Brill’s New Pauly Supplements I - Volume 6 : History of classical Scholarship - A Biographical Dictionary

Get access Subject: Classical Studies
Edited by: Peter Kuhlmann (Göttingen) and Helmuth Schneider (Kassel)

Help us improve our service

This compendium gives a comprehensive overview of the history of classical studies. Alphabetically arranged, it provides biographies of over 700 scholars from the fourteenth century onwards who have made their mark on the study of Antiquity. These include the lives, careers and works of classical philologists, archaeologists, ancient historians, students of epigraphy, numismatics, papyrology, Egyptology and the Ancient Near East, philosophers, anthropologists, social scientists, art historians, collectors and writers. The biographies put the scholars in their social, political and cultural contexts while focusing on their scholarly achievements and their contributions to modern classical scholarship.

Subscriptions: See Brill.com

Babelon, Ernest

(398 words)

Author(s): Schubert, Helmut
French numismatist and archaeologist. Born 7. 11. 1854 in Sarrey, died 3. 1. 1924 in Paris. 1874–1878 trained as an archivist. 1878 appointed to the Cabinet des médailles of the Bibliothèque nationale in Paris, becoming its assistant director in 1890, then director in 1892. 1908 President of the Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres. Lecturer (from 1902), then prof. (from 1908) at the Collège de France. Background, work and influence After beginning as a medievalist, B. became one of the leading specialists in ancient numismatics, and also – with his friend…

Bachofen, Johann Jakob

(784 words)

Author(s): Fornaro, Sotera
Swiss legal historian and classical scholar. Born 22. 12. 1815 in Basel to a wealthy family, died there 25. 11. 1887. Studied law and classics at Basel 1834, Berlin 1835–1837 (with August Boeckh, Karl Ferdinand Ranke, Karl Lachmann, Friedrich Carl von Savigny), Göttingen 1837/38 (with Gustav Hugo and Karl Otfried Müller); degree 1839 at Basel with legal examination (diss.: De Romanorum iudiciis civilibus). Practical legal training 1839/40 in Paris and London. 1841 appointed prof. of Roman law at Basel; declined position and salary but continued to teach as…

Badian, Ernst

(459 words)

Author(s): Pesditschek, Martina
Austrian-American ancient historian. Born 8. 8. 1925 in Vienna; died 1. 2. 2011 in Boston. Emigrated with parents to New Zealand 1938, studied there from 1941; 1945 BA, 1946 MA in Latin, Univ. of New Zealand. 1950 BA in Lit. Hum., 1954 MA, 1956 doctorate at Univ. of Oxford [1]. 1962 second doctorate (Lit.D.) at Victoria Univ. in Wellington. 1947/48 Junior Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History there; 1952 Assistant Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History at Univ. Sheffield; 1954 Lecturer in C…

Barbaro, Daniele

(427 words)

Author(s): Wolkenhauer, Anja
Daniel Barbarus; Venetian Humanist and architectural historian. Born 8. 2. 1514 (1513 according to the Venetian calendar) in Venice, died there 13. 4. 1570. 1535–1540 studied at Padua; Patriarch of Aquileia from 1550. Work and influence B. worked as a natural historian and diplomat, but especially also as an architectural historian, and he was an important force in Renaissance Vitruvian reception. He came from a noble Venetian family that produced many Humanists through the 15th and 16th cents. B. studied philosophy, mathematics a…

Barbaro, Ermolao

(709 words)

Author(s): Gall, Dorothee
Hermolaus Barbarus; Italian Humanist and philologist. Born 21. 5. 1453 in Venice, died 14. 6. 1493 in Rome. Studied at Rome and Padua from 1462; doctorate Padua 1474 in the artes, 1477 in civil and ecclesiastical law. 1477 prof. of philosophy at Padua. Various missions for the Republic of Venice to 1491; banished from Venice 1491. Background and work B. came from a family of Venetian diplomats and scholars. His grandfather, Francesco, had translated Plutarch; his uncle Ermolao the Elder had translated Aesop’s fables and a Vita Sancti Athanasii. B.’s nephew was Daniele Barbaro. B. h…

Barzizza, Gasparino

(515 words)

Author(s): Gall, Dorothee
Also Gasparino di Pietrobuono, Gasparinus Barzizius Pergamensis; Italian rhetorician and philologist. Born 1360 in Bergamo or Barzizza, died 1431 at Milan. Studied grammar and rhetoric at Pavia from 1390. Prof. of Rhetoric and Grammar at Univs. of Pavia (1403–1407) and Padua (1407/08–1421), doctorate in artes at Padua 1413. Founded free Latin schools at Padua (1407) and Milan (1418); taught there and, besides univ. activity, also at schools in Ferrara, from 1421 Milan. 1414 named Apostolic Secretary by Antipope John XXIII. Took part in Council of Konstanz 1417. Work and influence B. …

