Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 1.djvu/471

Rh BAGAEUS. 8. M. Baebius was put to death by Marius and Ciniia when they entered Rome in «. c. 87. In- stead of being killed by any weapon, liaebius was literally torn to pieces by the hands of his enemies. (Appian, B. C. i. 72; Florus, iii. 21 ; Lucan, ii. 119.) 9. M. Baebius, a brave man, slain by order of L. Piso in Macedonia, u. c. .57. (Cic. in Pis. 36.) 10. A. Baebius, a Roman eques of Asta in Spain, deserted the Pompeian party in the Spanish war, and Avent over to Caesar, b. c. 45. {BM. Ilisp. 26.) 11. Baebius, a Roman senator, served under Vatinius in lUyria. On the murder of Caesar, B. c. 44, the Illyrians rose against Vatinius, and cut off Baebius and five cohorts which he com- manded. (Appian, ///yr. 13.) BAE'BIUS MACRI'NUS. [Macrinus.] BAE'BIUS MARCELLl'NUS. [Marcbl- LINUS.] BAETON (BafrcBv), was employed by Alexan- der the Great in measuring distances in his marches, whence he is called o 'Ae^dv5pov /BrjuaTiO-rrj's. lie wrote a work upon the subject entitled (rradixol rrjs 'Ae^dvSpov -Kopeias. (Athen. x. p. 422, b. ; Plin. H.iV. vi. 17. s. 21, 19. s. 22, vii. 2; Solin.5.5.) BAE'TYLUS (BairuAoy), is in reality the name of a peculiar kind of conical shaped stones, which were erected as symbols of gods in remarkable places, and were from time to time anointed with oil, wine, or blood. The custom of setting up such stones originated, in all probability, in meteors being erected in the places where they had fallen down. (Phot. Cod. 242.) Eusebius {Praep. Erang. i. 10) says, that Baetyli were believed to be stones endowed with souls and created by Uranus. Hence Baetylus, when personified, is called a son of Urar nus and Ge, and a brother of llus and Cronos. Traces of the veneration paid to such stones are found among the Hebrews and Phoenicians, no less than among the Greeks. Photiiis (/. c.) says, that Asclepiades ascended mount Libanon, in the neighbourhood of Heliopolis in Syria, and saw many Baetyli there, concerning which he related the most wonderful tales. (Comp. Lucian, J/ej;-. 30; Theophrast. Charact. 16 ; Clem. Alex. Strom. vH. p. 713.) In Grecian mythology, the stoiie which was given to Uranus, to swallow instead of the in- fant Zeus, was called Baetylus (Hesych. s. r.); and a little above the temple of Delphi, on the left, there was a stone which was anointed with oil every day, and on solemn occasions covered with raw wool : tradition said, that this stone was the same which Uranus had swallowed. (Paus. ix. 24. § 3 ; comp. vii. 22. § 3 ; Tac. Hhit. ii. 3.) [L. S.] BAEUS (Batos), the helmsman of Odysseus, who is said to have died during the stay of the latter in Sicily. Mount Baea in the island of Ce- phallenia, and several islands and towns, but espe- cially Baiae in Campania, in the bay of which he was believed to have been buried, are supposed to have derived tlieir names from him. (Lycophr. 694, with Tzetz. note ; Steph. Byz. s. v. Baio ; Eustath. ad Horn. p. 1967.) [L. S.] BAGAEUS {Bayaios). 1. A Persian noble- man, to whom was allotted the dangerous office of conveying the order of Dareius Hystaspis for the execution of Oroetes, the powerful and rebellious satrap of Lydia, about 520 B. c. On his arrival at Sardis, Bagaeus first ascertained the disposition of the satrap's guards by the delivery to them of T3AG0AS. 453 several minor firmans from the king; and, when he biiw that they received these with much reve- rence, he gave the order for the death of Oroetes, which was unhesitatingly obeved. (Herod, iii. 128.) 2. Or Bancaeus {BayKoios)^ a half-brother of the satrap Phamabazus, is mentioned by Xeno- phon as one of the commanders of a body of Per- sian cavalry, which, in a skirmish near Dascylium, defeated the cavalry of Agesihius, in the first year of his invasion of Asia, B. c. 396. (Xcn. Ile/l. iii. 4. § 13; Pint. Agesil. 9.) [E. E.] BAGI'STANES (BayiffTaurfs), a distinguished Babylonian, deserted Bessus and the conspirators, when Alexander was in pursuit of them and Da- reius, B. c. 330, and informed Alexander of the danger of the Persian king. (Arrian, iii. 21 ; Curt. V. 1 3.) BAGO AS(Ba7coas). 1. An eunuch, highly trusted and favoured by Artaxerxes 111. (Ochus), is said to have been by birth an Egyptian, and seems to have fully merited the character assigned him by Diodorus, of a bold, bad man (toAut; Kal irapauo/xla Biacpepuv). In the successful expedition of Ochus against Egypt, b. c. 350,* Bagoas was associated by the king with Mentor, the Rhodian, in tlie com- mand of a third part of the Greek mercenaries. (Diod. xvi. 47.) Being sent to take possession of Pehisium, which had surrendered to the Theban Lacrates, he incurred the censure of Ochus by per- mitting his soldiers to plunder the Greek garrison of the town, in defiance of the terms of capitulation. (Diod. xvi. 49.) In the same war, the Egyptian part of the garrison at Bubastus having made terms with Bagoas for thafliselves, and admitted him within the gates, the-Greek garrison, privately in- stigated by his colleague Mentor, attacked and slaughtered his men and took him prisoner. Men- tor accordingly had the credit of releasing him and r(?ceiving the submission of Bubastus ; and hence- forth an alliance was formed between them for their mutual interest, which was ever strictly pre- served, and conduced to the power of both, — Mentor enjoying the satrapy of the western pro- vinces, while Bagoas directed affairs at his pleasure in the centre of the empire, — and the king vas re- duced to a cipher. (Diod. xvi, 50.) The cruelties of Ochus having excited general detestation, Ba- goas at length removed him by poison, a. c. 338, fearing perhaps lest the effects of the odium in which he was held might extend to himself, and certainly not from the motive absurdly assigned by Aelian, viz. the desire of avenging the insult olVered by Ochus, so many years before, to the religion of Egypt. To the murder of the king he joined that of all his sons except Arses, the youngest, whom he placed upon the throne ; but, seeing reason to apprehend danger from him, he put him also to death in the third year of his reign, B. c. 336. Ho next conferred the crown on Codomannus (a great- grandson of Dareius II.), who having discovered, soon after his accession, a plot of Bagoas to poison him, obliged the traitor to drink the potion himself. (Diod. xvii. 5 ; Ael. K II. vi. 8 ; Strab. xv. p. 736; Arr. Anah. ii. p. 41, e. ; Curt. vi. 3. § 12.) [E. E.] 2. A favourite eunuch of Alexander the Great who first belonged to Dareius and afterwards fell into the hands of Alexander. He was a youth of w^all's Greece, vol. vi. p. 142, note 2.
 * This date is from Diodorus; but see Thirl-