addressing the assembly from the pulpit of the mosque, 'Ammár brought a charge against him, which so incensed that khalif, that he commanded his attendants to beat 'Ammár and put him out of the mosque, which was done with such violence, that 'Ammár, who was a weak old man, fell into a swoon. After the murder of 'Othmán, 'Ammár followed the banners of 'Ali against Mu'awiyah. He was present at the battle of the camel in A. H. 36 (a. D. 657-8), in which he was providentially saved from certain death. ['ALI IBN ABI TA'LIB.] He was killed several years after at the battle of Sefayn, where he commanded the cavalry of 'Ali. He was then ninety years old. A grandson of 'Ammár, named 'Abdullah Ibn Sa'id, established himself in Spain, and became the father of a numerous progeny known as the Bení Sa'id, lords of Kal'at Yahssob, or Alcalá la Real, in the province of Granada. (Abú1-fedá, De Vita et Rebus gestis Mohammedis (Oxford, 1723), nec non Ann. Musl. sub annis 35 and 37; Elmacin, Hist. Sarac. lib. i. cap. vi.; D'Herbelot, Bib. Or. voc. Ammár ben Jasser;" Al-makkarí, Moham. Dyn. ii. 18.; Price, Chronol. Retrospect of Moham. History, i. cap. viii.) P. de G. AMMIA'NUS ('Aumavós), a Greek poet who lived in the time of the Emperor Hadrian, and of whom there are extant upwards of twenty epigrams in the "Anthologia Græca" (lib. ix. and xi.). Of his life nothing is known. (Fabricius, Biblioth. Græc.; Jacobs, Ad Antholog. Græc.)

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L. S.

AMMIA NUS MARCELLI'NUS, a Roman historian, whose scanty biography is chiefly collected from his own work.

He was a Greek, and probably of good parentage. If the Marcellinus to whom the 983d epistle of Libanius is addressed is the historian Ammianus, we may conclude that he was a native of Antioch. Various persons of the name of Marcellinus are mentioned both prior and subsequent to the time of Ammianus, but all conjectures as to their relationship to him are hardly supported by any evidence. It does not appear where he learned the Latin language, in which he wrote his history.

Ammianus entered the military service at an early age, and was placed by Constantius (who reigned with Constans from A. D. 340 to 350) with Ursicinus, a distinguished commander of that time. He also obtained a place among the protectores domestici of Constantius, which gave him a higher rank. When Ursicinus was sent into Gaul to put down the insurrection of Silvanus, he took Ammianus with him. It was probably during this expedition that Ammianus obtained that information about the Gauls which forms the subject of the ninth chapter of the fifteenth book of his history. Ammianus accompanied Ursicinus in the expedition to the East against the Persians, at which time

Ursicinus was

he was still a young man. recalled, owing probably to some intrigues; but when he was on his way to Constantius, he was met in Thrace by new orders from the emperor, in pursuance of which he returned to Mesopotamia, then the seat of war, but without a command. Ammianus accompanied Ursicinus in all his movements. The eighteenth book of his history contains, among other things, a modest commemoration of his own services in the Persian war. was sent by Ursicinus on a mission to the Persian satrap of Corduene, which he discharged in a satisfactory manner. Ammianus was in the town of Amida, which is situated on the Tigris, when it was attacked by Sapor: the place was taken by the Persians with great slaughter, and Ammianus with difficulty made his escape to Antioch.

