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

HIEROCLES. HIEROCLES. 453
there is still extant a commentary on the golden and was dedicated to Olympiodorus; but the work
verses of Pythagoras, and who may be the same as is now lost, and all that has come down to us conthe one of Hyllarima. Suidas, it is true, calls him sists of some extracts from it preserved in Photius
an Alexandrian, but this may be only because he (Bibl. Cod. 214, 251). These extracts are also
studied philosophy at Alexandria. (Comp. No. 5.) found separately in some MSS., and were published
Vossius goes still further, and identifies him with by F. Morelli at Paris, 1593 and 1597, 8vo. They
the Hierocles who compared Apollonius of Tyana are also contained in Pearson's and Needham's ediwith Jesus Christ, in a work to which Eusebius tions of the Commentary on Pythagoras. From
wrote a reply (see No. 4): it is, however, not im- these extracts we see that Hierocles endeavoured to
possible that Hierocles of Hyllarima may be the show the agreement between Plato and Aristotle
same as the one alluded to by Apostolius. (Pro- against the doctrines of the Stoics and Epicureans,
verb. viii. 20, xi. 90.) and to refute those who attempted to deny the
4. A Roman proconsul at first of Bithynia, and Divine Providence.
afterwards at Alexandria, in the time of Diocletian, A third work of an ethical nature is known to
A. D. 284-305. It is said that this emperor was us from a number of extracts in Stobaeus (see the
instigated to his persecution of the Christians, in passages referred to above, under No. 3), on jusA. D. 302, mainly by Hierocles, who was a man of tice, on reverence towards the gods, on the conduct
great philosophical acquirements, and exerted all his- towards parents andrelations, towards one's country,
powers to suppress the Christians and their religion, on marriage, &c. The maxims they inculcate are
and raise the polytheistic notions of the Pagans by of a highly estimable kind. The work to which
attributing to them a profound meaning, which had these extracts belonged probably bore the title
only been misunderstood and mistaken by the Td qctXoofovolteva (Suid. s.v.'Ep-rosc6v; Apostol.
vulgar. (Lactant. Instit. Div. v. 2, de Mort. Per- Prov. ix. 90). These extracts are likewise consecut. 16.) With this object in view, he published tained in Pearson's and Needham's editions of the
a work against the Christians, in which he at- Commentary. There is another work, which is
tempted to point out contradictions in the Scrip- referred to under the title of OIKopvoptKJs, but which
tures in the historical as well as in the doctrinal probably formed only a part of the TV cLhoaopooportions. It bore the title Ako0L p, OAaAOeir rprs ieea..obs XptrLTavous, and consisted of two books; Lastly, we have to notice that Theosebius, a disthe work itself is lost, but we may still form an-idea ciple of Hierocles, published a commentary on the
of it from the notice which Lactantius takes of it Gorgias of Plato, which consisted of notes taken
(Div. Instit. 1. c.), and more especially from the down by the disciple in the lectures of Hierocles.
refutation which Eusebius wrote of it. (See above, (Phot. Bibl. Cod. 292.)
p. 116.) We there seethat Hierocles attacked the There is extant a work called'Aarse-a, a colleccharacter of Jesus Christ and his apostles, and put tion of ludicrous tales and anecdotes, droll ideas,
him on an equality with Apollonius of Tyana. and silly speeches of school pedants, &c., which
(Comp. Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. i. p. 792; Cave, was formerly ascribed to Hierocles the New PlaIist. Lit. vol. i. p. 131, vol. ii. p. 99; Pearson, Pro- tonist; but it is obviously the production of a very
legomena to Hierocles, p. xiii. ed. Needham, who, insignificant person, who must have lived at a later
however, confounds our Hierocles with No. 5.) time than the New Platonist. It was first pub5. A New Platonist, who lived at Alexandria lished by Marq. Freherus, Ladenburg, 1605, 8vo.,
about the middle of the fifth century, and enjoyed and afterwards by J. A. Schier, Leipzig, 1750,
a very great reputation. He is commonly con- 8vo.; it is also contained in Pearson's and Needsidered to be the author of a commentary on the ham's editions of the Commentary on Pythagoras,
golden verses of Pythagoras, which is still extant, and in J. de Rhoer's Observationes Pilologicae,
and in which the author endeavours to give an Groningen, 1768, 8vo.
intelligible account of the philosophy of Pytha- 6. A Greek grammarian, who is known to us only
goras. The verses of Pythagoras form the basis, as the author of a work entitled:uVEc$qiAos, that is,
but the commentator endeavours to give a suc- The Travelling Companion, which is intended as a
cinct view of the whole philosophy of Pythagoras, handbook for travellers through the provinces of the
whence his work is of some importance to us, and Eastern empire. It was probably written at the
may serve as a guide in the study of the Pytha- beginning of the sixth century of our era; it congorean philosophy. This commentary was first tains a list of 64 eparchiae or provinces of the Eastpublished in a Latin translation by J. Aurispa, ern empire, and of 935 different towns, with brief
Padua, 1474, 4to., and afterwards at Rome, 1475, descriptions, and is therefore of considerable import1493, 1495, 4to., and at Basel, 1543, 8vo. The ance for the geography of those countries. The
Greek original with a new Latin version was first first edition in C. a S. Paulo, Geograplh. Sacr., Paris,
edited by J. Curterius, Paris, 1583, 12mo. A 1641, and Amsterdam, 1704, fol., is incomplete.
better edition, incorporating also the fragments of Better editions are those in E. Schelstraten's Antiother works of Hierocles, was published by J. qzitas Eccles. 7llstr., Rome, 1697, vol. ii., and in
Pearson, London, 1654 and 1655, 4to., and with vol. i. of Banduri's Imzperium Orient.; but by far
additions and improvements by P. Needham, Cam- the best edition is that of P. Wesseling, in his
bridge, 1709, 8vo. A still better edition of the Veterum Romanorum Itineraria, Amsterdam, 1735,
commentary alone is that by R. Warren, London, 4to., p. 631, &c. [L. S.]
1742, 8vo. HIEROCLES ('IepoKXis), the author of a
Hierocles was further the author of an extensive treatise on veterinary surgery, of which only some
work entitled Ilepl flpovolas Kal elpap/pvns cal fragments remain, which are to be found in the'roi ep' Ili"?v irpds'rypv asav'4tYsov0av oavv'dtews, collection of writers on this subject, first published
that is, On Providence, Fate, and the reconciliation in Latin by Joannes Ruellius, Paris, 1530, fol.,
Of man's free will with the divine government of and afterwards in Greek by Simon Grynaeus,
the world. The whole consisted of seven books, Basel, 1537, 4to. Nothing is known of the events
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