Pompey the Great. _See:_ Pompeius.――――A stoic philosopher, born at
Cheronæa in Bœotia. Some suppose that he was Plutarch’s nephew. He
was preceptor to Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus.――――A governor of
Syria.――――A philosopher in the age of Antoninus. He was one of the
followers of the doctrines of Pyrrho. Some of his works are still
extant. The best edition of the treatise of Sextus Pompeis Festus,
_Lexicon of Festus_, is that of Amsterdam, 4to, 1669.
=Sibæ=, a people of India. _Strabo._
=Sibaris.= _See:_ Sybaris.
=Sibīni=, a people near the Suevi.
=Siburtius=, a satrap of Arachosia, in the age of Alexander, &c.
=Sibyllæ=, certain women inspired by heaven, who flourished in
different parts of the world. Their number is unknown. Plato speaks
of one, others of two, Pliny of three, Ælian of four, and Varro of
10, an opinion which is universally adopted by the learned. These
10 Sibyls generally resided in the following places: Persia, Libya,
Delphi, Cumæ in Italy, Erythræa, Samos, Cumæ in Æolia, Marpessa on
the Hellespont, Ancyra in Phrygia, and Tiburtis. The most celebrated
of the Sibyls is that of Cumæ in Italy, whom some have called by the
different names of Amalthæa, Demophile, Herophile, Daphne, Manto,
Phemonoe, and Deiphobe. It is said that Apollo became enamoured of
her, and that, to make her sensible of his passion, he offered to
give her whatever she should ask. The Sibyl demanded to live as many
years as she had grains of sand in her hand, but unfortunately forgot
to ask for the enjoyment of the health, vigour, and bloom, of which
she was then in possession. The god granted her her request, but
she refused to gratify the passion of her lover, though he offered
her perpetual youth and beauty. Some time after she became old and
decrepit, her form decayed, and melancholy paleness and haggard looks
succeeded to bloom and cheerfulness. She had already lived about 700
years when Æneas came to Italy, and, as some have imagined, she had
three centuries more to live before her years were as numerous as the
grains of sand which she had in her hand. She gave Æneas instructions
how to find his father in the infernal regions, and even conducted
him to the entrance of hell. It was usual for the Sibyl to write her
prophecies on leaves which she placed at the entrance of her cave,
and it required particular care in such as consulted her to take
up those leaves before they were dispersed by the wind, as their
meaning then became incomprehensible. According to the most authentic
historians of the Roman republic, one of the Sibyls came to the
palace of Tarquin II., with nine volumes, which she offered to
sell for a very high price. The monarch disregarded her, and she
immediately disappeared, and soon after returned, when she had burned
three of the volumes. She asked the same price for the remaining six
books; and when Tarquin refused to buy them, she burned three more,
and still persisted in demanding the same sum of money for the three
that were left. This extraordinary behaviour astonished Tarquin; he
bought the books, and the Sibyl instantly vanished, and never after
appeared to the world. These books were preserved with great care by
the monarch, and called the _Sibylline verses_. A college of priests
was appointed to have the care of them; and such reverence did the
Romans entertain for these prophetic books, that they were consulted
with the greatest solemnity, and only when the state seemed to be
in danger. When the capitol was burnt in the troubles of Sylla,
the Sibylline verses, which were deposited there, perished in the
conflagration; and to repair the loss which the republic seemed to
have sustained, commissioners were immediately sent to different
parts of Greece, to collect whatever verses could be found of the
inspired writings of the Sibyls. The fate of the Sibylline verses,
which were collected after the conflagration of the capitol, is
unknown. There are now eight books of Sibylline verses extant, but
they are universally reckoned spurious. They speak so plainly of our
Saviour, of his sufferings, and of his death, as even to surpass far
the sublime prediction of Isaiah in description, and therefore from
this very circumstance, it is evident that they were composed in the
second century, by some of the followers of christianity, who wished
to convince the heathens of their error, by assisting the cause of
truth with the arms of pious artifice. The word _Sibyl_ seems to be
derived from σιου, Æolice for Διος, _Jovis_, and βουλη, _consilium_.
