A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology

Smith, William

A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. William Smith, LLD, ed. 1890

Λαβώτας, (Paus.), fourth king of Sparta in the line of Agis, has nothing recorded of his reign except that he saw the commencement of the Spartan quarrel with Argos. (Paus. 3.2.3.) Herodotus says that Lycurgus was his uncle and guardian. The other account, which names the Proclid Charilaus as the name of the young king, is so generally stated by ancient writers [CHARILAUS], that, although Pausanias read the passage in Herodotus as it now stands, Wesseling and Clinton approve the correction, ἐπιτροπεύοντα ἀδελφιδέου μὲν ἑωυτοῦ, Βασιλεύοντος δὲ Σπαρτιητέων Λεωβώτεω. (Hdt. 1.65.) A similar difficulty attaches to the name, which Pausanias says Herodotus spelt Λεωβύτης; whereas our MSS., it seems, have only Λεωβώτεω and Λεωβάτεω.

[A.H.C]