GBOTEFEND. 304 GBOTIUS. Rudimenta Lingua; Umbricce (1835-38); liudi- minlu Linguw Oscie (1831)) ; Gcof/raphip mid Gc- Sfhichtc lull Allitttlica (1840-4-i). Grotefend's fliit'l imiioilanfi', lunvuvcr, lies in liis contribution t(j the ilecipheniient of Old Persian inscriptions. (.See CuNEiFomi Ixsaui'iiONs.) He increased tile number of certainly known characters from three to eleven, and apiaoximated the real value of several more. He made his first study in this subject in 1802, and published his chief work on it in 18.'i7, Neue Beitriige zur Erliiitlcruny dcr prrKCjtolitanischen Keilschrift. In addition to his other studies, he was one of the first to turn his attention to the difficult problem of the in- terpretation of the Lycian inscriptions. GROTESQUE (Fr., from It. (/rotteseo, gro- tesque, from yrottesca, style of painting found in ancient crypts, from gratia, cavern, trom ML. giupta, crupta, from Lat. crypta, crypt) . A style of classical ornament, so called in the thirteenth century from its having been rediscovered in the excavations made in the baths of Titus and other ancient Roman buildings. This light, fantastic style was much in favor during the Renaissance. It abounds in all kinds of transformations, from the animal to the vegetable, and mingles all the natural kingdoms in the most fanciful and picturesque confusion. The name grotesque thus came by degrees to mean a fanciful combination of natural ideas as applied to ornament. GROTH, grot, KiAUS (1819-99). A German poet, and the first writer of prominence to em- ploy 'Plattdeutsch.' or Low German, as a literary medium, born at Heide, in Ditmarsh, the western part of Holstein, Prussia. He studied at the Teachers' School in Tondern, and then secured a position as a teacher of girls in his native place, devoting his sjKire time to the study of philosophy, mathematics, and the natural sci- ences. Finally, his health giving way. lie re- tired to the island of Fehmarn, in the Baltic, "where he remained five years, and where most of his jioems were written. In 1853 he went to Kiel, then traveled through Germany and Swit- zerland, and after a two years' sojourn at Bonn, -where he received the doctor's degree, took up his residence in Dresden. In 1857 he returned to Kiel, where he became a tutor in German lan- guage and literature, and in 1860 was made professor, which position he held until his death. His fame rests chiefly on his Quickboni ( 1S53, 25th ed. 1000), a collection of poems in the Dit- marsh dialect. His works have been collected and published in four volumes (Kiel, 1893). For an estimate of his works, consult Eggers, Khius flrotli vnd die plattdeutsche Dichtiing (Berlin. 1S85). GROTH, Paul (1843—). A German miner- alogist. He was born at Magdeburg, and was educated at Freiberg and Berlin. After lecturing at the mining school and at the University of Berlin, he successively occupied the chair of mineralogy at Strassburg and ilnnich. where he was appointed custodian of the royal mineralogi- cal collections. In 1877 he founded at Leipzig the important periodical Zeitsrhrift fiir Krys- lalloyraphip iind Mineraloyie. His writings, cliiclly on mineralogy .and crystallography, in- clude: TiihcUarisrhp Vchcrxirht dcr MinPraUen itach ihren krystalloyraphisch-chrmixclieii Be::ie- Itungen yeordnet (3d ed. 1889) ; Pliysikalische Krystallographie (3d ed. 1895) ; and Grundriss der Edtlnlciiikunde (1887). GROTIUS, gro'shi-us, llU(;o, or De Groot (1583-1045). A Dutch publicist. He was born at Delft, April 10, 1583. His father, Jan de Groot, was burgomaster of the town, and also curator of the Lhiiversity of Leyden. In his eleventh year Hugo entered the I'niversity of Leyden, where lie studied under Joseph Sealiger. In his fifteenth year he took his degree. In the following year he accompanied' Olden Barneveldt, the grand ])ensionary, on his embas.sy to France, where (irutius's talents and conduct gained the favor of Henry IV. On his return he began practice as a lawyer, and conducted his first case at the bar of The Hague in 1599. In 1007 he was appointed fiscal general, and in 1013 coun- cil pensionai-y at Rotterdam. The disputes be- tween the Remonstrants and their opponents were now at their height in Holland ; Olden Barne- veldt was the protector of the former, and Gro- tius also supported them by his writings and favor. These theological strifes had a political significance as well, and in consequence both Olden Barneveldt and Grotius were arrested, tried, and condemned by the dominant party under Prince Maurice. (See B.rxeveldt. ) Olden Barneveldt was beheaded in 1019, and Grotius sentenced to imprisonment for life in the Castle of Loevenstcin. He escaped, however, by the contrivance of his wife. For some time Grotius wandered about in destitute circumstances in the Catholic portions of the Netherlands, and finally escaped to France. Here his straitened circumstances continued in spite of the fact that Louis XIII. bestowed upon him a pension of 3000 livres. since but a part of it W'as paid, and in 1031 it was with- drawn. A friendly letter from Prince Frederick of Orange induced him to return to his native country; but, by the intrigues of his enemies, sentence of perpetual exile was soon passed upon him. He removed to Hamburg, and while there he received invitations from the Kings of Den- mark, Poland, and Spain ; but the protection promised him by the Chancellor O.xenstiern. and Queen Christina's taste for literature, induced him to enter the Swedish service in 1034. He held the position of Ambassador at the French Court (1035-45). His reception by the Queen on his return to Sweden was flattering; but the liter- ai'y dilettantism of Christina's Court did not suit so serious and solid a scholar. Besides, the cli- mate of Sweden did not agree with him, and he was anxious to spend the evening of his life in his native land. In consequence, he sent in his lesignation of oflTice to the Queen, who, when she found that nothing could induce him to. stay, presented him with a sum of 10,000 crowns and some costly plate, besides placing at his disposal a vessel to conduct him down the Baltic to Liibeck, A storm compelled him to land on the coast of Pomerania. While proceeding toward Liibeck. he fell sick, and died at Rostock, August 28, 1645. To the talents of a most able statesman, Gro- tius united deep and extensive learning. He was a profound and enlightened theologian, perhaps the best exegete of his day. a distinguished scholar, an acute philosopher, .a judicious his- torian, and a splendid jurist. His metrical trans- lations from the Greek authors also display
