397 



ATHEN^EUS. 



ATHIAS, RABBI JOSEPH. 



pieces, which the ' Deipnosophists ' recite ; among them is the famous 

 hymn on Hermeias, tyrant of Atarneus, by Aristotle, of which a copy 

 is also preserved in Diogenes Laertius. (Aristotle, lib. v.) If ^Elian 

 took from Athenams, as it is said, it will be more consistent with the 

 probable chronology of jElian to place Athenseus in the reign of 

 Marcus and Commodus than of Antoninus Caracalla. [^LIANUS, 

 CLAUDIUS.] If all the authors whom Athenseus cites were extant, his 

 work would be worthless ; but as so many of them are lost, this com- 

 pilation has become one of the most valuable relics of antiquity, and 

 a source of instruction and amusement to every scholar. 



The first edition of Athenaeus was published by the elder Aldus, 

 Venice, 1514, folio, with the assistance of Marcus Musurus : this 

 edition is of little value. In 1550 the first Latin translation appeared 

 at Venice ; but it ia much inferior to that of Dalecampius (Jacques 

 d'Alechamp), Lyon, 1583, folio. The edition of Casaubon, Geneva, 

 1597, folio, contained only the text and the Latin version of Dalecam- 

 pius: the Commentary did not appear till 1600, Lyon, folio. Both 

 were reprinted several times. The latest edition, according to Casau- 

 bon's recension, is that of 1657, Lyon, folio. Casaubon did little for 

 the Greek text, but his commentary is useful. The edition of Schweig- 

 haeuser was founded on the collation of a new manuscript, which once 

 belonged to cardinal Bessarion, and is probably the original of all 

 other manuscripts of Athenaeus. Schweighaeuser's edition, which 

 appeared between 1801 and 1807, in 14 volumes 8vo, consists of two 

 parts : the first part, in 5 volumes 8vo, contains the text, the revised 

 version of Dalecampius, and the various readings ; the first eight 

 volumes of the second part contain the commentary, which comprises 

 the best part of Casaubon's commentary, and the editor's additions. 

 The fourteenth volume contains an index of the writers quoted by 

 Athenseus, and of their writings; an index of the titles of all the 

 works quoted by him; and an inHex of things and persons. The last 

 edition of Atheueeus is by W. Dindorf, Leipzig, 1827, 3 vols. 8vo. 

 The text has been improved, and the various readings are given in 

 short notes at the foot of the page. It contains also the summaries 

 of the contents of the fifteen books, in Greek according to Aldus, and 

 in Latin according to Schweighaeuser, an InHex Herum founded on 

 that of Schweighaeuser, which in fact is founded on that in Casaubon, 

 and an index of the writers cited by Athenseus, with the addition of 

 all the works of each writer which are mentioned by Athenaeus. 



It appears that Eustatliius either did not use or was unacquainted 

 with the genuine work of Atlienaeus, for he has often used the epitome 

 only. (Ca.*aubou, ' Animadversiones,' lib. i., cap. 1.) Whether he was 

 entirely unacquainted with the complete work may not be quite 

 certain, but it i very evident that the archbishop of Thessalonica 

 d'-rived much of his learning from the storehouse of Athenaeus. 

 There is a French version of Athenaeus by the Abb<! de Marolles, 

 Paris, 1680, 4to. : this book is v-ry rare. Another French version 

 was made by Jacques Adam, but he only revised the first two books ; 

 the rest were translated by Lef<-bvre de Villebrune, and the whole 

 appeared at Paris in 1789-91. This translation has not a good 

 character. (Fabricius, Bibliotheca Graca, v. 602; Schoell, Geechiclite 

 der Griechixcken Littfratur, ii. 508, contains a brief notice of the 

 contents of the several books of Athenseus ; Hoffman, Lexicon Biblio- 

 yraptticum.) 



(Biographical Dictionary of the Society for the Diffturion of Uteful 

 Knowledge.) 



ATHENAEUS, a Greek writer, probably contemporary with Archi- 

 medes. A work by him on engines of war (TIfpl MrixavrindTuv) is 

 extant, and printed in the collection of Thevenot This work is 

 addressed to M. Marcellus, supposed to be the conqueror of Syracuse. 



