Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 3.djvu/908

Rh 896 SPINTHARUS. artists, as ornaments of architectural and other works. rPaus. iii. 18. §8, v. 11. §2; Eurip. Elect. 47 h) [L.S.] SPHO'DRIAS (Sc^oSp/as), a Spartan, whom Cleombrotus, on his return from the invasion of the Theban territory, in B.c. 378, left behind him as harmost at Thespiae, placing the third part of the allies (their regular contingent) under his command, and entrusting him with all the money- he had brought from home, with which he desired him to hire mercenaries. Not long after this, and at a time when his country was at peace with Athens, Sphodrias was induced to take the foolish and unjustifiable step of invading the Athenian territory. According to Diodorus, he was instigated I to it by private orders from Cleombrotus, acting without the authority of the Ephors ; while from j Xenophon and Plutarch we gather that he was j tiunpered with by Pelopidas and Gorgidas, who wished to embroil Athens with Sparta, and whose j mingled bribes and flattery Sphodrias, venal at j once and vain and weak, was unable to resist. He | accordingly led forth his troops from Thespiae, with the professed intention of surprising the Pei- raeeus. When the day broke, however, he had advanced no further than the Thriasian plain, where, according to one statement preserved by Plutarch, his soldiers were terrified by a light, which appeared to flash from some temples at Eleusis. Sphodrias of course was obliged to aban- don his enterprise ; but instead of retreating quietly, he wantonly added to the exasperation of the Athenians, by driving off cattle and plundering houses. The Ephors brought him to trial for his life, and his guilt was so clear, not to speak of the policy of conciliating Athens by his condemna- tion, that he did not dare to return home and meet the charge in person. He was therefore tried in his absence, and, contrary to all expectation, was acquitted through the influence of Agesilaus, who had weakly yielded to the entreaties of his son Archidamus, an intimate friend of Cleonymus, the son of Sphodrias. At Leuctra Sphodrias was one of the immediate escort of king Cleombrotus, and perished in the battle, b. c. 371. (Xen. Hell. V. 4. §§ 15, 20, &c., vi. 4. § 14 ; Plut. Ages. 24, 25, Pelop. 14 ; Diod. xv. 29.) [E. K] SPHRAGFTIDES {^(ppayirldes), a surname of a class of prophetic nj^mphs on mount Cithaeron in Boeotia, where they had a grotto called (T<ppayi5Lou. (Plut. Aristid. 9 ; Paus. ix. 3, in fin. ; Plut. Sympos. i. 10.) [L.S.] SPI'NTHARUS (STTiVflopos), of Heracleia on the Pontus, a tragic poet, contemporary with Aristophanes, who designates him as a barbarian and a Phrygian {Av. 763, corap. SchoL). He was also ridiculed by the other comic poets. We know nothing of his plays, except two titles, pre- served by Suidas (s. v.), -mpiKaioiKvos 'HpaKATjy, and Se^eAT/ Kepavvoix4vr]. He appears to be the same person as the Spintharus who, according to Diogenes Laertius (v. 92, 93 ; com p. Suid. s. v. Trapoo-rfx's), attempted to pass off a spurious tra- gedy, entitled UapBevoTralos, as a work of Sophocles ; and 80 far succeeded as to impose upon Heracleides, who quoted the play as a genuine drama of So- phocles ; but the Alexandrian grammarians never give it a place among the works of Sophocles. The forgery was also ascribed to a certain Dionysius Metathemenus. (Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. ii. pp. 211, 215, 323; Welcker, die GriccL Traijwl. p. SPONSIANTJS. 1034 ; Bode, Gesch. d. IleUen. DielUkunst, vol. iiL pt. 1, pp. 48, 562.) Respecting some other in- significant writers of this name, see Menag. ad Diog. La'^rt. ii. 20. [P. S.] SPI'NTHARUS (27nV0apos), a Corinthian architect, who commenced the rebuilding of the great temple at Delphi, after its destruction by fire in 01. 58. 1, B. c. 548. (Paus. x. 5. § 5.) The temple was not, however, finished till 01. 75, b. c. 480 ; so that the architect could scarcely have lived to see the completion of the work. [P. S.] SPINTHER, an agnomen of P. Cornelius Lentulus, consul B. c. 57, and of his son. [Len- TULUS, Nos. 20 and 21.] SPITHRIDA'TES {l.nSpiUr-ns.) 1. A Per- sian, was one of the commanders sent by Phama- bazus to oppose the passage of the Cyrean Greeks through Bithynia, B. c. 400. [Rhathines.] In B. c. 396 Spithridates, offended with Pharnabazus, who wished to take his daughter as a concubine, was iriduced by Lysander to revolt from the satrap, bringing with him his children, his treasures, and 200 horse. His defection was most acceptable to Agesilaus, who gained information from him about the affairs of Pharnabazus. (Xen. ^wa6. vi, 5. §7, Hell. iii. 4. § 1 0, Ages. 3. § 3 ; Plut. Ages. 8, Lys. 24. ) 2. Satrap of Lydia and Ionia under Dareius Codomannus, was one of the Persian commanders at the battle of the Granicus, in b. c. 334, in which engagement, while he was aiming a blow from behind at Alexander, his arm was cut off by Clei- tus, son of Dropides (Arr. Anah. i. 12, 15, 16). Diodorus calls him Spithro bates, and appears to confound him with Mithridates [Mithridates, No. 5.], the son-in-law of Dareius, whom Alex- ander slew in the battle with his own hand ; while what Arrian records of Spithridates is related by Diodorus of his brother Rhoesaces. (Diod. xvii. , 20; Wess. ad loc; Plut. Alex. 16, de Alea Fort. i. 2.) [E. E.] SPITYNCHAS is mentioned by Sillig {Cat. Artif. s. v.), as the engraver of a precious stone described by Gori (Gemm. Etrusc. ii. pi. 9, No. 1 ) ; but we find no other notice of him, nor any other instance in which the name occurs. We have not the opportunity of referring to the work of Gori. [P. S.] SPO'DIUS {"^irohios), a surname of Apollo at Thebes, derived from (nroS({s, ashes, because his altar consisted of the ashes of the victims which had been sacrificed to him. (Paus. ix. 11. § 5.) [L. S.] SPO'NGIA, one of the judices who acquitted Clodius for his violation of the mysteries of the Bona Dea, a c. 61, is probably a fictitious name given to him by Cicero in ridicule. (Cit. ad Alt. i. 16. § 6.) SPONSIA'NUS. A few gold coins, of half barbarous workmanship and of much larger size than those usually issued from the Roman imperial mint, are to be found, chiefly in the museums of Austria, which exhibit on the obverse a mal'' beardless head surrounded with rays, and the cha- racters IMP. SPONSiANi, while on the reverse is stamped a device corresponding minutely with the consular denarii of C. Minucius Augurinus, and the letters c. aug. The name of Sponsianus. is totally unknown to history, and no plausible conjecture has yet been proposed in regard to the origin of these pieces. (Eckhel, Doctrin. Num. vol, vi. p. 840.) [W. R.]