A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

ARISTOMACHUS.
ARISTO'MACHE ('Apur'roydXi). 1. The
daughter of Hipparinus of Syracuse, and the sister
of Dion, was married to the elder Dionysius on
the same day that he married Doris of Locri.
She bore him two sons and two daughters, with
one of whom, namely Arete, she afterwards
perished. (Plut. Dion, 3, 6; Diod. xiv. 44, xvi.
6; Aelian, V. H. xiii. 10, who erroneously calls
her Aristaenete; Cic. Tuse. v. 20; Val. Max. ix.
13, ext. 4.) Respecting her death, see ARETE.
2. Of Erythrae, a poetess, who conquered at the
Isthmian games, and dedicated in the treasury of
Sicyon a golden book, that is, probably one written
with golden letters. (Plut. Symp. v. 2. ~ 10.)
ARISTO'MACHUS ('AparGdaXeos). 1. A
son of Talaus and Lysimache, and brother of
Adrastus. (Apollod. i. 9. ~ 13.) He was the
father of Hippomedon, one of the seven heroes
against Thebes. (Apollod. iii. 6. ~ 3.) Hyginus
(Fab. 70) makes Hippomedon a son of a sister of
Adrastus. (Comp. Paus. x. 10. ~,2.)
2. A son of Cleodemus or Cleodaeus, and greatgrandson of Heracles, was the father of Temenus,
Cresphontes, and Aristodemus. He marched into
Peloponnesus at the time when Tisamenus, the
son of Orestes, ruled over the Peninsula; but his
expedition failed as he had misunderstood the
oracle, and he fell in battle. (Apollod. ii. 8. ~ 2;
Paus. ii. 7. ~ 6; Herod. vi. 52.) Another Aristomachus occurs in Paus. vi. 21. ~ 7. [L. S.]
ARISTO'MACHUS('Apo-To'Y/ios). 1. Tyrant
of Argos, in the reign and under the patronage of
Antigonus Gonatas. He kept the citizens of
Argos in a defenceless condition, but a conspiracy
was formed against him, and arms were secretly
introduced into the town by a contrivance of
Aratus, who wished to gain Argos for the Achaean
league. The plot was discovered, and the persons
concerned in it took to flight. But Aristomachus
was soon after assassinated by slaves, and was succeeded by Aristippus II. (Plut. Arat. 25.)
2. Succeeded Aristippus II. in the tyranny
of Argos, apparently towards the end of the reign
of Demetrius. (B. c. 240-230.) He seems to
have been related to some of his predecessors in
the tyranny of Argos. (Polyb. ii. 59.) After the
death of Demetrius, B. c. 229, he resigned his
power, as Lydiades had done before, and several
others did now, for the influence of Macedonia in
Peloponnesus had nearly ceased, and the Aetolians
were allied with the Achaeans. Aristomachus
had been persuaded to this step by Aratus, who
gave him fifty talents that he might be able to pay
off and dismiss his mercenaries. Argos now joined
the Achaean league, and Aristomachus was chosen
strategus of the Achaeans for the year B. c. 227.
(Plut. Arat. 35; Polyb. ii. 44; Paus. ii. 8. ~ 5;
Plut. Cleom. 4.) In this capacity he undertook
the command in the war against Cleomenes of
Sparta, but he seems to have been checked by the
jealousy of Aratus, in consequence of which he
afterwards deserted the cause of the Achaeans and
went over to Cleomenes, who with his assistance
took possession of Argos. Aristomachus now again
assumed the tyranny at Argos. Aratus tried ini
vain to recover that city for the Achaean league,
and the consequence only was, that the tyrant
ordered 80 distinguished Argives to be put to death,
as they were suspected of being favourable towards the Achaeans. Not long afterwards, however, Argos was taken by Antigonus Doson, whose

ARISTOMENES.

307

assistance Aratus had called in. Aristomachus
fell into the hands of the Achaeans, who strangled
him and threw him into the sea at Cenchreae.
(Polyb. ii. 59, 60; Plut. Arat. 44; Schorn, GeschiJte Griechenl. p. 118, note 1.)
3. The leader of the popular party at Croton, in
the Hannibalian war, about B. c. 215. At that
time nearly all the towns of southern Italy were
divided into two parties, the people being in favour
of the Carthaginians, and the nobles or senators in
favour of the Romans. The Bruttians, who were
in alliance with the Carthaginians, had hoped to
gain possession of Croton with their assistance.
As this had not been done, they determined to
make the conquest by themselves. A deserter
from Croton informed them of the state of political
parties there, and that Aristomachus was ready
to surrender the town to them. The Bruttians
marched with an army against Croton, and as the
lower parts, which were inhabited by the people,
were open and easy of access, they soon gained
possession of them. Aristomachus, however, as if
he had nothing to do with the Bruttians, withdrew
to the arx, where the nobles were assembled and
defended themselves. The Bruttians in conjunction with the people of Croton besieged the nobles
in the arx, and when they found that they made
no impression, they applied to Hanno the Carthaginian for assistance. He proposed to the Crotoniats to receive the Bruttians as colonists within
the extensive but deserted walls of their city; but
all the Crotoniats, with the exception of Aristomachus, declared that they would rather die than submit to this. As Aristomachus, who had betrayed
the town, was unable to betray the arx also, he
saw no way but to take to flight, and he accordingly went over to Hanno. The Crotoniats soon
after quitted their town altogether and migrated
to Locri. (Liv. xxiv. 2, 3.)
4. A Greek writer on agriculture or domestic
economy, who is quoted several times by Pliny.
(H. N. xiii. 47, xiv. 24, xix. 26. ~ 4.) [L. S.]
ARISTO'MACHUS ('AptorwdaXos),a statuary,
born on the banks of the Strymon, made statues
of courtezans. His age is not known. (Anthol.
Palat. vi. 268.) [C. P. M.]
ARISTOME'DES ('ApcrroU6nFs), a statuary,
a native of Thebes, and a contemporary of Pindar.
In conjunction with his fellow-townsman Socrates,
he made a statue of Cybele, which was dedicated
by Pindar in the temple of that goddess, near
Thebes. (Paus. ix. 25. ~ 3.) [C. P. M.]
ARISTO'MEDON ('Apstro3wcvv), an Argive
statuary, who lived shortly before the Persian wars,
made some statues dedicated by the Phocians at
Delphi, to commemorate their victory over the Thessalians. (Paus. x. 1. ~~ 3-10.) [C. P. M.]
ARISTO'MENES ('Apio-ropt s), the Messenian, the hero of the second war with Sparta, has
been connected by some writers with the first war
(Myron. ap. Pans. iv. 6; Diod. Sic. xv. 66, Fragnm.
x.), but in defiance apparently of all tradition.
(Tyrt. ap. Paus. 1. c.; Muller, Dor. i. 7. ~ 9.) For
the events of his life our main authority is Pausanias, and he appears to have principally followed
Rhianus the Cretan, the author of a lost epic poem,
of which Aristomenes was the hero. (Paus. iv 6.)
The life of Aristomenes, therefore, belongs more to
legend than to history, though the truth of its
general outline may be depended on. (Paus. iv. 22;
Polyb. iv. 33.)