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

LUCIANtJS. LUCIANITS. 821
sense the fertility of his invention; the raciness of Lucian's works:-Florence, 1496, fol. (printer
of his humour; and the simplicity and Attic grace unknown) BEditio Princeps. First Aldine edition,
of his diction. His knowledge was probably not Venice, 1503, fol. This edition, printed from bad
very profound, and it may be suspected that he MSS. and very incorrect, was somewhat improved
was not always master of the philosophy that he in the second Aldine, 1522, fol., but is still inferior
attacked. He nowhere grapples with the tenets to the Florentine. In this edition the Peregrinus
of a sect, but confines himself to ridiculing the and Philopatris are generally wanting, which had
manners of the philosophers, or at most some of the been put into the Index Ezpurgatorius, by the
salient and obvious points of their doctrines. Du court of- Rome. The Aldine, however, served as
Soul, in a note on the Hippias, ~ 3, has collected the basis of subsequent editions, till 1615, when
two or three passages to show Lucian's ignorance Bourdelot' published at Paris a Greek Find Latin
of the elements of mathematics; and from this edition in folio, the text corrected from MSS. and
charge he has hardly, perhaps, been rescued by the Editio Princeps. This was repeated with
the defence of Belin de Ballu. He had, however, emendations in the Saumur edition, 1619. Le
the talent of displaying what he did know to the Clerc's edition, 2 vols. 8vo., Amsterdam, 1687, is
best advantage; and as he had travelled much and very incorrect. In 1730 Tib. Hemsterhuis began
held extensive intercourse with mankind, he had to print his excellent edition, but dying in 1736.
opportunities to acquire that sort of knowledge before a quarter of it had been finished, the editorwhich books alone can never give. Gesner justly ship was assigned to J. F. Reitz, and the book was
calls him 70fl6gTaT0or, and affirms that there is published at Amsterdam, in 3 vols. 4to., in 1743.
scarcely a sect or race of men whose history or In 1746 K. K. Reitz, brother of the editor, printedchief characteristics he has not noted: presenting at Utrecht an Index, or Lexicon Lucianeum, in 1
us with the portraits of philosophers of almost vol. 4to., which, though extensive, is not complete.
every sect; rhetors, flatterers, parasites; rich and The edition of Hemsterhuis, besides his own notes,
poor, old and young; the superstitious and the also contains those of Jensius, Kuster, L. Bos,
atheistic; Romans, Athenians, Scythians; im- Vitringa, Du Soul, Gesner, Reitz, and other compostors, actors, courtezans, soldiers, clowns, kings, mentators. An appendix to the notes of Hemstyrants,gods andgoddesses. (Dissert.dePhilop.xvi.) terhuis, taken from a MS. in the Leyden library,
His writings have a more modern air than those of was published at that place by J. Geel, 1824, 4to.
any other classic author; and the keenness of his Hemsterhuis corrected the Latin version for his
wit, the richness, yet extravagance of his humour, edition as far as De Sacrifciis; and of the rethe fertility and liveliness of his fancy, his proneness mainder a new translation was made by Gesner.
to scepticism, and the clearness and simplicity of his The reprint by Schmidt, Mittau 1776 —80, 8 vols.
style, present us with a kind of compound between 8vo., is incorrect. The Bipont edition, in 10 vols.
Swift and Voltaire. There was abundance to 8vo., 1789-93, is an accurate and elegant reprint
justify his attacks in the systems against which of Hemsterhuis's edition, with the addition of colthey were directed. Yet he establishes nothing in lations of Parisian MSS.; but the omission of the
their stead. His aim is only to pull down; to Greek index is a drawback to it. A good edition
spread a universal scepticism. Nor were his assaults of the text and scholia only is that of Schmieder,
confined to religion and philosophy, but extended to Halle, 1800-1801, 2 vols. 8vo. Lehman's edition,
every thing old and venerated, the poems of Homer Leipzig, 1821-31, 9 vols. 8vo., is well spoken of.
and Hesiod, and the history of Herodotus. Yet There is a very convenient edition of the text by
writing as he did amidst the doomed idols of an W. Dindorf, with a Latin version, but without
absurd' superstition, and the contradictory tenets of notes, published at Paris, 1840, 8vo.
an almost equally absurd philosophy, his works had Amongst editions of separate pieces may be
undoubtedly a beneficial influence on the cause of named Colloquia Selecta, by Hemsterhuis, Amst.
truth. That they were indirectly serviceable to 1708, 1 2mo., and 1732. DialogiSelecti, by Edward
Christianity, can hardly be disputed; but, though Leedes, London, 8vo., 1710 and 1726. Mythologie
Lucian is generally just in his representations of Dramatique de Lucien, avec le texte Grecque par
the Christians, we may be sure that such a result J. B. Gail, Paris, 1798, 4to. Dialogues des Morts,
was s far from his wishes as from his thoughts. par le meme, Paris, 1806, 8vo. La Luciade, ares
Photius (Cod. 128) gives a very high character le texte Grecque par Courier, Paris, 1818, 12mo.
of Lucian's style, of the purity of which he Toxaris, Halle, 1825, and Alexander, Cbln, 1828
piqued himself, as may be seen in the Bis 4Acc. ~ 8vo., with notes and proIegomena by K. G. Jacob.
34, and other places, though occasional exceptions Alexander, Demonax, Gallus, Icaromneaippus, &c.,
might perhaps be pointed out. Erasmus, who was by Fritzsche, Leipzig, 1826. Dialogi Deorunm,
a great -admirer of Lucian, and translated many Ibid. 1829.
of his works into Latin, gives the following cha- Lucian has been translated into most of the
racter of his writings in one of his epistles, and European languages. In German there is an excelwhich, making a little allowanlce for the studied lent version by Wieland (Leipzig, 1788-9, 6 vols.
antithesis of the style, is not far from the truth. 8vo.), -accompanied with'valuable comments and
" Tantum obtinet in dicendo gratiae, tantum in in- illustrations. The French translation of D'Ablanveniendo felicitatis, tantum in jocando leporis, in court (Paris, 1654, 2 vols. 4to.) is elegant but unmordendo aceti; sic titillat allusionibus, sic seria faithful. There is another versionlby' B.'de Ballu,
nugis, nugas seriis miscet; sic'ridens vera dicit, Paris, 1788, 6 vols. 8vo. In Italian there is a
vera dicendo ridet; sic hominum mores, affectus, translation by Manzi, 1819-20.. Among the
studia, quasi penicillo depingit, neque legenda, sed English versions may be named one by several
plane spectanda, oculis exponit, ut nulla comoedia, hands,' including W. Moyle, Sir H.. Shere, and
nulla satyra, cum hujus dialogis conferri debeat, Charles Blount, London, 1711. For'this, edition,
seu voluptatem spectes, seu spectes utilitatem." which had been undertaken several years before it
The following are some of the principal editions was published, Dryden wrote a life' of'Lucian, a
3 G 3