He

He served with Eutropius under the Emperor Julian in his Persian wars; and he lived under the reigns of his successors Valentinian, Valens, Gratian, and Theodosius I., who ascended the throne in A. D. 379. It is conjectured that he held the rank of Comes in the imperial court, after retiring from military service, from a constitution of Gratian, Valentinian, Theodosius, and Arcadius being directed to Marcellinus (Cod. Just. ix. tit. 27. s. 3.). The letter of Libanius, if it may be trusted, shows that Ammianus was living at Rome when it was addressed to him, and that he had then written part of his history. That he had been at Rome is clear from passages in his own work; and he had also visited Thebes in Egypt (ix. 4.). These facts, combined with what has been already stated, show that he must have seen a large part of the ancient world. His youth and middle age were passed in the camp and in the business of civil administration. For his maturer years he reserved the occupation of recording the great events of his time, and leaving behind him a monument of his industry and ability. He survived the Emperor Gratian, whose death he mentions (xxvii. 6.), and it is collected from a passage in which he speaks of the temple of Serapis at Alexandria as still existing, that he wrote before the destruction of that edifice, in the reign of Theodosius I., A.D. 391.; but he mentions Neotherius, who was consul A. D. 390. Among his contemporaries were St. Ambrose, Symmachus, Aurelius Victor, Eutropius, St. Basil, Gregory of Nazianzus and Gregory of Nyssa, Libanius and Eunapius.

The history of Ammianus was divided into thirty-one books, and comprised the period from the beginning of the reign of Nerva, A. D. 96, to the death of Valens, A. D. 378. Thus his history commenced where that of Tacitus ended, with the reign of Domitian. The most valuable part is that which has been preserved; it contains the events of his own period, from the death of

Magnentius, A. D. 353, to that of Valens, a large part of which are derived from his personal knowledge. The history of Ammianus is interspersed with a variety of curious matter; such as his account of the Saracens (xiv.); of the Gauls (xv.); his remarks on obelisks (xvii.); his description of Thrace and the regions of the Pontus; his description of Egypt, the pyramids, the Nile, his remarks on the animals of Egypt, the hippopotamus and others (xxii.); his description of Persis and the people (xxiii.); and his account of the Huns, Alans, and other nations of northern Europe and western Asia (xxxi.). His work is not free from geographical errors, a signal instance of which is his inaccurate and confused description of the position of Egypt (xxii. 15.), a country which he had visited. But it contains valuable information on those parts of Asia, the basin of the Euphrates and Tigris, which were the seat of the last campaigns of Julian.

Ammianus was, as he himself admits, little acquainted with physical facts. His education was that of the school of rhetoric, as is evident from his writings. His style is turgid, diffuse, and often obscure; but it has a kind of barbaric vigour, and is often highly poetical and energetic. Ammianus is a difficult writer. To understand him well, and the terms which he uses, a man should have a competent knowledge of all the writers of his period, and especially of the Theodosian code. A good edition of the text, which contains many corruptions, and a proper commentary on Ammianus, are still wanted to illustrate a work which is the most valuable historical record of the age to which it belongs. The Latin language had lost its purity, and was fast losing its genuine idiom, when Ammianus wrote. Many of his forms of expression are never found in the best Latin writers. If he was a native of Antioch, Greek would probably be his mother tongue, and he learned Latin as a foreign language. His matter is superior to the expression. He had a clear perception of the things about which he was engaged; his statements are precise; his remarks often judicious. His good sense and moderation are conspicuous throughout his work, and he judiciously interweaves into his history digressions which are pertinent and instructive. He only needed to live in a better age to have been a great writer. He is the last of those who wrote in the Latin language who deserves the name of an historian.

It has been disputed whether Ammianus was a Christian or a heathen. Both opinions have been maintained, but his works, which contain the only evidence on the matter, leave it somewhat doubtful. He expresses himself respectfully with regard to Christianity, and if we knew he was a Christian, we should find nothing in such expressions which would

seem inconsistent with his profession of the Christian faith. On the other hand, he commemorates the virtues of Julian in such terms as are quite consistent with the profession of heathenism; yet he does not conceal the weaknesses of this remarkable man. Probably his creed was the philosophical, such as philosophy then was, and his toleration of the Christian doctrine is perfectly consistent with the prudence and moderation which appear in his book. Some passages from the fourteenth, sixteenth, and twentyfirst books of his history, which are referred to by Hadrian Valesius, seem to show that he was not a Christian; a conclusion which is rather confirmed by the disproportionate space which he gives to his history of Julian, which fills nearly eleven books out of the remaining eighteen. Julian is in fact the hero of his history.