_Plato_, _Phædras_.――_Ælian_, _Varia Historia_, bk. 12, ch. 35.
――_Pausanias_, bk. 10, ch. 12, &c.――_Diodorus_, bk. 4.――_Ovid_,
_Metamorphoses_, bk. 14, lis. 109 & 140.――_Virgil_, _Æneid_, bk. 3,
li. 445; bk. 6, li. 36.――_Lucan_, bk. 1, li. 564.――_Pliny_, bk. 13,
ch. 13.――_Florus_, bk. 4, ch. 1.――_Sallust._――_Cicero_, _Against
Catiline_, ch. 3.――_Valerius Maximus_, bk. 1, ch. 1; bk. 8, ch. 15,
&c.
=Sica=, a man who showed much attention to Cicero in his banishment.
Some suppose that he is the same as the Vibius Siculus mentioned by
_Plutarch_, _Cicero_.――_Cicero_, _Letters to Atticus_, bk. 8, ltr. 12;
_Letters to his Friends_, bk. 14, chs. 4, 15.
=Sĭcambri=, or =Sicambria=, a people of Germany, conquered by the
Romans. They revolted against Augustus, who marched against them,
but did not totally reduce them. Drusus conquered them, and they were
carried away from their native country to inhabit some of the more
westerly provinces of Gaul. _Dio Cassius_, bk. 54.――_Strabo_, bk. 4.
――_Horace_, bk. 4, ode 2, li. 36; ode 14, li. 51.――_Tacitus_, bk. 2,
_Annals_, ch. 26.
=Sicambria=, the country of the Sicambri, formed the modern provinces
of Guelderland. _Claudian_, _Against Eutropius_, bk. 1, li. 383.
=Sĭcāni=, a people of Spain, who left their native country and passed
into Italy, and afterwards into Sicily, which they called _Sicania_.
They inhabited the neighbourhood of mount Ætna, where they built
some cities and villages. Some reckoned them the next inhabitants
of the island after the Cyclops. They were afterwards driven from
their ancient possessions by the Siculi, and retired into the western
parts of the island. _Dionysius of Halicarnassus_, bk. 1.――_Ovid_,
_Metamorphoses_, bks. 5 & 13.――_Virgil_, _Eclogues_, poem 10; _Æneid_,
bk. 7, li. 795.――_Diodorus_, bk. 5.――_Horace_, epode 17, li. 32.
=Sĭcānia= and =Sīcănia=, an ancient name of Italy, which it received
from the Sicani, or from Sicanus their king, or from Sicanus, a small
river in Spain, in the territory where they lived, as some suppose.
The name was more generally given to Sicily. _See:_ Sicani.
=Sicca=, a town of Numidia at the west of Carthage. _Sallust_,
_Jugurthine War_, ch. 56.
=Sicĕlis= (Sīcĕlĭdes, plural), an epithet applied to the inhabitants
of Sicily. The Muses are called _Sicelides_ by Virgil, because
Theocritus was a native of Sicily, whom the Latin poet, as a writer
of Bucolic poetry, professed to imitate. _Virgil_, _Eclogues_, poem 4.
=Sichæus=, called also _Sicharbas_ and _Acerbas_, was a priest of the
temple of Hercules in Phœnicia. His father’s name was Plisthenes. He
married Elisa the daughter of Belus, and sister to king Pygmalion,
better known by the name of Dido. He was so extremely rich, that
his brother-in-law murdered him to obtain his possessions. This
murder Pygmalion concealed from his sister Dido; and he amused her by
telling her that her husband had gone upon an affair of importance,
and that he would soon return. This would have perhaps succeeded
had not the shades of Sichæus appeared to Dido, and related to her
the cruelty of Pygmalion, and advised her to fly from Tyre, after
she had previously secured some treasures, which, as he mentioned,
were concealed in an obscure and unknown place. According to Justin,
Acerbas was the uncle of Dido. _Virgil_, _Æneid_, bk. 1, li. 347, &c.
