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

264 PHILEMON. PHILEMON.
dramatic contest (Plut. Asn Seni sit Respub. leresnld. in their pride of intellectual superiority, displayed
p. 785, b.); while another story represents him as their contempt for the semi-barbarian magnificence
quietly called away by the goddesses whom he of the Greek kings of the East; another example
served, in the midst of the composition or repre- is shown by the wit in which Philemon indulged
sentation of his last and best work (Aelian, ap. upon the tigress which Seleucus sent to Athens.
Sisid. s. v.; Apuleius, Flor. 16). There are por- (Ath. xiii. p. 590, a.; Meineke, Men. et Phil. b'eliq.
traits of him extant in a marble statue at Rome, p. 372, Frag. Coen. G'aec. vol. iv. p. 15.)
formerly in the possession of Raffaelle, and on a The number of Philemon's plays was 97 (Diod.
gem: the latter is engraved in Gronovius's The- xxiii. 7; Anon. de Coem. p. 30; Suid. s. v. as
saurus, vol. ii. pl. 99. (See Meineke, Mlaen. et amended by Meineke, p. 46). The number of
Phil. Reliq. p. 47.) extant titles, after the doubtful and spurious ones
Although there can be no doubt that Philemon are rejected, amounts to about 53; but it is very
was intferior to Menander as a poet, yet he was a probable that some of these should be assigned to
greater favourite with the Athenians, and often the younger Philemon. The following is a list of
conquered his rival in the dramatic contests. Gel- the titles of those plays which are quoted by the
lius (xvii. 4) ascribes these victories to the use of ancient writers, but a few of which are still cons:unfair influence (ambitm gratiaque et factionibus), dered doubtful by Meineke: —Aypolcos,'AysprTIr,
and tells us that Menander used to ask Philemon'"AeAhpoi, As'rw,\do,'Avacaavxrrcso,,'Aiaiveou'.Esv7,
himself, whether he did not blush when he con-'AvSpopdy'os,'A7rocaprepcZv, A'7roXs,'ApSraoJtxevoS,
quered him. We have other proofs of the rivalry AvsiA7Ts, BaguAcxlo'so, FdAios,'EYXEIPiLOY,'"EUbetwveen Menander and Philemon in the identity 7ropos,'ESotLKC(;Jp.evos,'ErslCKao0''EYos, EvSpnros,
of sosme of their titles, and in an anecdote told by'EiPe~pTaL,'Eqn7go%,'Hpwes, Os0aZo, Olaavppo's,
Athenaeus (xiii. p. 594, d.). Philemon was, how- ~vpopo's,'Iaspds, KaraievSouEvos, Kolvewvoi, K6ever, sometimes defeated; and it would seem that Xao, KoptvOBa, Meci'ov' Zt',uto', MOsXds, Mup/IAon one such occasion he went into exile for a time OVEis, MurTls,, Necipa, NetosUeVos, Ndoeo, Nuts,
(Stob. Serma. xxxviii. p. 232). At all events he IaYKpairatre7ms, IlalaXpovI, Hlaes, Iaxay 1{vsi,
undertook a journey to the East, whether from this rlavi'-yvpls, IeapeLosIsy, fls-TostcosroUgeios, 1l-repScause or by the desire of king Ptolemy, who ysov, rITrWX5) 7'Poeia, lnuppOs, nfvppdpos, adp'los,
appears to have invited him to Alexandria (Alciphr. S1KCeAuICs, 5'pa-rcs7Svs, vUva.roOVto-KOvTES,:VuvrC'JEjoist. ii. 3); and to this journey ought no doubt ~os,'~TroeXsAgai'os,,dapua, 4,Adst'oorso, Xorpa. Of
to be referred his adventure with Magas, tyrant of all these plays, those best known to us are the "EuCyrene, the brother of Ptolenmy Philadelphus. 7ropos and 0qo'allpis, by their imitations in the
Philemon had ridiculed Magas for his want of Mllercactor and Trinumm27us of Plautus. The Mvplearning, in a comedy, copies of which he took pains utovie's furnishes one of the instances in which
to circulate; and the arrival of the poet at Cyrene, poets of the New Comedy treated mythological
whither he was driven by a storm, furnished the subjects. Respecting the supposed subjects of tile
king with an opportunity of taking a contemptuous other plays see Meineke, and the article in Ersch
revenge, by ordering a soldier to touch the poet's and Gruber's Esscyklopiidie.
throat with a naked sword, and then to retire The fragments of Philemon have been printed
politely without hurting him; after which he made with those of Menander in all the editions menhim a present of a set of child's playthings, and tioned in the article MENANDER. For notices of
then dismissed him. (Plut. de Coblib. Ira, p. 458, the works upon Philemon, as well as Menander,
a., de Virt. 11ior. p. 449, e.) see the preface to Meineke's M1lenandri et PhilePhilemon seems to have been inferior to Menan- mnonis Reliquiae, and the articles in Hoffmann's
der in the liveliness of his dialogue, for his plays Lexicon Bibliographicum.
were considered, on account of their more connected Many of the testimonies respecting Philemon
arguments and longer periods, better fitted for read- are rendered uncertain by the frequently occurring
ing than for acting (Dernetr. Phal. de Eloc. ~ 1 93). colfusion between the names Philenzon, Philetaerus,
Apuleius (I. c.) gives an elaborate description of his Philetas, Philippides, Philippus, Philiscus, Philistion,
characteristics:-" Reperias tamen apud ipsuzz 7zul- Philon, Philoxenuzs, and others with the same conmtos sales, argumenta repine injiera, agnatos lucide ex- mencement, that is, with the initial syllable Phil.
plicatos, personas rebus competentes, sententias vitae which is often used in MSS. as an abbreviation of
conyruentes; joca non infia soccuum, seria non usque these names. Even the name of Diphills is somead cothurenum. ilarae apud illum corruptelae: et, uli times confounded with Phiilemon, as well as with
errores, concessi amores. Nec eo azinus et leno per- Philon (see Meineke, Men. et Phil. Reliq. pp. 7jurus, et amator fervidus, et servulus callidus, et 1 1). One of the most important instances in which
awnica illudesns, et uxor inhibens, et mater indulgens, this confusion has been made is in the title of a
et patruus objaygator, et sodalis opitulator, et Smiles collection of fragments, arranged in the way of
p roeliator (qloriator?): sedl et parasiti edaces, et comparison with one another, under the title
parentes tenaces, et meretrices procaces. v'yfcptloSr MevMcvpou Kal PLAlMr'veos,, which ought
The extant fragments of Philemon display much undoubtedly to be Seal'IsAXjlyovos. (See further
liveliness, wit, elegance, and practical knowledge of under PHsLIsTION.)
life. His fivourite subjects seem to have been love 2. The younger Philemon, also a poet of the
intrigues, and' his characters, as we see from the New Comedy, was a son of the former, in whose
above extract, were the standing ones of the New fame nearly all that belongs to him has been abComedy, with which Plautus and Terence have sorbed; so that, although, according to Suidas, he
made us familiar. The jest upon Magas, already was the author of 54 dramas, there are only two
mentioned, is a proof that the personal satire, which short fragments, and not one title, quoted expressly
formed the chief characteristic of the Old Comedy, under his name. There can be little doubt that
was not entirely relinquished in the New; and it solne of his father's plays should be assigned to
also shows the eagerness with which the Athenians, him. (See Meineke, Mdienandri et Pisilemosnis le