Page:A new and general biographical dictionary; containing an historical and critical account of the lives and writings of the most eminent persons in every nation v1.djvu/310

 274 A P E L L E S. after, a horfe happened to be brought, which neighed at fight of the horfe painted in the fame picture: upon which Apelles is faid to have addrefled Alexander, " Sir, it is plain this " horfe underftands painting better than your majefty [B]." One of Apelles's chief excellences was the making his pictures foexaclly refemble the perfons reprefented, that the phyliognomifls were able to form a judgement as readily from his portraits, as if they had feen the originals. His readinefs and dexterity at taking a likeneis was of fingular fervice, in extricating him from a difficulty in which he was involved a? the court of" ./Egypt : he had not the good fortune to be in favour with Ptolemy : a ftorm forced him, however, to take Ihelter at Alexandria, during the reign of this prince; where a mifchievous fellow, in order to do him a dilkind- jiefs, went to him, and in the king's name invited him to dinner. Apelles went; and feeing the king in a prodigious paflion, told him, by way of excufe, that he fbould not have come to his table but by his order. He was commanded to fhew the man, who had invited him ; which was im- poflible, the perfon who had put the trick upon him not Pliny, being prefent : Apelles, however, drew a fketch of his image lib. xxxv. upon t h e wa u w j t h a coal, the firft lines of which difcovered cap. 10. . f. j- I r i him immediately to rtolemy. Apelles left many excellent pictures, which are mentioned with great honour by the ancients ; but his Venus Anadyo- mene is reckoned his mafter-piece. His Antigonus has alfo been much celebrated : this was drawn with a fide-face to hide the deformity of Antigonus, who had loft an eye. His picture of Calumny has alfo been much taken notice of fc], APiCIUS. [E] "To fpeak freely my fenti- cufed him of being an accomplice In the t{ merits," fays Mr. Bayle, " I think confpiracy cf Theodotus, governor of " this is too rude and unmannerly to Phoenicia: he affirmed that he had feen " be afcribed to a pain'er, who is ie- Apelles at dinner with Theodotus, and " presented to have been a man of an whifpering to him all the time of his " eafy, complailjnt, and polite beha- entertainment. Ptolemy was alfo in- " court- buffoon, or a perfon of fuch an advice of Apelles, the city cf Tyre had " odd capricious humour, as we often revolted, and that of Pelufium, was " meet with in the moft eminent taken. However, it was certain that " artifts ; I fay, we muft have recourle Apelles had never been at Tyre, and " to one or 01 her of thefe fuppofltions, that he was not acquainted with J heo- 44 to give credit to what is related of dotus. Ptolemy however was fo en- " Apelles with regard to Alexander." raged, that, without examining into the [c] Lucian gives the following ac- affair, he determined to put to death count of the faft, which gaveoccafion the perfon accufed ; ar.o if one of the to this piflurc. Antiphilus the painter confpirators had not convinced Ptolemy being piqued at the favour which Apel- that this was a mere calumny of Anti- les was in at the court of Ptolemy, ao philus, Apelles muft undoubtedly have fuffered
 * viour; He muft either have been a formed by the fame perfon, that by the