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

BLAESUS.
scriptions, BETULTUS, a king of the Arverni
in Gaul. When the proconsul Cn. Domitius
Ahenobarbus undertook the war in B. c. 121
against the Allobroges, who were joined by the
Arverni under Bituitus, these Gallic tribes were
defeated near the town of Vindalium. After this
first disaster the Allobroges and Arverni made immense preparations to renew the contest with the
Romans, and Bituitus again took the field with a
very numerous army. At the point where the
Isara empties itself into the Rhodanus, the consul
Q. Fabius Maximus, the grandson of Paullus, met
the Gauls in the autumn of B. c. 121. Although
the Romans were far inferior in numbers, yet they
gained such a complete victory, that, according to
the lowest estimate, 120,000 men of the army of
Bituitus fell in the battle. After this irreparable
loss, Bituitus, who had been taken prisoner in an
insidious manner by Cn. Domitius, was sent to
Rome. The senate, though disapproving of the
conduct of Domitius, exiled Bituitus to Alba. His
son, Congentiatus, was likewise made prisoner and
sent to Rome. Florus adds, that the triumph of
Q. Fabius was adorned by Bituitus riding in a
silver war-chariot and with his magnificent armour,
just as he had appeared on the field of battle.
(Liv. Epit. 61; Florus, iii. 2; Vell. Pat. ii. 10;
Suet. Nero, 2; Appian, Gallic. 12, where Bituitus
is erroneously called king of the Allobroges; Eutrop. iv. 22, where the year and the consuls are
given incorrectly; Oros. v. 14; Val. Max. ix. 6.
~ 3; comp. Strab. iv. p. 191; Plin. H. N. vii.
51.) [L. S.]
BITYS (Blvus), an Egyptian seer, who is said
by lamblichus (de -Myst. viii. 5) to have interpreted
to Ammon, king of Egypt, the books of Hermes
written in hieroglyphics.
BLAESUS (BAauos), an ancient Italian poet,
born at Capreae, who wrote serio-comic plays
(orrov3oyh oot) in Greek. (Steph. Byz. s. v.
KaMrpl.) Two of these plays, the MErorpicas
and:aTrovpvos, are quoted by Athenaeus (iii. p.
111, c., xi. p. 487, c.), and Hesychius refers to
Blaesus (s. vv. MoKKcwvwdcri, MoAkyc, vAa'Tds), but
without mentioning the names of his plays. Casaubon supposed that Blaesus lived under the Roman empire; but he must have lived as early as the
3rd century B. c., as Valckenlir (ad Theocr. p. 290,
a.) has shewn, that Athenaeus took his quotations
of Blaesus from the rhdoorai of Pamphilus of Alexandria, who was a disciple of Aristarchus; and
also' that Pamphilus borrowed a part of his work
explaining the words in Blaesus and similar poets
from the FAhdo' 'IraAhuai of Diodorus, who was
a pupil of Aristophanes of Alexandria. (Comp.
Schweigh. ad Athen. iii. p. 111, c.)
BLAESUS, "a stammerer," was the name of
a plebeian family of the Sempronia gens under
the republic. It also occurs as a cognomen of the
Junii and of one Pedius under the empire.
1. C. SEMPRONIUS TI. F. TI. N. BLAESUs, consul in B. C. 253 in the first Punic war, sailed with
his colleague, Cn. Servilius Caepio, with a fleet of
260 ships to the coast of Africa, which they laid
waste in frequent descents, and from which they
obtained great booty. They did not, however,
accomplish anything of note; and in the lesser
Syrtis, through the ignorance of the pilots, their
ships ran aground, and only got off, upon the return of the tide, by throwing everything overboard. This disaster induced them to return to

BLAESUS. 491
Sicily, and in their voyage from thence to Italy
they were overtaken off cape Palinurus by a tremendous storm, in which 150 ships perished.
Notwithstanding these misfortunes, each of them
obtained a triumph for their successes in Africa, as
we learn from the Fasti. (Polyb. i. 39; Eutrop.
ii. 23; Oros. iv. 9; Zonar. viii. 14.) Blaesus was
consul a second time, in 244 (Fasti Capit.), in
which year a colony was founded at Brundusium.
(Vell. Pat. i. 14.)
2. SEMPRONIUS BLAESUs, quaestor in B. c. 217
to the consul Cn. Servilius Geminus, was killed,
together with a thousand men, in a descent upon
the coast of Africa in this year. (Liv. xxii. 31.)
3. C. SEMPRONIUS BLAESUS, tribune of the
plebs in B. c. 211, brought Cn. Fulvius to trial on
account of his losing his army in Apulia. (Liv.
xxvi. 2; comp. Val. Max. ii. 8. ~ 3.)
4. CN. SEMPRONIUS BLAESUS, legate in B. c.
210 to the dictator Q. Fulvius Flaccus, by whom
lie was sent into Etruria to command the army
which had been under the praetor C. Calpurnius.
(Liv. xxvii. 5.) It is not improbable that this
Cn. Blaesus may be the same as No. 3, as Cn. is
very likely a false reading for C., since we find
none of the Sempronii at this period with the former praenomen, while the latter is the most common one.
5. P. SEMPRONIUS BLAESUS, tribune of the plebs
in B. c. 191, opposed the triumph of P. Cornelius
Scipio Nasica, but withdrew his opposition through
the remonstrances of the consul. (Liv. xxxvi. 39,
40.)
6. C. SEMPRONIUS BLAESUS, plebeian aedile in
B. c. 187, and praetor in Sicily in 184. In 170,
he was sent with Sex. Julius Caesar as ambassador
to Abdera. (Liv. xxxix. 7, 32, 38, xliii. 6.)
BLAESUS, a Roman jurist, not earlier than
Trebatius Testa, the friend of Cicero: for Blaesus
is cited by Labeo in the Digest (33. tit. 2. s. 31)
as reporting the opinion of Trebatius. Various
conjectures have been made without much plausibility for the purpose of identifying the jurist with
other persons of the same name. Junius Blaesus,
proconsul of Africa in A. D. 22, was probably somewhat later than the jurist. (Majansius, vol. ii. p.
162; G. Grotii, Vita Ictorum, c. 9. ~ 18.) [J.T.G.]
BLAESUS, JU'NIUS. 1. The governor of
Pannonia at the death of Augustus, A. D. 14, when
the formidable insurrection of the legions broke
out in that province, which was with difficulty
quelled by Drusus himself. The conduct of Blaesus in allowing the soldiers relaxation from their
ordinary duties was the immediate cause of the insurrection, but the real causes lay deeper. Through
the influence of Sejanus, who was his uncle, Blaesus obtained the government of Africa in 21, where
he gained a victory over Tacfarinas in 22, in consequence of which Tiberius granted him the insignia of a triumph, and allowed him the title of
Imperalor-the last instance of this honour being
conferred upon a private person. We learn from
Velleius Paterculus, who says that it was difficult
to decide whether Blaesus was more useful in the
camp or distinguished in the forum, that he also
commanded in Spain. (Dion Cass. Ivii. 4; Tac.
Ann. i. 16, &c., iii. 35, 58, 72-74; Veil. Pat. ii.
125.) It appears from the Fasti, from which we
learn that his praenomen was Quintus, that Blaesus was consul suffectus in 28; but he shared in
the fill of Sejanus in 31, and was deprived, as was