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

610 PYRRHUS. PYRRHUS.
dicated by the Athenians. The letters of the in- still only seventeen years of age, joined Demetrius,
scription evidently belong to about the period of who had married his sister Deldameia, accompanied
the Peloponnesian war. (Ross, in the Kunstblatt, him to Asia, and was present at the battle of Ipsus,
1840, No. 37; Schill, Archiiol. Mittheil. aus B.c. 301, in which he gained great renown for his
Griechenland, p. 126; R. Rochette, Leltte a M. valour. Though so young, he bore down for a
Schorn, pp. 396, 397, 2d ed.) Raoul-Rochette time every thing before him with that impetuous
makes the very ingenious suggestion that the courage, which always distinguished him in his
statue of Athena Hygieia by Pyrrhus should be subsequent engagements. But his efforts could not
identified with that statue which was dedicated by restore the day, and he was obliged to fly from the
Pericles to the goddess in gratitude for the recovery field. Antigonus fell in the battle, and Demetrius
of his favourite Mnesicles from the injuries re- became a fugitive; but Pyrrhus did not desert his
ceived by a fall during the building of the Pro- brother-in-law in his misfortunes, and shortly afterpylaea. [MNESICLES.] Be this as it may, it is wards went for him as a hostage into Egypt, when
clear that Pyrrhus was an eminent artist of the Demetrius concluded a peace with Ptolemy. Here
Athenian school at the middle of the fifth cen- Pyrrhus was fortunate enough to win the favour of
tury, B. C. Berenice, the wife of Ptolemy, and received in
3. Agathobulus F. L. Pyrrhus, a Greek freed- marriage Antigone, her daughter by her first husman of the Roman era, whose name occurs in an band. Ptolemy now supplied him with a fleet
inscription found at Pesaro, as Fisyldus Sigillator, and men, and he was thus once more able to return
that is, a maker of the small terra-cotta images to Epeirus. Neoptolemus, probably the son of
called sigilla. (Orelli, Inscr. Lat. Select. No. 4191; Alexander who died in Italy, had reigned from the
R. Rochette, Lettre a M. Schorn, pp. 397, 398, 2d time that Pyrrhus had been driven from the kinged.) [P. S.] dom; but as he had made himself unpopular by
PYRRHUS (rISi/os), king of Epeirus, born his harsh and tyrannical rule, Pyrrhus found many
about the year B. c. 31 8, was the son of Aeacides partisans. The two rivals consented to a compromise
and Phthia, the daughter of Menon of Pharsalus, a and agreed to share the sovereignty between them.
distinguished leader in the struggle between Mace- But such an arrangement could not last long; and
donia and Greece after the death of Alexander, Pyrrhus anticipated his own destruction by putting
usually called the Lamian war. The ancestors of his rival to death. This appears to have happened
Pyrrhus claimed descent from Pyrrhus, the son of in B. c. 295, in which year Pyrrhus is said to have
Achilles, who was said to have settled in Epeirus begun to reign (Vell. Pat. i. 14. ~ 6); and as Casafter the Trojan war, and to have become the sander did not die till the end of B. c. 297, the
founder of the race of Molossian kings. His father joint sovereignty of Pyrrhus and Neoptolemus
had succeeded to the throne on the death of his could have lasted only a short time, as it is improcousin Alexander, who was slain in Italy in B. c. bable that Pyrrhus ventured to return to his native
326. Alexander was the brother of Olympias, country during the life-time of his great enemy
the wife of Philip and the mother of Alexander the Cassander.
Great; and it was this connection with the royal Pyrrhus was twenty-three years of age when he
family of Macedonia, which brought misfortune was firmly established on the throne of Epeirus
upon the early years of Pyrrhus. His father (B. c. 295), and he soon became one of the most
Aeacides had taken part with his relative Olympias, popular princes of his age. His daring courage
and had marched into Macedonia to support her made him a favourite with his troops, and his affaagainst Cassander; but when the latter proved bility and generosity secured the love of his people.
victorious, and Aeacides and Olympias were obliged His character resembled in many respects that of
to take to flight, the Epeirots, who disliked their his great kinsman, the conqueror of Persia; and
king and were unwilling to be any longer involved he seems at an early age to have made Alexander
in war with Cassander, met in a general assembly, his model, and to have been fired with the ambition
and deprived Aeacides of the throne. Aeacides of imitating his exploits and treading in his footsteps.
himself was out of the way; but many of his His eyes were first directed to the'conquest of Mafriends were put to death, and Pyrrhus, who was cedonia. Master of that country, he might hope to
then a child of only two years old, was with diffi- obtain the sovereignty of Greece; and with the
culty saved from destruction by the faithful ad- whole of Greece under his sway, there was a boundherents of the king. They escape'J with the child less prospect for his ambition, terminating on the
to Glaucias, the king of the Taulantians, an Illyrian one side with the conquest of Italy, Sicily, and
people, who afforded him protection, and nobly Carthage, and on the other with the dominions of
refused to surrender him to Cassander. Aeacides the Greek monarchs in the East. The unsettled
died soon. afterwards in battle, and Pyrrhus was state of Macedonia after the death of Cassander
brought up by Glaucias along with his own children. soon placed the first object of his ambition within
About ten years afterwards, when Demetrius had his grasp. Antipater and Alexander, the sons of
shaken the power of Cassander in Greece, Glaucias Cassander, quarrelled for the inheritance of their
restored Pyrrhus to the throne; but as he was then father; and Alexander, unable to maintain his
only twelve years old, the kingdom was governed ground, applied to Pyrrhus for assistance. This
by guardians. But Pyrrhus did not long remain was granted on condition of Alexander's ceding to
in possession of his hereditary dominions. Deme- Pyrrhus the whole of the Macedonian dominions
trius was obliged to abandon Greece, in order to on the western side of Greece. These were Acarcross over to Asia to the assistance of his father, nania, Amphilochia, and Ambracia, and likewise
Antigonus, who was menaced by the united forces the districts of Tymphaea and Parauaea, which
of Cassander, Ptolemy, Seleucus, and Lysimachus; formed part of Macedonia itself. (Plut. FPyrrh. 6,
and as Cassander had now regained his supremacy with the emendation of Niebuhr, I1ist. of Ronle,
in Greece, he prevailed upon the Epeirots to expel vol. iii. note A11, Ilapavaiav instead of Ilapaesav.)
their young king a second time. Pyrrhus, who was Pyrrhus fulfilled his engagements to Alexander