Baudelot de Dairval, Charles César

(892 words)

Author(s): Lang, Jörn
French antiquarian and gemmologist. Born 29. 11. 1648, died 27. or 28. 6. 1722 in Paris. Began education at Beauvais with his uncle Louis Hallé, theologian and prof. at the Sorbonne, continuing at Paris under Abbé Pierre Danet. Studied law; appointment as lawyer at Parlement de Paris. 1689 associate member of Accademia dei Ricoverati in Padua. From late 1690s, superintendent of the medallions and antiquities cabinet of Elisabeth-Charlotte of Orléans in Paris. 1705 elected to Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres [9. 276]. Work and influence B. d. D. initially committed him…

Beatus Rhenanus

(1,123 words)

Author(s): Laureys, Marc
Beatus Bild; German Humanist and philologist. Born 22. 8. 1485 in Schlettstadt (now Sélestat, Alsace), into a family from Rheinau, hence called Rhinower – which, from his Paris student days, became the Latin Humanist name Rhenanus), died 20. 7. 1547 in Strasbourg. 1503–1507 studied at Faculty of Arts in Paris; work as proofreader in the officinae of, among ¶ others, Henri Estienne (Henricus Stephanus) in Paris; first publishing work from 1508 with Matthias Schürer in Strasbourg. 1511–1513 studied Greek at Basel. From this time also working as proofreader and editor for the officina of …

Beazley, John Davidson

(1,178 words)

Author(s): Isler-Kerényi, Cornelia
British classical archaeologist. Born 13. 9. 1885 in Glasgow, died 6. 5. 1970 in Oxford. From 1903 studied classics at Balliol College, Oxford, from 1908 tutor at Christ Church College, Oxford. 1920 lecturer on Greek vases, from 1925 prof. of classical archaeology at Univ. of Oxford. Biography and scholarly background B. was the son of an interior decorator and glass artist and a nurse. In 1887, the family moved to Southampton, where the sons attended King Edward VI School. B.’s family moved to Brussels in 1897 and emigrated to the USA in 1912.…

Beger, Lorenz

(1,684 words)

Author(s): Gröschel, Sepp-Gustav
German antiquarian, librarian and numismatist. Born 19. 4. 1653 in Heidelberg, died 20. 2. 1705 in Berlin. 1669 studied Protestant theology and jurisprudence at Heidelberg, 1675 licentiatus iuris. 1675 librarian, then curator of the coin cabinet, at the electoral court in Heidelberg. 1686 Electoral Councillor, librarian and antiquarian at the Brandenburg court in Berlin. 1688 also curator of the Cabinet of Antiquities, 1693 of the Berlin Kunstkammer. From 11. 3. 1701, attending member of the Sozietät der Wissenschaften in Berlin [20]; [24]; [25]; [31]. Background B. came from a …

Bekker, Immanuel

(934 words)

Author(s): Landfester, Manfred
German classical philologist. Born 21. 5. 1785 in Berlin, died there 7. 6. 1871. B. took the name Immanuel (after Kant) in place of his baptismal names August Emanuel. Attended the Gymnasium zum Grauen Kloster in Berlin. 1803–1806 studied classical philology at Halle; doctorate 1806; July 1806 Inspector of the Philological Seminar at Halle. Tutor from December 1806; from 1810 prof. ext., from 1811 prof. ord. in classical philology at Berlin. From 1815 member of the Berlin Academy of Sciences [17. 364 f.]. Biography and scholarly background The son of a locksmith, B. earned his own…

Bellori, Giovanni Pietro

(1,697 words)

Author(s): Gröschel, Sepp-Gustav
Also Giovan Pietro B.; Italian antiquarian, painter, art collector and art historian. Born 15. 1. 1613 in Rome, died there 19. 2. 1696. Member of the famiglia of Francesco ca. 1630 (attested 1634). Attested 1652–1679 as member of the Accademia di San Luca; journey to southern Italy 1661; 1670–1694 commissar of antiquities for Rome and Latium. 1677–1689 librarian and antiquarian to Queen Christina of Sweden at Rome. 1689 honorary member of the Académie royale de peinture et sculpture in Paris. Background At the age of 17, B., son of a Lombard smallholder, entered the househol…

Beloch, Karl Julius

(1,042 words)

