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

724- LASUS. LATERENSIS.
parchus expelled Onomacritus from Athens (vii. 6). Tciaaor. (Burette, l/lnm. de l'Acad. des Inset. tom.
There also appears to have been a strong rivalry xv. p. 324; Forkel, Geschlichte d. Musik. vol. i.
between Lasus and Simonides. (Aristoph. 1. c.; p. 358; Fabric. Bib. Graec. vol. ii. p. 128; Bickh,
Schol. ad loe.; Dindorf, Annot. ad Schol.) The de Mlet. Pind. p. 2; Miiller, Hist. of the Lit. of
time when he instructed Pindar in lyric poetry Greece, pp. 214, 215;'Bode, Geschichte d. lyrischen
must have been about B. C. 506 (Thom. Mag. Vit. Dichtkunst. pass.; Ulrici, Gesch. d. Hellen. Dichtk.
Pind.); and it must be to this date that Suidas vol. ii. pass.; Schneidewin, Comment. de Laso Herrefers, when he places Lasus in the time of Dareius, mionensi, Gotting. 1842.) [P. S.]
the son of Hystaspes. (Suid. s. v. where, accord- LATERA'NUS, was, according to Arnobius
ingly, vi should be corrected into A.) Nothing (adv. Gent. iv. 6), a divinity protecting the hearths
further is known of his life, and the notices of his built of bricks (lateres), whence some consider him
poetry are very defective. Tzetzes mentions him to be identical with Vulcan. (Hartung, Die Relig.
after Arion, as the second great dithyrambic poet. der RMm. ii. p. 109.) IL. S.]
(Proleg. in Lycoph. p. 252, ed. Muller; comp. LATERA'NUS, APP. CLAU'DIUS, was one
Schol. ad Pind. 01. xiii. 25.) According to a of the lieutenants of the emperor Septimius Severus
scholiast on Aristophanes (Av. 1403), some ancient in the expedition against the Arabians and Parwriters ascribed to him, instead of Arion, the in- thians, A. D. 195, and two years afterwards appears
vention of the cyclic choruses. (Comp. Suid. s. v. in the Fasti as consul. (Dion Cass. lxxv. 2;
cKvitcAho3adcaXos.) A better account is given by Victor, Epit. 20; Gruter, Corp. Inscript. xlvi. 9,
another scholiast (Vesp. 1410) and Suidas (s. v. li. 1, ccc.) [W. R.]
Aaros), that Lasus was the first who introduced LATERA'NUS, L. SE'XTIUS SEXTI'NUS,
dithyrambic contests, like those of the dramatic was the friend and supporter of the celebrated C.
choruses. This seems to have been in: 01. 68, 1, Licinius Calvus Stolo in his attempts to throw open
B. C. 508. (Marm. Par. Ep. 46.) Putarch states the consulship to the plebeians. He was the col(De Mus. p. 1141, b. e.) that Lasus invented va- league of Licinius in the tribunate of the plebs
rious new adaptations of music to'dithyrambic from B. C. 376 to 367; and upon the passing of the
poetry, giving it an accompaniment of several flutes, Licinian laws in the latter of these years, he was
and using more numerous and more varied voices elected to the consulship for the year B. C. 366,
(or musical sounds, 4b0yyois). The change of being the first plebeian who had obtained that
form was naturally accompanied by a change in the dignity. (Liv. vi. 35-42, vii. 1.) For an account
subjects of the dithyramb. Suidas (s. v.) and the of the Licinian laws, see Vol. 1. p. 586, b., and the
scholiast on Aristophanes (Vesp. 1410) tell us authorities there referred to.
that Lasus introduced?pl7rou0Js Ao'yovr. From The name of Sextius Lateranus does not occur
these statements, compared with what we know of again under the republic, but re-appears in the
the earlier dithyramb on the one hand, and on the times of the empire. Thus we find in the Fasti a
other with the works of Lasus's great pupil, Pin- T. Sextius Magius Lateranus consul in A. D. 94,
dar, we may infer that Lasus introduced a greater and a T. Sextius Lateranus consul in A. D. 154.
freedom, both of rhythm and of music, into the LATERA'NUS, PLAU'TIUS, was one of the
dithyrambic Ode; that he gave it a more artificial lovers of Messallina, the wife of the emperor Clauand more mimetic character; and that the'subjects dins, and was in consequence condemned to death
of his poetry embraced a far wider range' than had by the emperor in A. D. 48; but pardoned, says
been customary. It is difficult, however, to say Tacitus, on account of the brilliant services of his
what the scholiast means by eptrtLcovs?Ayovs. uncle, by whom the historian probably means A.
Some writers explain them as jocose altercations Plautius, the conqueror of Britain. Lateranus was
among the Satyrs, who formed the chorus; but deprived of his rank as a senator, to which, howthis is scarcely consistent with the dignity of ever, he was restored on the accession of Nero, in
dithyrambic poetry. Another explanation is that A. D. 56. Ten years afterwards (A. D. 66), although
Lasus, like the dramatic poets, introduced into his consul elect, he took part in the celebrated conpoetry subjects which afforded occasion for the dis- spiracy of Piso against Nero, actuated, says the
play of dialectic skill. It is something in confirm- historian, by no private wrongs, but by love for the
ation of this view, that, according to some accounts, state. He met death with the greatest firmness,
he was reckoned among the seven wise men of refusing to disclose the names of any of the conGreece. (Schol. ad Aristoph. Vesp. 1410; Suid. spirators, and not even upbraiding the tribune,
s. v.; Diog. Laert. i. 42;'comp. the note of Me- who executed him in the place where slaves were
nagius.) put to death, with being privy to the conspiracy,
Lasus wrote a hymn to Demeter, who was wor- though'such was the case. The first blow not
shipped at Hermione, in the Doric dialect, with severing his head from his body, he calmly stretched
the Aeolic harmony, of which there are three lines it out again. (Tac. Ann. xi. 30, 36, xiii. I1, xv
extant (Ath. xiv. p. 624, e.), and an ode, entitled 49, 60; Arrian, Epictet. Dissert. i. 1.)
KveTaupoi, both of which pieces were remarkable for LATERENS1S, the name of a noble plebeian
not containing the letter Z. (Ath. x. p. 455, d.) family of the Juventia gens [JUVENTIA GENS],
He is also cited twice by Aelian (V. II. xii. 36; but not patrician, as has been erroneously stated by
N. A. vii. 47). - a scholiast on Cicero. (Schol. Bob. pro Plane. p.
Besides his poems, Lasus' wrote'on music, and 253, ed. Orelli.)
he is said to have been the first who did so. (Suid. I. M. JUVENTIUS LATERENS1S, appears to have
s. v.) served in early life in the Mithridatic war. (Cic.
The grammarian, Chamaeleon of Heracleia, pro Plane. 34. ~ 84, with Wunder's note, p. 207.)
wrote a work upon Lasus. (Ath. viii. p. 338, b.) As he was descended both on his father's and
His name is sometimes mis-spelt by the ancient mother's side from consular ancestors, he naturally
writers. Tzetzes (Proleg. in Lycophr. 1. e.) calls' -became a candidate for the public offices. The year
him Adeooos, and Stobaeus (Serm. xxvii) writes of his quaestorship is not stated and we only know