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

SPHETTUS. SPHINX. 89b
Minuc. Felix Octav. 19; Arist. Metaphl. xii. 7; from Troezene to Attica, where two demi were
Ravaisson, pp. 22,&c.), probably in order to explain named after him. (Paus. ii. 30. ~ 8; Steph. Byz.
how it could grow, by a process of self-develop- s.v.) [L. S.]
ment, into the good, spirit, &c.; for spirit also he SPHINX (qpfy?*), a monstrous being of Greek
distinguished from the one, as well as from the mythology, is said to have been a daughter of
good, and the latter again from pleasure and pain Orthus and Chimaera, born in the country of the
(Stob. Edcl. Phys. i. 1; comp. Arist. MetlaIp. xiv. Arimi (Hes. Tleog. 326), or of Typhon and Echidna
4, E#l. NVic. vii. 14; Ravaisson, p. 20). Less (Apollod. iii. 5. ~ 8; Schol. ad Earip. Phoen. 46),
worth notice is the attempt of Speusippus to find a or lastly of Typhon and Chimaera (Schol. ad lies.
more suitable expression for the material princi- and Eurip. 1. c.). Some call her a natural daughter
pium, the indefinite duality of Plato (Metlaph. xiv. of Laius (Paus. ix. 26. ~ 2). Respecting her stay
4, 5, comp. 2, l, xiii. 9), and to connect the ideal at Thebes and her connection with the fate of the
numbers of Plato with mathematical numbers house of Laius, see OEDIPus. The riddle which
(comp. Ravaisson, pp. 29, &c., 35, 38, &c., 44). she there proposed, she is said to have learnt front
With his Pythagorizing mode of treating the the Muses (Apollod. iii. 5. ~ 8), or Laius himself
doctrine of numbers we gain some acquaintance by taught her the mysterious oracles which Cadmus
means of the extracts of his treatise on the Py- had received at Delphi (Paus. ix. 26. ~ 2). Acthagorean numbers. (Theologumnena Arithlmetica, cording to some she had been sent into Boeotia by
ed. Paris, p. 61.) [Ch. A. B.] Hera, who was angry with the Thebans for not
SPHAERUS (,cpapog), the charioteer of Pe- having punished Laius, who had carried off Chrylops, of whom there was a monument in the island sippus from Pisa. She is said to have come from
of Sphaeria or Hiera, near Troezenle. (Paus. ii. the most distant part of Ethiopia (Apollod. 1. c.;
33. ~ I, v. 10. ~ 2.) [L. S.] Schol. adEurip. Phoen. 1760); according to others
SPHAERUS (-Xpaipos), called, apparently from she was sent by Ares, who wanted to take revenge
the country of his birth, Boo-roplavSs by Diogenes because Cadmus had slain his son, the dragon
Laertius (vii. 177), and BopuvOOev'7r s by Plutarch (Agyum. ad Eurip. Phoen.), or by Dionysus
(Cleons. c. 2), was a philosopher of the Stoic school. (Schol. adc Hes. Theog. 326), or by Hades (Eurip.
IIe studied first under Zeno of Citium, and after- P/oen. 810), and some lastly say that she was one
wards under Cleanthes. He lived at Alexandria of the women who, together with the daughters of
during the reigns of the first two Ptolemies, having Cadmus, were thrown into madness, and was megone there apparently at the invitation of Ptolemy tamorphosed into the monstrous figure. (Schol. ad
Philadelphus. He also taught at Lacedaemon, Eurip. Pshoen. 45.)
and was believed to have had considerable influence The legend itself clearly indicates from what
in moulding the character of Cleomenes. (Plut. 1. c.) quarter this being was believed to have been introlie was in considerable repute among the Stoics duced into Greek mythology. The figure which she
for the accuracy of his definitions (Cic. Tusc. iv. 24. was conceived to have had is originally Egyptian
~ 53). Diogenes Laertius (1. c.) and Athenaeus or Ethiopian; but after her incorporation with
(viii. p. 334. e.) tell a story of the dexterous Grecian story, her figure was variously modified.