――_Paterculus_, bk. 1, ch. 6.――_Justin_, bk. 18, ch. 4.
=Sicĭlia=, the largest and most celebrated island in the Mediterranean
sea, at the bottom of Italy. It was anciently called _Sicania_,
_Trinacria_, and _Triquetra_. It is of a triangular form, and has
three celebrated promontories, one looking towards Africa, called
Lilybæum; Pachynum looking towards Greece; and Pelorum towards
Italy. Sicily is about 600 miles in circumference, celebrated for
its fertility, so much that it was called one of the granaries of
Rome, and Pliny says that it rewards the husbandman an hundredfold.
Its most famous cities were Syracuse, Messana, Leontini, Lilybæum,
Agrigentum, Gela, Drepanum, Eryx, &c. The highest and most famous
mountain in the island is Ætna, whose frequent eruptions are
dangerous, and often fatal to the country and its inhabitants, from
which circumstance the ancients supposed that the forges of Vulcan
and the Cyclops were placed there. The poets feign that the Cyclops
were the original inhabitants of this island, and that after them
it came into the possession of the Sicani, a people of Spain, and
at last of the Siculi, a nation of Italy. _See:_ Siculi. The plains
of Enna are well known for their excellent honey; and, according to
Diodorus, the hounds lost their scent in hunting on account of the
many odoriferous plants that profusely perfumed the air. Ceres and
Proserpine were the chief deities of the place, and it was there,
according to poetical tradition, that the latter was carried away by
Pluto. The Phœnicians and Greeks settled some colonies there, and at
last the Carthaginians became masters of the whole island till they
were dispossessed of it by the Romans in the Punic wars. Some authors
suppose that Sicily was originally joined to the continent, and that
it was separated from Italy by an earthquake, and that the straits
of the Charybdis were formed. The inhabitants of Sicily were so
fond of luxury, that _Siculæ mensæ_ became proverbial. The rights of
citizens of Rome were extended to them by Marcus Antony. _Cicero_,
bk. 14, _Letters to Atticus_, ltr. 12; _Against Verres_, bk. 2,
ch. 13.――_Homer_, _Odyssey_, bk. 9, &c.――_Justin_, bk. 4, ch. 1, &c.
――_Virgil_, _Æneid_, bk. 3, li. 414, &c.――_Silius Italicus_, bk. 14,
li. 11, &c.――_Pliny_, bk. 3, ch. 8, &c.――――The island of Naxos in the
Ægean, was called Little Sicily on account of its fruitfulness.
=Lucius Sicinius Dentātus=, a tribune of Rome, celebrated for his
valour and the honours he obtained in the field of battle, during the
period of 40 years, in which he was engaged in the Roman armies. He
was present in 121 battles: he obtained 14 civic crowns, three mural
crowns, eight crowns of gold, 83 golden collars, 60 bracelets, 18
lances, 23 horses with all their ornaments, and all as the reward of
his uncommon services. He could show the scars of 45 wounds, which he
had received all in his breast, particularly in opposing the Sabines
when they took the capitol. The popularity of Sicinius became odious
to Appius Claudius, who wished to make himself absolute at Rome, and
therefore, to remove him from the capital, he sent him to the army,
by which, soon after his arrival, he was attacked and murdered. Of
100 men who were ordered to fall upon him, Sicinius killed 15, and
wounded 30; and, according to Dionysius, the surviving number had
recourse to artifice to overpower him, by killing him with a shower
of stones and darts thrown at a distance, about 405 years before
the christian era. For his uncommon courage Sicinius has been called
the Roman Achilles. _Valerius Maximus_, bk. 3, ch. 2.――_Dionysius of
Halicarnassus_, bk. 8.――――Vellutus, one of the first tribunes in Rome.
