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

POSEIDIPPITS. POSEIDON. 505
last, not only of these six, but of all the poets of the Tzetzes, who concludes his quotation with an
New Comedy. He began to exhibit dramas in epigram by Poseidippus (Chil. vii. 144). From
the third year after the death of Menander, that is, this and other circumstances it appears very proin 01. 122. 3, B. c. 289, so that his time falls just bable that this historian was the same person as
at the era in Greek literary history which is the epigrammatist. (Vossius, de Hist. Graec. p. 491,
marked by the accession of Ptolemy Philadelphus. ed. Westermann). [P. S.]
(Suid. s. v.; Clinton, F. H. vol. ii. s. a. and p. ii.) POSEIDON (TIoCE1t8:,), the god of the MediOf the events of the poet's life nothingis known; terranean sea. His name seems to be connected
but his portrait is preserved to us in the beautiful with 7dros, ordrTos and 7rorasycs, according to
sitting statue in the Vatican, which, with the which he is the god of the fluid element. (Muller,
accompanying statue of Menander, is esteemed by Proleg. p. 290.) He was a son of Cronos and
Winckelmanu and others as among the finest Rhea (whence he is called Kpo'yos and by Latin
works of Greek sculpture which have come down poets Saturnics, Pind. 01. vi. 48; Virg. Aen. v.
to us. (Visconti, Alfus. Pio-Clem. vol. iii. pp. 16 799.) He was accordingly a brother of Zeus,
-21 Winckelmann, TVorliiufieAbheandlung, c. iv. Hades, Hlera, Hestia and Demeter, and it was de~ 126; see also the description by Schlegel, quoted termined by lot that he should rule over the sea.
under MENANDER, Vol. II. p. 1031, b.) (Heom. 1l. xiv. 156, xv. 187, &c.; Hes. Tieog,
Athenaeus (xiv. p. 6.52, d.) mentions a letter of 456.) Like his brothers and sisters, he was, after
the comic poet and grammarian, Lynceus of Samos, his birth, swallowed by his father Cronos, but
to Poseidippus. thrown up again. (Apollod. i. 1. ~ 5, 2. ~ 1.)
In his language, Meineke (p. 484) has detected According to others, he was concealed by Rhea,
some new words, and old words in new senses, after his birth, among a flock of lambs, and his
totally unknown to the best Attic writers. mother pretended to have given birth to a young
According to Suidas, he wrote forty plays, of horse, which she gave to Croneos to devour. A
which the following eighteen titles are preserved: well in the neighbourhood of Mantineia, where this'AvaCAe7rwv,'A7ro;coAeblrlq, raxAadi*, A?7suorTa, is said to have happened, was believed, from this'EpYanpop'rsTos,'Esm-tsaOYso,'Espelta, KcJ3owv, Ao- circumstance, to have derived the name of the
Kpi~ls, M6sanCeppeAEo0, Mdp4sF, "OQoteo, nlaeovr, "Lamb's Well," or Arne. (Paus. viii. 8. ~ 2.) Ac-!Iopvosoo-KOcs, VsrsTposplo,,Dh1Xso'opos,,nXosrdrwp, cording to Tzetzes (ad L:coplh. 644) the nurse of
XopeJ0ouat. The extant fragments of these plays Poseidon bore the name of Arne; when Cronos
are not sufficient to enable us to form an accurate searched after his son, Arne is said to have dejudgment of the poet's style; but it seems, from dlared that she knew not where he was, and from
the titles, that some of his plays were of a licentious her the town of Arne was believed to have received
character. Gellius (ii. 23) mentions him among its name. According to others, again, he was
the Greek comedians who were imitated by the brought up by the Telchines at the request of
Latin poets. (Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. ii. pp. 489, Rhea. (Diod. v. 55.) In the earliest poems, Po490; Meineke, Frac. Com. (Graec. vol. i. pp. 482 seidon is described as indeed equal to Zeus in
-484, vol. iv. pp. 513-528, ed. Minor, pp. 1141 dignity, but weaker. (Hom. II. viii. 210, xv. 165.
-1149.) 186, 209; comp. xiii. 355, Od. xiii. 148.) Hence
2. An epigrammatic poet, who was probably a we find him angry when Zeus, by haughty words,
different person from the comic poet, since he is attempts to intimidate him; nay, he even threatens
mentioned with the appellation o E'rrypaAmua'roypa- his mightier brother, and once lie conspired with
eos (Schol. in Apoll. Rthod. i. 1239). He seems, Hera and Athena to put him into chains (Hom.
however, to have lived about the same time as the II. xv. 176, &c., 212, &c.; comp. i. 400.); but, on0
comic poet, since Zeno and Cleanthes, who were the other hand, we also find him yielding and
contemporary with the latter, are mentioned in one submissive to Zeus (viii. 440). The palace of
of his epigrams (No. 11), and another epigram (No. Poseidon was in the depth of the sea near Aegae
21) is upon the temple which Ptolemy Philadelphus in Euboea (xiii. 21; 0d. v. 381), where he kept
erected in honour of his sister and wife ArsinoP his horses with brazen hoofs and golden manes.
[ARSINOE]. He is several times referred to by With these horses he rides in a chariot over the
Athenaeus, Stephanus Byzantinus, and the gram- waves of the sea, which become smooth as he apmarians. His epigrams formed a part of the Gar- preaches, and the monsters of the deep recognise
laend of hlleleager, who appears to mention him him and play around his chariot. (I1. xiii. 27;
as a Sicilian (Prooemz. 45, 46); and twenty-two comp. Virg. Aen. v. 817, &c., i. 147; Apollon.
of them are preserved in the Greek Anthology; Rhod. iii. 1240, &c.) Generally he himself put
but some of these are also ascribed to Asclepiades his horses to his chariot, but sometimes he was
and Callimachus. One of his epigrams, that on assisted by Amphitrite. (Apollon. Rhod. i. 1158,
the statue of Opportunity by Lysippus (No. 13), iv. 1325; Eurip. Androm. 1011; Virg. Aen. v. 817.)
is imitated by Ausonius (Epig. 12.) But although he generally dwelt in the sea, still lie
Athenaess (xiii. p. 596, c.) quotes the AOitomra also appears in Olympus in the assembly of the
of Poseidippus, and elsewhere his'Ao-wria, which gods. (Hom. nI. viii. 440, xiii. 44, 352, xv. 161,
seem to have been epic poems, and which Schweig- 190, xx. 1 3.) Poseidon in conjunction with
hIauser is probably right in referring to the author Apollo is said to have built the walls of Troy for
of the epigrams. (Brunck, Anal. vol. ii. pp. 46, Laomedon (vii. 45'2; Eurip.Androm. 1014) whence
51, 528; Jacobs, Ainzh. Grace. vol. ii. pp. 46 —52, Troy is called Nep2tusia Peryaona (Neptlunus and
vol. xiii. pp. 942, 943; Fabric. Bibl. G raec. Poseidon being identified, Ov. Fast. i. 525, Her oid.
vol. iv. p. 493.) iii. 151; comp. Virg. Aen. vi. 81.0.) Accordingly,
3. An historian, who wrote a work respecting although he was otherwise well disposed towards
Cnidus, which contained several particulars respect- the Greeks, yet he was jealous of the wall whichi
ing the Venus of Praxiteles. (Clem. Alex. Protrept. the Greeks built around their own ships, and he
pp. 16, 17; Arnob. vi. 13.) He is also cited by lamented the inglorious manner in whichl the walls