Leonardo da Vinci. See Vinci.
Leonardoni, Francesco, an Italian painter, was born at Venice in 1654; visited Spain and settled at Madrid; gained great eminence as a portrait-painter; executed several historical works for the churches, char- acterized by a grand style of design ; and died at Madrid in 1711. Among his principal works are a large altar- piece of the Incarnation, in the Church of San Geronimo el Real, at Madrid :— and' two subjects from the Life of
LEONBRUNO
3G8
LEONTIUS
St. Joseph, in the Church of the Colegio de Atocha. See Spooner. Biorj. Hist, of Fine A rts, s. v.
Leonbruno, Lokknzo. an Italian painter, was born at^Mantiia in 14*^9; studied under count Castiglione, the friend ol'Kaphael; appointed painter to the duke of Man- tua; t^ave offence to (iiulio Komano, in consequence of which lie was obliged to quit Mantua; settled at INIilan, and died there about 1537. Three of his pictures at Man- tua are ver\' highly praised, viz., St. Jerome : — The Meta- morphosis of Midas : — and The Body of Christ in the A rms of the Virgin. See Spooner, Biofj. Hist, of Fine Arts, s. v.
Leonidas, father of the celebrated Origen, was a Christian martyr of the 3d century. Previous to his execution, his son, in order to encourage him, wrote to him as follows : " Beware that your care for us does not make you change your resolution !'' The father accept- ed the heroic exhortation of the son, and yielded his neck joyfully to the stroke of the executioner.— Fox, Book- of Martyrs, p. 23.
Leouistae is the name by which the Waldenses are sometimes referred to, and is derived from Leoua (Lyons).
Leontes, an important river of northern Palestine, doubtless the present Litany, which bursts in a deep chasm through the Lebanon range (Kobinson, Res. iii, 409 sq. ; Kitter, ^rcZA-.x vii, 48 sq.; '&m\t\\, Diet, of Class. Geog. s. v.). For a description, see Lebanon.
Leontius, a Christian martyr and saint, probably of Arabian firigin, was born at Vicentia, in Venetia, in the 3d century after Christ. He afterwards moved to Aquileia, in Venetia, where, in company with St. Carpophorus, who was either his brother or intimate friend, he distinguished himself by zeal in favor of Christianity. For this offence they were both brought before the governor Lysias, and after being tortured in various modes, and, according to the legend, miracu- lously delivered, they were at last beheaded, probably A.U. 300. Their memory is celebrated by the Romish Church on Aug. 28. See the Acta Sanctorum (in Aug. 20), where several difficulties are critically discussed at length. — Smith, Diet, of Or. and Rom. Biog. vol. ii, s. v.
Leontius of Antiocii, a learned Syrian theologian of the early Church, was born in Phrygia about the close of the 3d or the opening of the 4th century. He was a disciple of the martyr Luciaiuis, and, having entered the Church, was ordained a presbyter. In order to enjoy without scandal the society of a young female, Eusto- lius or Eustolia, to whom he was much attached, he mutilated himself, but, notwithstanding, did not escape suspicion, and was finally deposed from his office. On the deposition, however, of Stephanus, or Stephen, bish- op of Antioch, he was, by the favor of the emperor Con- stantius and the predominant Arian party, appointed to that see about 348 or 349. Leontius died about A.D. 358. Of his writings, which were numerous, nothing remains except a fragment of what Cave describes, we know not on what authority, as Orutio in Passionem S. Bahyhe (cited in the Paschal Chronicle in the notice of the Decian persecution). In this fragment it is dis- tinctly asserted that both the emperor Philip and his wife were avowed Christians (Socrates, Hist. Eccles. ii, 2G; Sozomen, Hut. Eccles. iii, 20; Theodoret, Hist. Eccles. ii, 10, 24 ; Philostorgius, Hist. Eccles. iii, 15, 17, 18 ; Atha- nasius, Apolog. de Fuga sua, c. 2(5; Hist. Arianor. ad Monachos, c. 28 ; Chron. Ptisch. i, 270, 289, ed. Paris ; p. 210, 231, ed. Venice; p. 503, 535, ed. Bonn; Cave. Hist. Lilteraiia, i, 211, ed. Oxon. 1740-43 ; Fabricius, Biblioth. Grcpca, vlii, 324). — Smith, Diet, of Greek and Rom. Biog. vol. ii, s. V.
Leontius of Arabissus, in Cappadocia, of which town he was bishop, nourished as an ecclesiastical writer. The period in which he lived, however, is quite uncer- tain. Photius has noticed tw() of his works*: 1. EIq tijv KTiciv \6yoQ {Sernio de Creatione^, and, 2. Ei'f tov AaZr apov {De Lazaro), and gives extracts from both these works (Photius, Cod. 272). See also Cave, Hist. Liiier,
i, 551; Fabricius, Bihl. Grceca, viii, 824; x, 268, 771.— Smith, Diet, of Greek and Roman Biog. vol. ii, s. v.
Leontius of Arelate, or Arles, was bishop of tliat city about the middle of the 5th century. Several letters were written to him by pope Ililarius, A.D. 401- 4G7, which are given in the Concilia, and a letter of Le- t)ntius to the pope, dated A.D. 4G2, is also given in the j Concilia and in D'Achery's Sjncilef/ium (v, 578 of the [original edition, or iii, 302 in the edition of De la Barre, Paris, 1723, folio). Leontius presided in a council at Ai'les, held A.D. 475, to condemn an error into which some had fallen respecting the doctrine of predestina- tion. He appears to have died in A.D. 484. He ia mentioned bv Sidonius ApoUinaris {Epist. vii, 6). See CoHcil. iv, col. 1039, 1041, 1044 (1828, ed. Labbe) ; Cave, Hist. Lilt, i, 449 ; Fabricius, Bihl. Grceca, viii, 324 ; xii, 653 ; Bibl. Med. et Infm. Latinitatis, v, 268 (ed. JMansi) ; Tillemont, Memoires, xvi, 38. — Smith, Diet, of Greek and Roman Biog. vol. ii, s. v.