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

NICOPHANES. NICOSTHENES. i 99
and was trained in a monastery on the confines of from the way in which he is mentioned by Pliny
Pontus and Paphlagonia. About A. D. 961, he (H. N. xxxv. 10. s. 36. ~ 23), to have been a
was sent by the abbot of his monastery on a mis- younger contemporary or successor of Apelles.:
sionary tour. In the course of it he visited Crete, Pliny says that in beauty few could compare with
recently freed from the Saracens, and reclaimed the him; but it must have been that meretricious kind
inhabitants to Christianity. He was employed of beauty, into which the finished grace of Apelles
A. D. 981 to intercede with the Bulgarians, who might easily be degraded by an imitation, for
were making inroads into the Grecian empire, and Polemon numbered him among the 7ropo ypaiol.:
died, about A. D. 998. He was canonised, his (Athen. xiii. p. 567, b.) * In apparent contradiction
name being in the calendar of both the Greek and to this judgment are the words of Pliny (. e.):
Latin churches, on the 26th of November. From " Cothuarnus ei et gravitas artis." But Sillig prohis life, written originally in Greek, and translated poses to amend the passage by altering the puncby Sirmondus, Baronius (Annales, vol. x.) has tuation, thus:'Annunzeratur his et Nicophanes,
extracted the account of numerous miracles per- elegans et concinnus, ita ut venustate ei pauci compaformed by him. Two treatises against the Ar- rentur: cothurnus ei et gravitas artis multum a
menians ascribed to him (Cave speaks doubtfully of Zeuxide et Apelle abest." A simpler, and perhaps
the last), are printed, in Greek and Latin, by equally satisfactory explanation is, that this is one
Cotelerius (Not. ad Patres Apostol. pp. 152,'237). of the many examples of Pliny's want of the power
Besides these, other unpublished works of Nicon of discrimination. [P. S.]
are mentioned. (Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. x. p. 299, NICOPHON and NICOPHRON (NKcoqktP,
vol. xi. p. 27.5; Cave, IIist. Lit. vol. ii. p. 103.) Ndo'qpwv). The former is undoubtedly the correct
3. A monk of Rhaethus in Palestine. Under orthography; Suidas is the only authority for the
the reign of Constantine Ducas, about A.D. 1060, latter. He mentions the name four times (s. vv.
instigated, it is said, by the fear lest the Saracens NKc(PpwV, dpa'Xv) aepnpo.S, cotrUol-at.), in the two
should in their conquests obliterate the records of first of which he calls him NKudppWYV, but every
the Christian faith, he compiled a work entitled, where else, both by him and others, NLKOCoVY is the
nlave KTrrlS Tr' eptilIEiv,'rcvp belwy VTroAcV Trod name given. He was the son of Theron, an AtheKvptou. It consists of two books, and sixty-three nian, and a -contemporary of Aristophanes at the
chapters, containing extracts from the Scriptures, close of his career. Athenaeus (iii. 126, e.) states
the ecclesiastical canons, the fathers, and other that he belonged to the old, but he seems rather to
ecclesiastical documents, besides the civil law. have belonged to the middle comedy. 1. We learn
Except some extracts given by Cotelerius (MIonu- from the argument to the Plutus III. of Aristophanes
ment. Eccles. Graec.), no part has been published. that he competed for the prize with four others,
Fabricius (Bibl. Graec. vol. xi. p. 275, &c.) gives B. C. 388, Aristophanes exhibiting the second
an account of the sources from which Nicon has edition of his Plutus, and Nicophon a play called
drawn his extracts, as well as of other writings'AwvLs, of which no fragments remain, and which is
attributed to him. [W. M. G.] nowhere else mentioned. 2. Suidas (s. v. NLKdoqPWC,)
NICON (NKsCv), an architect and geometrician and Eudocia alone mention another play of his,'ES
of Pergamus in Mysia, the father of the physician Bo6v dai'v. Besides these, he wrote other four plays,
Galen. (Suid. s. v. rad;mcos; Joann. Tzetz. Chil. which are more frequently mentioned. 3.'Appoxii. 9.) He himself superintended the early edu- I8'rTs yovai (Suid. s. vv. Nudo'ppwv, dpaXv-q, aepepos;
cation of his son, by whom he is highly praised in Pollux, x. 156; Schol. ad Aristoph. Aves, 82,
several places, not only for his knowledge of 12a3). 4. IIascuapa (Suid. s. vv. NIK., cotiACralc;
astronomy, grammar, arithmetic, and various other Athen. vii. p. 323, b.; Pollux, vii. 33). 5. Xelpobranches of philosophy, but also for his patience, -ydo'ropes (Athen. iii. p. 126, e. ix. p. 389, a.;
justice, benevolence, and other virtues. (Galen, Schol. ad A'ristoph. Aves, 1550). Suidas calls
De Dignosc. et Cur. Animi Morb. c. 8, vol. v. this play'EyXelpoyado'opes. Meineke, on the
p. 41, &c., De Prob. et Prao. Aliment. Succ. c. 1, anthority of the Etym. M. p. 367, 32, gives to
vol. vi. p. 755, &c., De Ord. Libror. suor. vol. Nicophon three lines quoted by Athenaeus (xiv. p.
xix. p. 59.) He died when his son was in his 645, b.) from a play bearing the name of Xevpoyd —
twentieth year, A.D. 149, 150. (I. c. vol. vi. p. ropeS, which had before been given to Nicochares,
756.) [W. A. G.] and in this he is followed by Dindorf. 6.:ZEpivES
NICON (NtKcv), a physician, mentioned by (Suid.; Athen. iii. p. 80, b. vi. p. 269, e. ix. p. 368,
Cicero, B. C. 45 (ad Fam. vii. 20), the tutor of b.). Besides these references there are others of
Sextus Fadius, and the author of a work leFpl less importance, collected by Meineke. No more
Iohv(paPyaIs, De Edacitate. than about twenty-seven lines of his writings reHe is perhaps the person quoted by Celsus (De main; and from these, we can only say, as to his
Medic. v. 1 8. ~ 26, p. 87), and called in some merits as a comic writer, that he seems to have
editions illicon. [W. A. G.] possessed no small fund of humour. (Meineke,
NICO'PHANES (Nieopavis), a'native of Me- Frag. Poet. Co7mic. vol. i. p. 256, &c. vol. ii. p. 848,
galopolis. He was a man of distinction, and was &c.; Clinton, F. II. vol. ii. p. 101.) [W. M.G.]
connected with Aratus by the rites of hospitality. NICO'STHENES. 1. A Greek painter, of
In accordance with a secret agreement entered whom we only know that he was the teacher of
into with Aratus, Nicophanes and Cercidas induced Theodorus of Samos, and of Stadieus. (Plin.
the Megalopolitans to send an embassy to the con- H. N. xxxv. 11. s. 40. ~ 42.) 2. A vase painter,
gress of the Achaeails, to induce them to join them
in seeking for assistance from Antigonus. They * A similar, or rather worse character is given
were themselves deputed for this object, in which by Plutarch (De Aud. Poet. p. 18. b.) of a painter
they were successful, B. C. 225. (Polyb. ii. 48, Chaerephanes, who is not elsewhere mentioned, and
&c.) [C. P.M.] whose name Sillig suspects to be a corruption of
NICO'PHANES, a Greek painter, who appears, Nicophanes.