PYRAMUS, a river of Cilicia, rising in Mount Taurus, and running from east to west into the Sea of Cilicia.
PYRGI, a town of Etruria, on the Tuscan Sea; now St. _Marinella_, about thirty-three miles distant from Rome.
Q.
QUADI, a people of Germany, situate to the south-east of Bohemia, on the banks of the Danube. See Manners, of the Germans, s. 42. note b.
R.
RAVENNA, an ancient city of Italy, near the coast of the Adriatic. A port was constructed at the mouth of the river Bedesis, and by Augustus made a station for the fleet that guarded the Adriatic. It is still called _Ravenna_.
REATE, a town of the Sabines in Latium, situate near the lake Velinus.
REGIUM. See RHEGIUM.
REMI, a people of Gaul, who inhabited the northern part of _Champagne_; now the city of _Rheims_.
RHACOTIS, the ancient name of Alexandria in Egypt.
RHaeTIA, a country bounded by the Rhine to the west, the Alps to the east, by Italy to the south, and _Vindelicia_ to the north. Horace says _Videre Rhaeti bella sub Alpibus Drusum gerentem, et Vindelici_.
Now the country of the _Grisons_.
RHEGIUM, an ancient city at the extremity of the Apennine, on the narrow strait between Italy and Sicily. It is now called _Reggio_, in the farther Calabria.
RHINE, the river that rises in the Rhaetian Alps, and divides Gaul from Germany. See Manners of the Germans, s. 1. note f; and s. 29. note a.
RHODa.n.u.s, a famous river of Gaul, rising on Mount Adula, not far from the head of the Rhine. After a considerable circuit it enters the _Lake of Geneva_, and in its course visits the city of Lyons, and from that place traverses a large tract of country, and falls into the Mediterranean. It is now called the _Rhone_.
RHODUS, a celebrated island in the Mediterranean, near the coast of Asia Minor, over-against _Caria_. The place of retreat for the discontented Romans. Tiberius made that use of it.
RHOXOLANI, a people on the north of the _Palus Maeotis_, situate along the Tanais, now the _Don_.
RICODULUM, a town of the Treviri on the Moselle.
S.
SABRINA, now the _Severn_; a river that rises in _Montgomeryshire_, and running by _Shrewsbury_, _Worcester_, and _Glocester_, empties itself into the Bristol Channel, separating Wales from England.
SALA. It seems that two rivers of this name were intended by Tacitus, One, now called the Issel, which had a communication with the Rhine, by means of the ca.n.a.l made by Drusus, the father of Germanicus. The other SALA was a river in the country now called _Thuringia_, described by Tacitus as yielding salt, which the inhabitants considered as the peculiar favour of heaven. The salt, however, was found in the salt springs near the river, which runs northward into the Albis, or Elbe.
SALAMIS, an island near the coast of Attica, opposite to _Eleusis_.
There was also a town of the name of Salamis, on the eastern coast of Cyprus, built by Teucer, when driven by his father from his native island. Horace says, _Ambiguam tellure nova Salamina futuram_.
SAMARIA, the capital of the country of that name in Palestine; the residence of the kings of Israel, and afterwards of Herod. Samaritans, the name of the people. Some magnificent ruins of the place are still remaining.
SAMBULOS, a mountain in the territory of the Parthians, with the river _Corma_ near it. The mountain and the river are mentioned by Tacitus only.
SAMNIS, or SAMNITES, a people of ancient Italy, extending on both sides of the Apennine, famous in the Roman wars.
SAMOS, an island of Asia Minor, opposite to Ephesus; the birth-place of Pythagoras, who was thence called the _Samian Sage_.
SAMOTHRACIA, an island of Thrace, in the Egean Sea, opposite to the mouth of the Hebrus. There were mysteries of initiation celebrated in this island, held in as high repute as those of Eleusis; with a sacred and inviolable asylum.