The work of Ammianus is said to have been discovered by Poggio Bracciolini in his researches after the lost writers of antiquity. The first edition of Ammianus was that of Rome, 1474, fol., by A. Sabinus, but it contains only the books from fourteen to twenty-six.. Accursius, in his edition of Augsburg, fol., added the last five books from a MS. The edition of James Gronovius, Leyden, fol., 1693, contains what was done for Ammianus by F. Lindebrog, and Henry and Hadrian Valesius, and also notes by Gronovius, plates of the emperors, and plates of coins. The last edition, cum notis variorum, is by J. A. Wagner and C. F. A. Erfurdt, Leipzig, 1808, 3 vols. 8vo. There are added to the later editions of Ammianus, "De Constantio Chloro, Constantino Magno et aliis Imperatoribus Excerpta Auctoris ignoti;" also "Excerpta, &c. de Odoacre et Theoderico."

Ammianus was translated into German by J. A. Wagner, 3 vols. 8vo., Frankfort on the Main, 1792-1794, with notes, and some good conjectures: this version is said to be good. It was translated into English by Philemon Holland, fol. London, 1609; and into French by De Marolles with notes, 3 vols. 12mo. Paris, 1672; and by De Moulines, 3 vols. 12mo. Berlin. (Claudii Chiffletii, &c. De Ammiani Marcellini Vita, &c.; Hadr. et Henr. Valesii Prafutiones in poster. et prior. Ammiani Editionem; Libanius, Epistolæ, ed. J. C. Wolff.)

G. L.

AMMIRA TO, SCIPIO'NE, styled "il vecchio," or "the elder," born at Lecce in the kingdom of Naples in 1531, of a family originally from Florence, was sent to Naples to study the law, for which, however, he had no taste. He applied himself chiefly to literature and poetry, and in 1551 he received the minor orders from the Bishop of Lecce, who gave him a canon's stall in the cathedral of that town. He afterwards travelled, or rather wandered, about Italy in quest of occupation; he resided some time at Venice, Rome, and Naples; returned to his native country,

was temporarily employed by several noblemen, and was sent by the Archbishop of Naples on a mission to Pope Pius V. At last he fixed his residence at Florence in 1569, and the Grand Duke Cosmo I. commissioned him to write the history of Florence, and Cardinal Ferdinando de' Medici gave him the use of his own country-house at La Petraia. In 1595 he was made canon of the cathedral of Florence. He died in 1601.

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Ammirato was a very copious writer; the following are those of his works which deserve notice: 1. "Delle Famiglie Nobili Napolitane," a genealogical work in two parts, folio, the first of which was published in 1580, and the second in 1651, after the author's death. 2. " Discorsi sopra Cornelio Tacito," 4to, 1594, often reprinted. 3. "Orazioni a diversi Principi intorno a' Preparamenti che s'avrebbero a fare contro la Potenza del Turco," 4to. 1598. 4. "Il Rota, ovvero delle Imprese," 1598; a treatise upon heraldic devices. 5. "Istorie Fiorentine," in two parts. Part I., consisting of twenty books, comes down to the year 1434, when Cosmo de' Medici, styled "Pater Patriæ," returned from his exile, and it was published in 1600, in 1 vol. fol. Part II., in fifteen books, to the year 1574, was published in 1641, in 1 vol. fol., by Ammirato the younger, and dedicated to the Grand Duke Ferdinand II. Ammirato the younger published also in 1647 a second and improved edition of the first part, with additions, in 2 vols. fol. Ammirato's history of Florence is considered the most accurate and complete of its kind. The Academy of La Crusca called him "the modern Livy." 6. "Delle Famiglie nobili Fiorentine," completed and published in 1615 by Ammirato the younger, in fol. 7. "I Vescovi di Fiesole, di Volterra e d' Arezzo, con l'Aggiunta di Scipione Ammirato il Giovane," 4to. 1637. These are biographical notices of the bishops of those three sees. 8." Opuscoli," being a collection of his minor works, in 3 vols. 4to. 1637-1642. They contain orations addressed to several princes and popes, biographies of King Ladislaus and his sister Joanna II. of Naples, and of several distinguished members of the house of Medici; dialogues, treatises, and short poems.

