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

PTOLEMAEUS. PTOLEMAEUS..581
PTOLEMAEUS (IIToxeypaos), king of CYPRUS, recalled from exile, and treated with the utmost
was the younger brother of Ptolemy Auletes, king distinction. It is remarkable that we do not find
of Egypt, being like him an illegitimate son of him holding any special command, or acting any
Ptolemy Lathyrus. Notwithstanding this defect important part during the first few years of the
of birth he appears to have been acknowledged as expedition to Asia, though it is clear that he acking of Cyprus at the same time that his brother companied the king throughout this period. InAuletes obtained possession of the throne of Egypt, deed, his name is only twice mentioned previous
B. C. 80. But he unfortunately neglected the pre- to the year B. C. 330, when he obtained the hocaution of making interest at Rome to obtain the nourable post of Somatophylax in the place of Deconfirmation of his sovereignty, and had the farther metrius, who had been implicated in the conspiracy
imprudence to give personal offence to P. Clodius, of Philotas. (Arr. ib. ii. 11, iii. 18, 27.) But from
by neglecting to ransom him when he had fallen this period we find him continually employed on
into the halids of the Cilician pirates (Strab. xiv. the most important occasions, and rendering the
p. 684; Appian, B. C. ii. 23). He paid dearly for most valuable services.
his niggardliness on this occasion, for when Clodius In the following campaign (329), after the army
became tribune'(B. c. 58), he brought forward a had crossed the Oxus, Ptolemy was sent forward
law to deprive Ptolemy of his kingdom, and reduce with a strong detachment, to apprehend the traitor
Cyprus to a Roman province. Cato, who was en- Bessus, whom he seized and brought before Alextrusted with the charge of carrying into execution ander. Again, in the'reduction of the revolted
this nefarious decree, sent to Ptolemy, advising province of Sogdiana, and in the attack on the
him to submit, and offering him his personal safety, rock-fortress of Chorienes, he is mentioned as
with the office of high-priest at Paphos, and a taking a conspicuous part, and commanding one of
liberal maintenance. But the unhappy king, though the chief divisions of the army. (Arr. _nab. iii.
he was wholly unprepared for resistance to the 29, 30, iv. 16, 21.) But it was especially during
Roman power, had the spirit to refuse these offers, the campaigns in India that the services of Ptolemy
and put an end to his own life, B.. 57. (Strab. shone the most conspicuous; and we find him dis1. c.; Dion Cass. xxxviii. 30, xxxix. 22; Liv. Epit. playing on numerous occasions all the qualities of
civ.; Plut. Cat. Min. 34-36; Appian, B. C. ii. an able and judicious general, in command of
23; Vell. Pat. ii. 46; Cic. pro Sext. 26-28; separate detachments, or of one of the divisions of
Val. Max. ix. 4, ext. ~ 1.) the main army. In the conquest of the Aspasians
We are told that Ptolemy had disgraced himself and Assacenians, in the reduction of the fortress
by every species of vice (Vell. Pat. 1. c.), but it ap- of Aornos, at the passage of the Hydaspes and the
pears certain that it was the vast treasures that he siege of Sangala, as well as in many minor operapossessed, which, by attracting the cupidity of the tions, the name of Ptolemy is still among the most
Romans, became the cause of his destruction, of prominent. Nor was his personal valour less
which his vices were afterwards made the pre- remarkable than his abilities as a general; and we
text. [E. H. B.] find him on one occasion slaying with his own
PTOLEMAEUS, king of CYRENE. [PTOLE- hand the chief of one of the Indian tribes in single
MAEUS APION.1 combat. Some writers also ascribed to him a share
PTOLEMAEUS I. (nTl-oXeuparo), king of in the glory of saving the life of Alexander among
EGYPT, surnamed SOTER (the Preserver), but the Malli [LEONNATUS], but it appears from his
perhaps more commonly known as the son of own testimony, as reported by Arrian and Curtius,
Lagus. His father was a Macedonian of ignoble that he was absent at the time on a separate combirth [LAGUS], but his mother Arsinoii had been mand. (Arr. Anab. iv. 24, 25, 29, v. 13, 23, 24,
a concubine of Philip of Macedon, on which ac- vi. 5, 11; Curt. viii. 10. ~ 21, 13. ~ 18-27,
count it seems to have been generally believed that 14. ~ 15, ix. 5. ~ 21.)
Ptolemy was in reality the offspring of that mo- Numerous evidences occur during the same penarch (Curt. ix. 8. ~ 22; Paus. i. 6. ~ 2.) This riod of the high favour and personal consideration
could, indeed, hardly have been the case if Lu- with which he was regarded by Alexander: we
cian's statement be correct (Macrob. 12), that find him constantly in close attendance upon the
Ptolemy was eighty-four years of age at the time king's person; and on occasion of the conspiracy
of his death, as in that case he must have been of the pages it was he who, by discovering and reborn in B. C. 367, when Philip was not sixteen vealing their treasonable designs, probably became
years old. But the authority of Lucian on this the means of saving the life of his sovereign (Arr.
point can hardly outweigh the distinct assertions iv. 8, 13; Curt. viii. 1. ~~ 45, 48, 6. ~ 22, ix. 6.
of other authors as to the existence of such a belief, ~ 15; Chares ap. Athen. iv. p. 171, c.). According
and we must therefore probably assign his birth to to a marvellous tale related by several writers
a later period. Whatever truth there may have Alexander was soon after able to return the oblibeen in this report, it is certain that Ptolemy gation and save the life of his friend and follower
early enjoyed a distinction at the Macedonian when wounded by a poisoned arrow, by applying a
court to which his father's obscurity would scarcely remedy suggested to him in a dream. (Curt. ix. 8.
have entitled him, and we find him mentioned be- ~ 22-27; Diod. xvii. 103; Strab. xv. p. 723;
fore the death of Philip among the friends and Justin. xii. 10; Cic. de Divin. ii. 66.) During the
confidential advisers of the young Alexander. The toilsome march through Gedrosia, Ptolemy once
part which he took in promoting the intrigue for more commanded one of the three principal divithe marriage of the prince with the daughter of sions of the army; and in the festivities at Susa
Pixodarus, king of Caria, gave great offence to was honoured with a crown of gold, while he ohPhilip, and Ptolemy was banished, together with tained in marriage Artacama, a sister of Barsine.
all the other persons concerned. (Plut. Alex. 10; (Curt. ix. 10. ~ 6; Diod. xvii. 104; Arr. Anab.
Arrian, Anab. iii. 6.) On the accession of Alex- vii. 4; Plut. Eumz. 1.) He is again mentioned
ander, however, u. c. 336, he was immediately as accompanying Alexander on his last military
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