ATHKN-iE'US of Attalia (or according to Coolius Aurelianus, of 

 Tarsus in Cilicia), a physician who flourished in Home about the 

 middle of the first century, and established the Pneumatic school in 

 medicine. Of his works, which, according to Galen, were numerous 

 and highly valued, nothing remains except a few fragments preserved 

 by Oribasius and /Etius, and the allusions which are made to his 

 opinions in the writings of Galen. The theory, which originated with 

 Athenreu*, and was transmitted by him to bis pupils, Agathinus and 

 Herodotus, and adopted by several other distinguished physicians 

 [ABET^DS], derived its name from the ' pneuma,' or spirit, which 

 they regarded as a fifth element, and held to be the cause of health 

 and disease. This 'pneuma' formed an important principle in the 

 physical science of the Stoic philosophers, from whom the Pneumatic 

 ians seemed to have derived it, adopting at the same time, not 

 only the general philosophical tendency, but the difficult style and 

 dialectic abstruseness of the Stoic sect. The very scanty remains of 

 the Pneumatic doctrine, and their fondness for subtleties, render it 

 difficult to ascertain with any degree of definiteness the nature of 

 their doctrines. The 'pneuma' has been by many supposed to be 

 analogous to the 'vital principle' of some modern physiologists. 

 (Leclerc and Sprengel, Hittories of Medicine.) 



ATHENA'GORAS was an Athenian philosopher, who having become 

 a convert to Christianity, wrote an apology for the Christians to the 

 emperor Marcus Aurelius and his son Commodus. He must have lived 

 therefore in the latter half of the 2nd century, and he probably com- 

 posed his apology about A.D. 177. The 'Apology' is a well-digested 

 and eloquently-written treatise. Athenagoraa demands toleration for 

 tho Christians, and defends their doctrine and their lives against the 



then usual accusations of atheism, incest, eating of the flesh of 

 slaughtered children, &c. The treatise of Athenagoras on the ' Re- 

 surrection of the Dead ' is in some degree connected with the conclu- 

 sion of his ' Petition,' as the ' Apology ' is entitled. Athenagoras, in 

 his book on the Resurrection, shows the necessity of having the mind 

 freed from prejudice in order to arrive at truth, refutes the objections 

 made against the resurrection, and confirms it by argument. Semler 

 made a fruitless attempt to impugn the authenticity of the ' Petition ; ' 

 but the objected quotations from the Prophets, and from heathen 

 mythology, as well as the title of philosopher, given to the emperor, 

 are quite appropriate in a Christian apology of the 2nd century. 

 Philippus Sidetes, an ecclesiastical writer, who lived about A.D. 420 at 

 Constantinople, is the only ancient writer who gives any biographica 1 

 notice of Athenagoras ; and he relates that Athenagoras was the first 

 teacher of the catechetic school at Alexandria ; and that Clemens of 

 Alexandria was his disciple : but these assertions are inconsistent with 

 ascertained facts, and the authority of Sidetes is of little value. 



The older editions of his writings are specified in Fabricii 'Biblio- 

 theca Grseca,' vol. v. p. 86, et seq. ; and in Oudin., ' Comment, de Script. 

 Eccl.,' vol. i. p. 203, et seq. The best are ' Ath. Legatio pro Christ, et 

 Ressurr. Mort.,' Gr. et Lat., edited by Henry Stephens, 1557, 8vo : 

 by Ed. Dechair. Ox., 1706-8,. with notes of Gesner and others; re- 

 printed also in Gallandi ' Bibl.,' pp. t. ii. ; and in Justin Martyr's 

 Works, by the Benedictins, 1742, fol., with a very good introduction; 

 ' Ath. Deprecatio, vulgo Legatio, pr. Christ.,' Gr. o. ind. ct (valuable) 

 not. by Lindner, 1774-8 : ' Legat. et de Resurrectione ob. Oberthiir,' Gr. 

 et Lat., 8vo, Wirreb, 1777, with Tatian, Theophilus, and Hennias: 

 ' The most excellent Discourse of t'ue Christian philosopher Athena- 

 goras touching the Resurrection of the Dead ; ' Englished from the 

 Greek (he should have said Latin) of Peter Nanuius, by Richard 

 Porder, 8vo, Lond. 1573 : ' The Apologetics' of Athenagoras 1, ' For 

 the Christian Religion ; ' 2, ' For the Truth of the Resurrection,' &c., 

 by David Humphreys, 8vo, Lond. 1714. Several extracts of both 

 pieces are translated in Dr. Lardner's ' Credibility of the Gospel 

 History.' 



