius (Proverb. Cent. i. § 52), Diogenianus (Proverb. ii. 3), Mi¬ chael Apostolius (Proverb. ii. 23), and Plutarch (Proverb. quibus Alexandr. usi sunt, § 98). See also Proverb, e Cod. Bodl. § 82, in Gaisford’s Paroemiographi Graeci, 8vo. Oxon. 1836. It is possible that an author bearing this name, and mentioned by Athenaeus (xii. p. 516, c.) as having written a treatise on the Art of Cooking (oipapru- riKa), may be one and the same person, but of this we have no certain information. (J. J. Baier, Adag. Medic. Cent. 4to. Lips. 1718.) [W. A. G.] ACE'SIUS (’Auecnos), a surname of Apollo, under which he was worshipped in Elis, where he had a splendid temple in the agora. This sur¬ name, which has the same meaning as aKearccp and a\e^LH.aKos, characterised the god as the averter of evil. (Pans. vi. 24. § 5.) [L. S.] ACESTES (’Afcecmjs), a son of the Sicilian ACESTORIDES. 7 river-god Crimisus and of a Trojan woman of the name of Egesta or Segesta (Virg. Aen. i. 195, 550, v. 36, 711, &c.), who according to Servius was sent by her father Hippotes or Ipsostratus to Sicily, that she might not be devoured by the monsters, which infested the territory of Troy, and which had been sent into the land, because the Trojans had refused to reward Poseidon and Apollo for having built the walls of their city. When Egesta arrived in Sicily, the river-god Crimisus in the form of a bear or a dog begot by her a son Acestes, who was afterwards regarded as the hero who had founded the town of Segesta. (Comp. Schol. ad Lycophr. 951, 963.) The tradition of Acestes in Dionysius (i. 52), who calls him Aegestus (Aiyes- ros), is different, for according to him the grand¬ father of Aegestus quarrelled with Laomedon, who slew him and gave his daughters to some mer¬ chants to convey them to a distant land. A noble Trojan however embarked with them, and married one of them in Sicily, where she subsequently gave birth to a son, Aegestus. During the war against Troy Aegestus obtained permission from Priam to return and take part in the contest, and afterwards returned to Sicily, where Aeneas on his arrival was hospitably received by him and Elymus, and built for them the towns of Aegesta and Elyme. The account of Dionysius seems to be nothing but a rationalistic interpretation of the genuine legend. As to the inconsistencies in Virgil’s account of Acestes, see Heyne, Excurs. 1, on Aen. v. [L. S.] ACESTODO'RUS (’A^ecrr65a>pos), a Greek historical writer, who is cited by Plutarch {Them. 13), and whose work contained, as it appears, an account of the battle of Salamis among other things. The time at which he lived is unknown. Ste- phanus (s. v. Meya\r} speaks of an Acesto- dorus of Megalopolis, who wrote a work on cities (7repi iroAzwv), but whether this is the same as the above-mentioned writer is not clear. ACESTOR (’A/cecrrcop). A surname of Apollo which characterises him as the god of the healing art, or in general as the averter of evil, like dueaios. (Eurip. Androm. 901.) [L. S.] ACESTOR (’Akecrrcop), surnamed Sacas (2a- uas), on account of his foreign origin, was a tragic poet at Athens, and a contemporary of Aristo¬ phanes. He seems to have been either of Thracian or Mysian origin. (Aristoph. Aves, 31 ; Schol. ad loc.; Vespae, 1216 ; Schol. ad toe.; Phot, and Suid. s. v. 2areas: Welcker, Die Griech. Tragod. p. 1032.) [R. W.] ACESTOR (’Aicearwp), a sculptor mentioned by Pausanias (vi. 17. § 2) as having executed a statue of Alexibius, a native of Heraea in Arcadia, who had gained a victory in the pentathlon at the Olympic games. He was born at Cnossus, or at any rate exercised his profession there for some time. (Paus. x. 15. § 4.) He had a son named Amphion, who was also a sculptor, and had studied under Ptolichus of Corcyra (Paus. vi. 3. § 2); so that Acestor must have been a contempo¬ rary of the latter, who flourished about 01. 82. (b. c. 452.) [C. P. M.j ACESTO'RIDES (’AKearopiSgs), a Corinthian, was made supreme commander by the Syracusans in b. c. 317, and banished Agathocles from the city. (Diod. xix. 5.) ACESTOTlIDES wrote four books of mytmcal stories relating to every city (toqv Kara itoAiv gudiKwv). In these he gave many real historical