He raised cabals against Coriolanus, and was one of his accusers.
_Plutarch_, _Coriolanus_.――――Sabinus, a Roman general who defeated
the Volsci.
=Sicīnus=, a man privately sent by Themistocles to deceive Xerxes, and
to advise him to attack the combined forces of the Greeks. He had been
preceptor to Themistocles. _Plutarch._――――An island, &c.
=Sicŏrus=, now _Segre_, a river of Hispania Tarraconensis, rising in
the Pyrenean mountains, and falling into the Iberus, a little above
its mouth. It was near this city that Julius Cæsar conquered Afranius
and Petreius, the partisans of Pompey. _Lucan_, bk. 4, lis. 14, 130,
&c.――_Pliny_, bk. 3, ch. 3.
=Sicŭli=, a people of Italy, driven from their possessions by the
Opici. They fled into Sicania, or Sicily, where they settled in the
territories which the Sicani inhabited. They soon extended their
borders, and after they had conquered their neighbours the Sicani,
they gave their name to the island. This, as some suppose, happened
about 300 years before Greek colonies settled in the island, or about
1059 years before the christian era. _Diodorus_, bk. 5.――_Dionysius
of Halicarnassus._――_Strabo._
=Sicŭlum fretum=, the sea which separates Sicily from Italy, is 15
miles long, but in some places so narrow, that the barking of dogs
can be heard from shore to shore. This strait is supposed to have
been formed by an earthquake, which separated the island from the
continent. _Pliny_, bk. 3, ch. 8.
=Sicyon=, now _Basilico_, a town of Peloponnesus, the capital of
Sicyonia. It is celebrated as being the most ancient kingdom
of Greece, which began B.C. 2089, and ended B.C. 1088, under a
succession of monarchs of whom little is known, except the names.
Ægialeus was the first king. Some time after, Agamemnon made himself
master of the place, and afterwards it fell into the hands of
the Heraclidæ. It became very powerful in the time of the Achæan
league, which it joined B.C. 251, at the persuasion of Aratus. The
inhabitants of Sicyon are mentioned by some authors as dissolute and
fond of luxury, hence the _Sicyonian shoes_, which were once very
celebrated, were deemed marks of effeminacy. _Apollodorus_, bk. 3,
ch. 5.――_Lucretius_, bk. 1, li. 1118.――_Livy_, bk. 32, ch. 16;
bk. 33, ch. 15.――_Strabo_, bk. 8.――_Mela_, bk. 2, ch. 3.――_Plutarch_,
_Demosthenes_.――_Pausanias_, bk. 2, ch. 1, &c.――_Cicero_, _On
Oratory_, bk. 1, ch. 54.――_Virgil_, _Georgics_, bk. 2, li. 519.
=Sicyonia=, a province of Peloponnesus, on the bay of Corinth, of which
Sicyon was the capital. It is the most eminent kingdom of Greece, and
in its flourishing situation, not only its dependent states, but also
the whole Peloponnesus, were called Sicyonia. The territory is said
to abound with corn, wine, and olives, and also with iron mines. It
produced many celebrated men, particularly artists. _See:_ Sicyon.
=Side=, the wife of Orion, thrown into hell by Juno, for boasting
herself fairer than the goddess. _Apollodorus_, bk. 1, ch. 4.――――A
daughter of Belus.――――A daughter of Danaus.――――A town of Pamphylia.
_Livy_, bk. 37, ch. 23.――_Cicero_, bk. 3, _Letters to his Friends_,
ltr. 6.
=Sidēro=, the stepmother of Tyro, killed by Pelias.
=Sidicīnum=, a town of Campania, called also _Teanum_. _See:_ Teanum.
_Virgil_, _Æneid_, bk. 7, li. 727.