ATHENION, a comic poet. Athenseus gives a long extract from 

 his ' Samothracians,' lib. xxiv. c. 80. 



ATHENION, a painter, born at Maronea in Thrace, and pupil of 

 'Glaucion of Corinth. Pliny gives him the extraordinary praise, that 

 " if he had lived to maturity, no one would have been worthy to be 

 compared to him." (Nat. Hitt., xxxv. 40, ed. Delph.) 



ATHE'NION, a Sicilian slave, one of the principal actors in the 

 second Servile war which broke out in Sicily, and lasted from the 

 year B.c. 102 to 99. By birth he was a Cilician : he filled the station 

 of steward or overseer to two wealthy brothers, and had himself 

 acquired considerable wealth, which, with the skill in astrology to 

 which he laid claim, procured for him much influence among the 

 servile class. After the insurrection had commenced in other parts of 

 Sicily, he began his career by gaining over the slaves under his own 

 charge, to the number of 200. Other slaves flocked to his standard 

 from neighbouring properties, so that within five days his followers 

 amounted to 1 000 men. He then assumed the title and state of a 

 king; and enforced strict discipline among his followers. At the 

 head of a force of 10,000 slaves, he laid siege to Lilyboauin. In this 

 attempt he failed ; but by good management this check was made to 

 increase his power over his followers, by verifying the powers of 

 divination which he professed. Another slave leader, named Salvius, 

 at the head of a force of 30,000 men, now assumed the title of kin;;, 

 and fixed his residence at Triocala. He summoned Athenion to serve 

 under his command, and Athenion prudently joined Salvius, or as he 

 now called himself Tryphon. Tryphon soon conceived a jealousy for 

 his new associate, whom he imprisoned ; but he restored him to his 

 command, when Licinius Lucullus, with an army of 16,000 or 17,000 

 men, was sent by the Senate to bring the war to a conclusion. In a 

 battle which ensued near ScirthEca the insurgents were defeated, and 

 Atlicnioi. severely wounded. Lucullus then laid siege to Triocala, in 

 which he met with no success. He was superseded by L. Servilius, 

 who did no better; and both those generals were banished for their 

 misconduct or ill-success. On the death of Tryphon, Atheuion suc- 

 ceeded him, and, unchecked by Servilius, extended his ravages over 

 great part of Sicily. But in B.C. 102, the consul, Manius Aquilius, 

 took the field, and won a decisive victory over the insurgents, in which 

 Athenion was killed. Aquilius pursued the insurgents to their strong- 

 holds, and reduced them severally to submission. Thus ended the 

 Servile War in Sicily, in the fourth year, B.c. 99. (Diod., jEclogie, 

 lib. xxxvi. 1. ; Florus, iii. 19.) 



ATHENION, son of a Peripatetic philosopher of the same name, 

 by an Egyptian slave. He was manumitted ; kept a school in Athens, 

 where he was naturalised ; assumed the name of Aristion, and ulti- 

 mately became tyrant of Athens. He espoused the interests of 

 Mithridates, and in. concert with Archelaus, the king of Pontus's 

 general, held out the city against Sulla, who finally put him to death. 

 [SULLA : the early history of Athenion is given by Athenajus, V. 

 c. 48-53.] 



ATHIAS, EABBI JOSEPH, was a famous printer at Amsterdam, 

 who lived during the latter half of the 17th century. Assisted by 

 the most distinguished scholars of Amsterdam, he compared the old 

 editions and manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible, and published in 1661 