manner in which, on one occasion, by the help of The Egyptian Sphinx is the figure of an unswinged
his subtle distinctions, he saved himself from the lion in a lying attitude, but the upper part of the
necessity of admitting that he had been deceived body is human. They appear in Egypt to have
by a trick played upon him by king Ptolemy. He been set up in avenues forming the approaches to
was, according to Diogenes Laertius, the author of temples. The greatest among the Egyptian reprethe following works and treatises: —l. nIpi KOac'uov. sentations of Sphinxes is that of Ghizeh, which,;2. DIep! oroLXe'lov are'p/Aareos. 3. Inepi Tu'Xqis. with the exception of the paws, is of one block of
4. Inepi Ehaxl'orwv (on the atomic theory). 5. stone. The Egyptian Sphinxes are often called
rlpos Tds -dor'Tovs Kail ts eYlwha. 6. Ilepl aiaO~77,- dvppod'oLyyes (Herod. ii. 175; Menandr. FrIayi.
pnwv. 7. Iepl'HpaKAe'rovu 4' larp[~c'. 8. rlepl p. 411, ed. Meineke), not describing them as nmale.rSS SOK lasK taTdEWS. 9. nepl icaOGKovTos. 10. beings, but as lions with the upper part husnan, to
Ispl o'pOs/j. 11. TlIpl 7raOdv, in two books. 12. distinguish them front those Sphinxes whose upper,aarpi~af. 13. Ilepl Oao-aesas. 14. DIep? AaKw- part was that of a sheep or ram. The common idea
VIKmS r oXTeLas. Athenaeus (iv. p. 141 b.) quotes of a Greek Sphinx, on the other hand, is that of a
from the third book of this work. 15. nepl Au- winged body of a lion, having the breast and upper
couppyou Kal weKpdarous, in three books. It does part of a woman (Aelian, H. A. xii. 7; Auson.
not appear whether it is this work or the preceding Griph. 40; Apollod. iii. 5. ~ 8; Schol. ad Eurip.
which is quoted by Plutarch (Lye. 5.) 16. lepl Pshoen. 806). Greek Sphinxes, moreover, are not
vo'lov. 17. Despl aavsrvss7s. 18. AadAoyoi Epwcrl- always represented in a lying attitude, but appear
Kot. 19. IIepl'rc7'Epe'plaKC6iv plh.ocorpv. 20. in different positions, as it might suit the fancy of
Iepl ooloywv. 21. IDepl o'pwv. 22. nDepl'eoows. the sculptor or poet. Thus they appear with the
23. DIelp Tcov darVTAEyoYevwvm. 24. Depl Ao'yov. face of a maiden, the breast, feet, and claws of a
25. Ispl 7rAou'ov. 26. IeMpl 8s7s. 27. 7IeplI lion, the tail of a serpent, and the wings of a bird
Oava'Tov. 28. TEXV?1 6aaheKt'rLKl, in two books. (Schol. ad Aristoph. Ran. 1287; Soph. Oed. Tyr.
29. lepl i caTrYoptdTaswv. 30. Isepl dlp~LGoAZv. 391; Athen. vi. p. 253; Palaephat. 7); or the
31. Epistles. None of these are now extant. fore part of the body is that of a lion, and the
Diogenes Latrtius (via. 178), mentions a treatise lower part that of a man, with the claws of a vulby Chrysippus against some of the views enter- ture and the wings of an eagle (Tzetz. ad Lycoph.
tained by Sphaerus. (Fabric. Bibl. Gr. vol. iii. 7). Sphinxes were frequently introduced by Greek
p. 576; Vossius, de Hist. Graec. p. 140; Schbll
Gesch. der Griech. Litt. vol. ii. p. 216.) [C.P. M.] * In the Boeotian dialect the name was 0pg
SPHETTUS (SCpr7-sos), a son of Troezen, (Fles. Theog. 326), whence the name of the Boeowho, with his brother Anaphlystus, emigrated tian mountain, 4d.cov o'pos. (Hes. Scut. lHirc. 33.