Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume II.djvu/384

 364 BASILISCUS beings, called reons. These are, Intelligence (Noif), Reason (Aoyiif), Providence, Wisdom, Power, Peace, and Holiness; these seven, with the Supreme Being himself, constituting the perfect eight ('Oytfodf). The awns Wisdom and Power produced the angels of the first order, who produced those of the second order, and so on to the number of 365 orders, eacli order dwelling in its own heaven. From Greek let- ters the numerical value of which is 365 was formed the mystical word Abraxas, which be- came the symbol of the sect founded by Basil- ides. The seven angels of the lowest order, whose archon or chief was the God of the Hebrews, were the creators of the world. All human souls had committed sins in a previous state of existence, and were consequently ex- cluded from the realm of light. To effect their return to this realm, the Nous united himself with the man Christ Jesus at the time of his baptism; but the sufferings which Jesus en- dured were borne by the man only, and were in expiation, as all suffering is, of sins com- mitted by him in a former state of existence. Basilides forbade marriage and the eating of meat. He wrote a book entitled JSxegetica, fragments of which are still extant, and several other works, among which is a gospel. His followers, the Basilidians, existed as late as the 4th century ; but they soon degenerated from the doctrines of their founder, affirming the God of the Hebrews to be the enemy of the world of light, and became grossly immoral. BASILIS11S, emperor of the East, died in Cappadocia in 477. Though his early exploits against the Scythians had been far from bril- liant, he was through the influence of his sister, the empress Verina, wife of Leo I., placed in command in 468 of the fleet which sailed from Constantinople to Carthage against Genseric, consisting of over 1,100 ships and 100,000 men. The expedition safely reached the coast of Africa, but ended disastrously. Basiliscus, after displaying either the greatest pusillanim- ity or treachery, fled to Constantinople at the beginning of the contest, and hid himself in St. Sophia until his sister had appeased the wrath of the emperor. He was punished merely with banishment to Thrace. After the death of Leo I. (474) the throne devolved on his infant grandson, Leo II., the son of his daughter Ari- adne and of her Isaurian consort Zeno. The latter, hoping to become sole ruler after the suspiciously sudden death of his son, was de- posed by Verina and Basiliscus, and Basiliscus was proclaimed emperor by the senate. Dur- ing his brief administration Constantinople was partly laid in ashes (476), the famous public library with over 120,000 MS. volumes, includ- ing the 48 books of the Iliad and the Odyssey, executed in golden letters, being burned. He burdened the people with taxes, and his rule became so intolerable that Zeno was recalled and Basiliscus and his wife and children were imprisoned in a tower in Cappadocia, where they were left to die of cold and starvation. BASILISK BASILISK (basiliscm, Laurent!), a genus of saurian reptiles of the family of iguanidce, in- habiting the northern parts of South America, the West Indies, and Central America. The genus is characterized by a thin triangular fold of skin rising vertically from the occiput and inclined backward, resembling in shape a Phry- gian cap; the external edge of the posterior toes is bordered with a scaly serrated fringe ; the back and tail are surmounted in the adult male by an elevated crest, supported on the spinous process of the vertebrre, of varying height, and serrated ; in one species this crest resembles the dorsal fin of a fish, while in the other it is merely a serrated scaly ridge ; be- tween the dorsal and caudal portions the crest is interrupted, and both are covered with thin scales disposed in series parallel to the spinous processes. Under the neck is a rudimentary angular crest, behind which is a well marked transverse fold. There are 5 or 6 teeth on each palatal bone, and 50 to 60 in each jaw, pointed and subconical, or compressed. It is distinguished from the iguana by the absence Basiliscus mitratus. of femoral pores. The head is covered with small many-sided ridged scales ; the body above has rhomboidal ridged scales, arranged in trans- verse bands ; the ventral scales are either smooth or ridged, according to the species. The limbs, especially the posterior, are very long, as are also the toes, which are slender and armed with nails; the body is nearly cylindrical, and the tail compressed and three times as long as the trunk. Two species are described. 1. The hooded basilisk (S. mitratus, Daudin) has the above-mentioned cap and dorsal crest, and the ventral scales smooth, without transverse black bands on the back ; the color above is yellowish brown, beneath whitish ; the sides of the neck are leaden brown, and the throat is marked by longitudinal bands of the same color; some- times there is a white band bordered with black on the sides of the neck and back ; the length varies from 24 to 30 inches, of which the tail measures about two thirds. 2. The banded basilisk (B. vittatus, Wiegmann) differs from the preceding in having only a slight serrated crest along the back and tail, the ventral scales