9. "Albero e Storia dei Conti Guidi coll' Aggiunte di Scipione Ammirato il Giovane," fol. 1640, and again, with additions, in 1650. The Counts Guidi acted an important part in the early history of Florence. 10. "Discorsi delle Famiglie Paladina e Antoglietta," 4to., 1595. Ammirato was a laborious and accurate investigator of genealogical notices, and his works on these subjects are very valuable as materials for history. He states that he examined fifty thousand papers for his work on the Neapolitan families, and six thousand for those of Florence. These works are now

become very scarce. Ammirato left also

several MSS. works, among others a continuation of the chronicle of Monte Casino, and his own autobiography, which is kept in the library of Santa Maria la Nuova of Florence. (Mazzuchelli, Scrittori d' Italia; Tiraboschi, Storia della Litteratura Italiana.)

SCIPIONE AMMIRATO the younger, above mentioned, but whose real name was Cristoforo del Bianco, was born at Montajone in Tuscany about 1582; he acted as amanuensis to Ammirato in the latter part of his life, and was made his heir by will, on the condition of assuming his name and surname. He edited several of the posthumous works of his benefactor. A. V.

AMMON, ANTON BLA'SIUS, a musician of some eminence, was born in the Tyrol, and died about 1590. He published-1. "Sacræ Cantiones, 4, 5, 6 Voc." Munich, 1540. 2. " Short Motets, 4, 5, 6 Voc. for Saints' Days." Munich, 1554. After his death the following works by Ammon were published at Munich by Adam Berg. "Sacræ Cantiones, 4, 5, 6 Voc." 1590. 4. "Short Masses, 4 Voc." 1591. 5. " Missæ, 4, 5, 6 Voc." 1593. The first and fourth of these works are in the royal library at Munich. (Gerber, Lexicon der Tonkünstler.)

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3.

E. T.

AMMON, CLEMENS, an engraver of Frankfort of the seventeenth century, of moderate ability. He worked at Frankfort and at Heidelberg, was the son-in-law of Theodore de Bry, and continued the collection of portraits published by De Bry and his sons, entitled, Bibliotheca Calcographica," vol. vi. 4to. Ammon added two volumes, under the title "VII. et VIII., Pars Bibliothecæ Calcographicæ, id est, Continuatio secunda et tertia Iconum Virorum illustrium. Sculptore Clement. Ammonio Calcograf. Francof. Francof. ad Mon. 1650-1652," in 4to. Each volume contains fifty portraits engraved by Ammon; Heineken has given a list of the men represented. Ammon published also, in 1669, at Heidelberg, a new edition of the early parts of the work, but with some of the portraits missing. And in 1665, at the same place, a second edition of De Bry's collection of portraits of the Turkish and Persian sultans, Poten. Turcia Imp." &c. containing forty-seven portraits. (Heineken, Dictionnaire des Artistes, &c.; Hüsgen, Artistisches Magazin.) R. N. W.

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AMMON, J., music director at Heilbronn, and a performer on the violin, published between 1790 and 1801, at Paris and Heilbronn, several compositions, chiefly principal for his own instrument. He also wrote an operetta called "Sultan Wampum.” E.T.

AMMONIO, A'NDREA, an Italian scholar of the sixteenth century, was born at Lucca in 1477, and died at London in 1517. After having studied at Rome, and attained much reputation for his learning, both Greek and Latin, he came to England. He was