SARDES, the capital of Lydia, at the foot of Mount Tmolus, from which the Pactolus ran down through the heart of the city. The inhabitants were called _Sardicni_.
SARDINIA, an island on the Sea of Liguria, lying to the south of Corsica. It is said that an herb grew there, which, when eaten, produced a painful grin, called _Sardonius risus_. The island now belongs to the Duke of Saxony, with the t.i.tle of king.
SARMATIA, called also _Scythia_, a northern country of vast extent, and divided into _Europaea_ and _Asiatica_; the former beginning at the Vistula (its western boundary), and comprising Russia, part of Poland, Prussia, and Lithuania; and the latter bounded on the west by Sarmatia Europaea and the Tanais (the _Don_), extending south as far as Mount Caucasus and the Caspian Sea, containing Tartary, Circa.s.sia, &c.
SAXA RUBRA, a place on the Flamminian road in Etruria, nine miles from Rome.
SCEPTEUCI, a people of Asiatic Sarmatia, between the Euxine and the Caspian Sea.
SCYTHIA, a large country, now properly Crim Tartary; in ancient geography divided in Scythia Asiatica, on either side of Mount Imaus; and Scythia Europaea, about the Euxine Sea and the Maeotic Lake. See also SARMATIA.
SEGESTUM, a town of Sicily, near Mount _Eryx_, famous for a temple sacred to the _Erycinian_ Venus.
SELEUCIA, a city of Mesopotamia, situate at the confluence of the _Euphrates_ and the _Tigris_; now called _Bagdad_. We find in ancient geography several cities of this name.
SEMNONES, a people of Germany, called by Tacitus the most ill.u.s.trious branch of the Suevi. They inhabited between the Albis and Viadrus.
SENENSIS COLONIA, now Sienna, in Tuscany.
SENONES, inhabitants of Celtic Gaul, situate on the _Sequana_ (now the Seine); a people famous for their invasion of Italy, and taking and burning Rome A.U.C. 364.
SEQUANI, a people of Belgic Gaul, inhabiting the country now called _Franche Comte_ or the _Upper Burgundy_, and deriving their name from the _Sequana_ (now the _Seine_), which, rising near _Dijon_ in Burgundy, runs through Paris, and, traversing Normandy, falls into the British Channel near _Havre de Grace_.
SERIPHOS, a small island in the aegean Sea, one of the Cyclades: now _Serfo_, or _Serfanto_.
SICAMBRI, an ancient people of Lower Germany, between the Maese and the Rhine, where _Guelderland_ is. They were transplanted by Augustus to the west side of the Rhine. Horace says to that emperor, _Te caede gaudentes Sicambri compositis venerantur armis_.
SILURES, a people of Britain, situate on the _Severn_ and the Bristol Channel; now _South Wales_, comprising _Glamorgan_, _Radnorshire_, _Hereford_, and _Monmouth_. See Camden.
SIMBRUINI COLLES, the Simbruine Hills, so called from the _Simbruina Stagna_, or lakes formed by the river _Anio_, which gave the name of Sublaqueum to the neighbouring town.
SINOPE, one of the most famous cities in the territory of Pontus. It was taken by Lucullus in the Mithridatic war, and afterwards received Roman colonies. It was the birth-place of Diogenes the cynic, who was banished from his country. The place is still called _Sinope_, a port town of Asiatic Turkey, on the Euxine.
SINUESSA, a town of Latium, on the confines of Campania, beyond the river Liris (now called _Garigliano_). The place was much frequented for the salubrity of its waters.
SIPYLUS, a mountain of Lydia, near which Livy says the Romans obtained a complete victory over Antiochas.
SIRACI, a people of Asia, between the _Euxine_ and the _Caspian_ Seas.
SMYRNA, a city of Ionia in the Hither Asia, which laid a claim to the birth of Homer. The name of Smyrna still remains in a port town of Asiatic Turkey.
SOPHENE, a country between the Greater and the Lesser Armenia; now called _Zoph_.