Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 16.djvu/79

* PISA. 57 also that of Basel, must be regarded as abnormal assemblies, ealled to meet Ibe special emergeiiey of a disputed sueeession and of a doubtful pope, and that lliese priiieipk'S eannot l)y any means be applied to the ordinary eireumslanees of the Church, or form a precedent by which to esti- mate the normal relations between a pope whose title is certain and undisputed and a general council regularly assembled in the ordinary cir- cumstances of the L'liureh. There were two olher councils at Pisa, in 1133, when Peter of Hruys was condemned, and in 1,511, when certain cardinals endeavored to have Pope Julius II. condemned for not calling a general council to reform the Church. PISA, I'mversity of. One of the oldest Euro- jican universities. There existed at Pisa teachers of law and medicine as early as the twelfth cen- tury, Init the real beginning of the university dates from the emigration of a large nundxT of students and teachers from Bologna in 1338 on account of the Interdict of Pope Benedict XII. At the instance of the Pisans, Pope Cle- ment VI. authorized the establishment of a Studiiim Oenerale, which was dissolved in 1350 for lack of funds. In 130-1 a new authorization was obtained from Pope Urban V. for its re- establishment. With the loss of Pisan independ- ence in 140(i the university ceased to exist, but it was opened again by Lorenzo de' Medici and flourished for a while. It soon went out of ex- istence again. Cosinio I. de' Medici reopened it .in 1543 and generously supported it. In 1544 a botanical institute, the iirst of its kind, was es- tablished and the university soon achieved con- siderable fame. With the decay of Italian uni- versities it suffered the general fate. It was re- vived in 1808 by Crand Duke Leopold II. of Tuscany, who endowed it munificently. In 1839 it received a well-equipped physical institute. After the revolution of 1848 it was reduced to a mere natural science and mathematics section. but was reopened with all faculties in 1850 and has since maintained a high standing among Italian universities. In 1002 it consisted of the facultii's of law, medicine-surgery, ])liilosophy. and mathematics-natural science, and the engi- neering, pharmacy, veterinary, and higher agri- cultural schools. The attendance was 1074, and the library contained 130.000 volumes, 28,000 pamphlets, and 300 nuinuseripts. PISACA, pO-shii'clia. The name of the most ma- ligna nt ilcmons in Hindu mythology. In the Vedas they are opposed especially to the pitris (q.v. ), and are frecpiently termed knivi/fidiis. or eaters of raw flesh. They infest houses and vil- lages, and as .gni (q.y.) is besought to restore the llesh which the Pisaeas have devoureil from the siek man, they seem to have been ghoulish in nature, and associated with ghosts of the ma- lignant dead. In modern India the Pisaca is pre- eminently the spirit of a liar, adulterer, criminal, or lunatic. Sometimes, however, if the proper incantations be performed, this class of demons can be forced to cure diseases. The legendary accounts of the origin of the Pisaeas vary. Ac- cording to the earlier view, they, together with the .suras and Kakshakas. were created by Brahma from the stray water which was scat- tered from the drops out of which gods. men. and other good beings had been formed. Other sources, however, regard them as the oH'spring of the Prajapatis or of Prajapati (q.v.) himself. PISANIO. PISAGUA, pe-sii'gwa. A town of the Prov- ince of Tarapaca, Chile, on the Pacific Coast, 4(J miles nortli of Iquique, with which it is con- nected by rail. It is the second city of the prov- ince, situated in a desert country, with a fair harbor, well-constructed streets, and modern houses. The great industry of the town is the shipping of nitre, which is brought by rail from the interior. Its population is about 8000. On April 18, 1870, Pisagua was bombarded and com- pletely destroyed by the Chilean fleet, but after the cessation of hostilities was quickly rebuilt. Xear the town (November 10, 1870) occurred a battle in which 6000 Chileans defeated the com- bined forces of Peru and Bolivia, numbering 11,000. PISAN, i)i''zii.N', Chkistine de. See Chris- tine [)IC I'lS.V.X. PISAN'DER (Lat., from Gk.JleiaavSfm^, Pei- sandros). A Greek poet, lie was born at Ca- merus, in the island of Rhodes, and appears to have lived about B.C. 050, although some critics state that he was earlier than Ilesiod, and was a contemporary of Kuniolpus. lie is remembered chiefly for his 'IIpriAf;a, a poem in two books on the exploits of Hercules. In this Hercule* was for the first time represented as armed with a club, and covered with a lion's skin, instead of the usual armor of the heroic period. By many it is believed that Pisander was also the first to fix the hero's labors at twelve, corresponding to the signs of the zodiac. The work was so highly praised by the Alexandrian critics that they as- signed Pisander a rank among epic poets after Homer, Ilesiod, Panyasis, and Antimachus. Only a few lines have been preserved. PISANELLO, pe'za-nel'Io, properly Vittore Plsano (1380-14521. An Italian painter and medalist, who introduced the Uenaissance into Verona. He was born at San Vigilio, near the Lake of Oarda, in 1380. Concerning his early years and his art apprenticeship little is known. Certain features in his works point to Altichicri da Zevio as his master. He is to-day better known as a medalist. As such he invented a new process of casting medals and finishing them with the tool, and ])ortrayed a number of contempo- raries. Unfortunately, few of his paintings sur- vive. He painted many works at 'erona between 1417 and 1422. and in 1421-22 completed a fresco in the Sala del (Iran Consiglio, Venice, where he was employed together with (Jentile da Fabriano. His work at Pavia, in Saint John Lateran, Kome, and at Mantua has disappeared, and his easel |)icturcs are extremely rare. His style may be l)est studied in the fresco on the arch of the Pelh'grini Chapel in Sant' Anastasia. Verona, which has been made accessible through the .Vrundel lithograi)h, and in the "Vision of Saint Eustace." in the National (Tallery, London. While jileasing in color, his coinjiositions are domi- nated by the naturalistic tendency of the painter, and justify, when compared with c(mtemporary works, the reputation he enjoyed as a depicter of birds, animals, and landscape. Consult: ITeiss, Les mcdtiiUciirs df la Renaissance, vol. i. (Paris. 1881): Spaventi. Vittorr Pisanrlln (Verona, 1S')3| : Veneurini. (lenlile Fabrianoe it I'isanvllo (Florence, 189<i(. PISANIO, pe-sii'ne-o. The servant of Pos- thnnms in Shakespeare's Cymbelinc. He is sent