Corētas, a man who first gave oracles at Delphi. Plutarch, de Defectu Oraculorum.
Corfinium, now San Ferino, the capital of the Peligni, three miles from the Aternus, which falls into the Adriatic. Cæsar, Civil War, bk. 1, ch. 16.—Lucan, bk. 2, li. 478.—Silius Italicus, bk. 5, li. 522.
Coria, a surname of Minerva among the Arcadians. Cicero, de Natura Deorum, bk. 3, ch. 23.
Corinna, a celebrated woman of Tanagra, near Thebes, disciple to Myrtis. Her father’s name was Archelodorus. It is said that she obtained five times a poetical prize, in which Pindar was her competitor; but it must be acknowledged that her beauty greatly contributed to defeat her rivals. She had composed 50 books of epigrams and odes, of which only some few verses remain. Propertius, bk. 2, poem 3.—Pausanias, bk. 9, ch. 22.——A woman of Thespis, celebrated for her beauty.——Ovid’s mistress was also called Corinna. Amores, bk. 2, poem 6.
Corinnus, an ancient poet in the time of the Trojan war, on which he wrote a poem. Homer, as some suppose, took his subject from the poem of Corinnus.
Corinthiăcus sinus, is now called the gulf of Lepanto.
Corinthus, an ancient city of Greece, now called Corito, situated on the middle of the isthmus of Corinth, at the distance of about 60 stadia on either side from the sea. It was first founded by Sisyphus son of Æolus, A.M. 2616, and received its name from Corinthus the son of Pelops. Its original name was Ephyre; and it is called Bimaris, because situated between the Saronicus Sinus and the Crisseus Sinus. The inhabitants were once very powerful, and had great influence among the Grecian states. They colonized Syracuse in Sicily, and delivered it from the tyranny of its oppressors, by the means of Timoleon. Corinth was totally destroyed by Lucius Mummius the Roman consul, and burnt to the ground, 146 B.C. The riches which the Romans found there were immense. During the conflagration, all the metals which were in the city melted and mixed together, and formed that valuable composition of metals which has since been known by the name of Corinthium Æs. This, however, appears improbable, especially when it is remembered that the artists of Corinth made a mixture of copper with small quantities of gold and silver, and so brilliant was the composition, that the appellation of Corinthian brass afterwards stamped an extraordinary value on pieces of inferior worth. There was there a famous temple of Venus, where lascivious women resorted, and sold their pleasures so dear, that many of their lovers were reduced to poverty; whence the proverb of
Non cuivis homini contingit adire Corinthian,
to show that all voluptuous indulgences are attended with much expense. Julius Cæsar planted a colony at Corinth, and endeavoured to raise it from its ruins, and restore it to its former grandeur. The government of Corinth was monarchical till 779 years B.C., when officers called Pyrtanes were instituted. The war which has received the name of Corinthian war, because the battles were fought in the neighbourhood of Corinth, was begun B.C. 395, by the combination of the Athenians, Thebans, Corinthians, and Argives, against Lacedæmon. Pisander and Agesilaus distinguished themselves in that war; the former, in the first year of hostilities, was defeated with the Lacedæmonian fleet, by Conon, near Cnidus; while a few days after Agesilaus slaughtered 10,000 of the enemy. The most famous battles were fought at Coronea and Leuctra; but Agesilaus refused to besiege Corinth, lamenting that the Greeks, instead of destroying one another, did not turn their arms against the Persian power. Martial, bk. 9, ltr. 58.—Suetonius, Augustus, ch. 70.—Livy, bk. 45, ch. 28.—Florus, bk. 2, ch. 16.—Ovid, Metamorphoses, bk. 2, li. 240.—Horace, bk. 1, ltr. 17, li. 36.—Pliny, bk. 34, ch. 2.—Statius, Thebiad, bk. 7, li. 106.—Pausanias, bk. 2, ch. 1, &c.—Strabo, bk. 8, &c.—Homer, Iliad, bk. 15.—Cicero, Tusculanæ Disputationes, bk. 4, ch. 14; Against Verres, bk. 4, ch. 44; de Natura Deorum, bk. 3.——An actor at Rome. Juvenal, satire 8, li. 197.
Coriŏlānus, the surname of Caius Martius from his victory over Corioli, where, from a private soldier, he gained the amplest honours. When master of the place, he accepted, as the only reward, the surname of Coriolanus, a horse and prisoners, and his ancient host, to whom he immediately gave his liberty. After a number of military exploits, and many services to his country, he was refused the consulship by the people, when his scars had for a while influenced them in his favour. This raised his resentment; and when the Romans had received a present of corn from Gelo king of Sicily, Coriolanus insisted that it should be sold for money, and not be given gratis. Upon this the tribunes raised the people against him for his imprudent advice, and even wished him to be put to death. This rigorous sentence was stopped by the influence of the senators, and Coriolanus submitted to a trial. He was banished by a majority of three tribes, and he immediately retired among the Volsci, to Attius Tullus, his greatest enemy, from whom he met a most friendly reception. He advised him to make war against Rome, and he marched at the head of the Volsci as general. The approach of Coriolanus greatly alarmed the Romans, who sent him several embassies to reconcile him to his country, and to solicit his return. He was deaf to all proposals, and bade them prepare for war. He pitched his camp only at the distance of five miles from the city; and his enmity against his country would have been fatal, had not his wife Volumnia, and his mother Veturia, been prevailed upon by the Roman matrons to go and appease his resentment. The meeting of Coriolanus with his family was tender and affecting. He remained long inexorable; but at last the tears and entreaties of a mother and a wife prevailed over the stern and obstinate resolutions of an enemy, and Coriolanus marched the Volsci from the neighbourhood of Rome. To show their sense of Volumnia’s merit and patriotism, the Romans dedicated a temple to Female Fortune. The behaviour of Coriolanus, however, displeased the Volsci. He was summoned to appear before the people of Antium; but the clamours which his enemies raised were so prevalent, that he was murdered at the place appointed for his trial, B.C. 488. His body was honoured with a magnificent funeral by the Volsci, and the Roman matrons put on mourning for his loss. Some historians say that he died in exile, in an advanced old age. Plutarch, Parallel Lives.—Florus, bk. 2, ch. 22.