=Sidon=, an ancient city of Phœnicia, the capital of the country, with
a famous harbour, now called _Said_. It is situate on the shores of
the Mediterranean, at the distance of about 50 miles from Damascus
and 24 from Tyre. The people of Sidon were well known for their
industry, their skill in arithmetic, in astronomy, and commercial
affairs, and in sea voyages. They, however, had the character of
being very dishonest. Their women were peculiarly happy in working
embroidery. The invention of glass, of linen, and of a beautiful
purple dye, is attributed to them. The city of Sidon was taken by
Ochus king of Persia, after the inhabitants had burnt themselves and
the city, B.C. 351; but it was afterwards rebuilt by its inhabitants.
_Lucan_, bk. 3, li. 217; bk. 10, li. 141.――_Diodorus_, bk. 16.
――_Justin_, bk. 11, ch. 10.――_Pliny_, bk. 36, ch. 26.――_Homer_,
_Odyssey_, bk. 15, li. 411.――_Mela_, bk. 1, ch. 12.
=Sidoniorum insulæ=, islands in the Persian gulf. _Strabo_, bk. 16.
=Sidōnis=, is the country of which Sidon was the capital, situate
at the west of Syria, on the coast of the Mediterranean. _Ovid_,
_Metamorphoses_, bk. 2, fable 19.――――Dido, as a native of the country,
is often called Sidonis. _Ovid_, _Metamorphoses_, bk. 14, li. 80.
=Sidonius Caius Sollius Apollinaris=, a christian writer, born A.D.
430. He died in the 52nd year of his age. There are remaining of his
compositions, some letters and different poems, consisting chiefly
of panegyrics on the great men of his time, written in heroic verse,
and occasionally in other metre, of which the best edition is that
of Labbæus, Paris, 4to, 1652.――――The epithet of _Sidonius_ is applied
not only to the natives of Sidon, but it is used to express the
excellence of anything, especially embroidery or dyed garments.
Carthage is called _Sidonia urbs_, because built by Sidonians.
_Virgil_, _Æneid_, bk. 1, li. 682.
=Siena Julia=, a town of Etruria. _Cicero_, _Brutus_, ch. 18.
――_Tacitus_, bk. 4, _Histories_, ch. 45.
♦=Siga=, now _Ned-Roma_, a town of Numidia, famous as the residence of
Syphax. _Pliny_, bk. 5, ch. 11.
♦ ‘Sida’ replaced with ‘Siga’
=Sigæum=, or =Sigēum=, now cape _Incihisari_, a town of Troas, on a
promontory of the same name, where the Scamander falls into the sea,
extending six miles along the shore. It was near Sigæum that the
greatest part of the battles between the Greeks and Trojans were
fought, as Homer mentions, and there Achilles was buried. _Virgil_,
_Æneid_, bk. 2, li. 312; bk. 7, li. 294.――_Ovid_, _Metamorphoses_,
bk. 12, li. 71.――_Lucan_, bk. 9, li. 962.――_Mela_, bk. 1, ch. 18.
――_Strabo_, bk. 13.――_Dictys Cretensis_, bk. 5, ch. 12.
=Signia=, an ancient town of Latium, whose inhabitants were called
_Signini_. The wine of Signia was used by the ancients for medicinal
purposes. _Martial_, bk. 13, ltr. 116.――――A mountain of Phrygia.
_Pliny_, bk. 5, ch. 29.
=Sigovessus=, a prince among the Celtæ, in the reign of Tarquin.
_Livy_, bk. 5, ch. 34.
=Sigȳni=, =Sigunæ=, or =Sigynnæ=, a nation of European Scythia, beyond
the Danube. _Herodotus_, bk. 5, ch. 9.
=Sila=, or =Syla=, a large wood in the country of the Brutii near
the Apennines, abounding in much pitch. _Strabo_, bk. 6.――_Virgil_,
_Æneid_, bk. 12, li. 713.