Author(s): Rebenich, Stefan
German ancient historian. Born 21. 1. 1854 in Petschkendorf (Silesia, now Pieszków, Poland), died 1. 2. 1929 in Rome. 1872–1875 studied classics at Univs. of Palermo, Heidelberg and Rome; doctorate 1875 in Heidelberg; habil. 1877 in Rome. 1879 prof. ext. of ancient history at Univ. of Rome; 1891–1915 and 1924–1929 prof. ord. there. Scholarly background B., the son of a Silesian landowner, lived in Italy even as a young man because of a lung condition. He studied at Italian univs. and at Heidelberg, and gained his scholarly qualifications there. In 1…

Bembo, Pietro

(864 words)

Author(s): Hintzen, Beate
Italian Humanist and cardinal. Born 20. 5. 1470 in Venice, died 18. 1. 1547 in Rome, buried there on 19. 1. 1547 in Santa Maria sopra Minerva. July 1478 to May 1480 lived at Florence with father Bernardo; went to Rome 1478–1488 on an embassy of his father’s; 1490–1492 in Venice. 1492–1494 learned Greek at Messina with Constantine Laskaris; 1494/95 studied philosophy at Padua, from 1497 at Ferrara. Lived at Ferrara and Venice, then Urbino from 1506. 1511 moved to Rome. 1513 named Secretary of Lat…

Bengtson, Hermann

(486 words)

Author(s): Horst, Claudia
German ancient historian. Born 2. 7. 1909 Ratzeburg, died 2. 11. 1989 at Munich. 1930–1934 studied history, classical philology, Assyriology and Egyptology at the Univs. of Hamburg and Munich. Studied papyrology at Pisa. 1935 doctorate at Munich; habil. there 1939. 1942 prof. ext. in Jena. Member of the NSDAP and SA ( Sturmabteilung). At Munich, he headed a working committee on the “Jewish infiltration of the ancient world”. Banned from working 1946–1949, then classified as a ‘follower’ ( Mitläufer) in the denazification process. 1949 prof. ext. at Munich. 1952 prof. ord.…

Benndorf, Otto

(395 words)

Author(s): Szemethy, Hubert
German classical archaeologist. Born 13. 9. 1838 in Greiz (Vogtland), died 2. 1. 1907 in ¶ Vienna. Attended school in Greiz and Plauen; studied at Erlangen and Bonn; doctorate 1862 in Bonn; habil. 1868 in Göttingen. 1869 prof. ext. in Zürich; 1871 Hon. prof. in Munich; 1872 prof. ord. of classical archaeology at Prague; 1877 prof. ord. at Vienna; 1898 Director of the Austrian Archaeological Institute, also Vienna. Work and influence After his diss. on epigrams about visual arts in the Greek anthology [1], B. briefly worked as a teacher in Berlin and Schulpforta, be…

Benoist, Eugène

(385 words)

Author(s): Lozar, Angelika
French Latin scholar. Born Louis-Eugène B., 28. 11. 1831 at Nangis, died 23. 05. 1887 at Paris. Studied classical philology at Paris; doctorate there 1862. After teaching at schools in Marseille, Nancy and Aix-en-Provence, from 1874 prof. ord. of Latin literature in Paris; 1867 elected to the Académie of Marseille. Work and influence B. took his doctorate in 1862 with Henri Joseph Guillaume Patin, whom he succeeded in 1874 (diss. De personis muliebribus apud Plautum). Thereafter he continued his work on Plautus with two editions [2]; [3]. He completed his work on Lati…

Bentley, Richard

(1,747 words)

Author(s): Nesselrath, Heinz-Günther
English classical philologist and theologian. Born 27. 1. 1662 in Oulton near Leeds, died 14. 7. 1742 in Cambridge. From 1676 studied at St. John’s College, Cambridge; 1680 Bachelor of Arts; 1683 Master of Arts. 1690 Ordination; 1696 Doctor Theologiae. 1700 Master of Trinity College, Cambridge. Background B., son of a minor landowner, received private Latin tuition from his mother before attending grammar school at Wakefield and going up to Cambridge at the age of just 14. At 18 he received his BA with honours. After a year in charge of Spal…

Bérard, Victor

(442 words)

Author(s): Lozar, Angelika
French historian and classical philologist. Born 10. 8. 1864 in Morez (Jura), died 13. 11. 1931 in Paris. 1884–1887 studied history at the École normale supérieure in Paris; 1887–1890 member of the École française d’Athènes; 1894 doctorate [2]. 1896–1908 Maître de conférences (state lecturer) at the École des hautes études (EHE) in Paris in historical geography, which he also taught until 1914 at the École supérieure de marine in Paris; 1908–1931 head of the Dept. of Historical Geography at EHE. 1904–1911 Secretary-general of the Revue de Paris, responsible for articles on French…
▲   Back to top   ▲