=Silāna Julia=, a woman at the court of Nero, remarkable for her
licentiousness and impurities. She married Caius Julius, by whom she
was divorced.
=Decimus Silānus=, a son of Titus Manlius Torquatus, accused of
extortion in the management of the province of Macedonia. The
father himself desired to hear the complaints laid against his
son, and after he had spent two days in examining the charges of
the Macedonians, he pronounced on the third day his son guilty of
extortion, and unworthy to be called a citizen of Rome. He also
banished him from his presence, and so struck was the son at the
severity of his father, that he hanged himself on the following
night. _Livy_, bk. 54.――_Cicero_, _de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum_.
――_Valerius Maximus_, bk. 5, ch. 8.――――Caius Junius, a consul under
Tiberius, accused of extortion, and banished to the island of Cythere.
_Tacitus._――――Marcus, a lieutenant of Cæsar’s armies in Gaul.――――The
father-in-law of Caligula. _Suetonius_, _ Caligula_, ch. 22.――――A
propretor in Spain, who routed the Carthaginian forces there, while
Annibal was in Italy.――――Turpilius, a lieutenant of Metellus against
Jugurtha. He was accused by Marius, though totally innocent, and
condemned by the malice of his judges.――――Torquatus, a man put to
death by Nero.――――Lucius, a man betrothed to Octavia the daughter
of Claudius. Nero took Octavia away from him, and on the day of her
nuptials, ♦Silanus killed himself.――――An augur in the army of the
10,000 Greeks, at their return from Cunaxa.
♦ ‘Salinus’ replaced with ‘Silanus’
=Sĭlărus=, a river of Picenum, rising in the Apennine mountains,
and falling into the Tyrrhene sea. Its waters, as it is reported,
petrified all leaves that fell into it. _Strabo_, bk. 5.――_Mela_,
bk. 2, ch. 4.――_Virgil_, _Georgics_, bk. 3, li. 146.――_Pliny_, bk. 2,
ch. 103.――_Silius Italicus_, bk. 2, li. 582.
=Silēni=, a people on the banks of the Indus. _Pliny_, bk. 6, ch. 20.
=Silēnus=, a demi-god, who became the nurse, the preceptor, and
attendant of the god Bacchus. He was, as some suppose, son of Pan,
or, according to others, of Mercury, or of Terra. Malea in Lesbos was
the place of his birth. After death he received divine honours, and
had a temple in Elis. Silenus is generally represented as a fat and
jolly old man, riding on an ass, crowned with flowers, and always
intoxicated. He was once found by some peasants in Phrygia, after he
had lost his way, and could not follow Bacchus, and he was carried
to king Midas, who received him with great attention. He detained
him for 10 days, and afterwards restored him to Bacchus, for which he
was rewarded with the power of turning into gold whatever he touched.
Some authors assert that Silenus was a philosopher, who accompanied
Bacchus in his Indian expedition, and assisted him by the soundness
of his counsels. From this circumstance, therefore, he is often
introduced speaking with all the gravity of a philosopher concerning
the formation of the world, and the nature of things. The Fauns
in general, and the Satyrs, are often called Sileni. _Pausanias_,
bk. 3, ch. 25; bk. 6, ch. 24.――_Philostratus_, bk. 23.――_Ovid_,
_Metamorphoses_, bk. 4.――_Hyginus_, fable 191.――_Diodorus_, bk. 3,
&c.――_Cicero_, _Tusculanæ Disputationes_, bk. 1, ch. 48.――_Ælian_,
_Varia Historia_, bk. 3, ch. 18.――_Virgil_, _Eclogues_, poem 6, li.
13.――――A Carthaginian historian who wrote an account of the affairs
of his country in the Greek language.――――An historian who wrote an
account of Sicily.
=Silicense=, a river of Spain.
=Silicis mons=, a town near Padua.
=Silis=, a river of Venetia in Italy, falling into the Adriatic.
_Pliny_, bk. 3, ch. 18.