DIDO, or ELISA, in Ancient Mythology, the reputed founder of Carthage, was the daughter of Mutgo (or as he is called by others Belus or Agenor) king of Tyre. On the death of this prince Dido married his brother, her own uncle, Acerbas, or as he is called by Virgil Sichæus, high-priest of Hercules, and a man of immense wealth. On the death of Mutgo, Pygmalion succeeded to the Tyrian throne. Envy the great possessions of his uncle Sichæus, he is said to have put him to death, and Dido immediately made preparations for leaving the country. In company with a few of the Tyrian nobles, who were discontented with the rule of Pygmalion, she left her native country, taking with her the treasures of her murdered husband. The fugitives first landed at the island of Cyprus, whence they carried off eighty virgins to furnish wives for the settlers in the new colony which they intended to found. Pursuing her voyage, Dido landed on the northern coast of Africa, where she purchased from the natives as much soil as she could cover with the hide of a bull. She cut the hide however into such thin stripes that she inclosed a large tract of country, on which she immediately began to build a city. As the city, which was named Carthage, rose from its foundations, the neighbouring chiefs viewed it with jealousy; and one of their number, Hiabas, at length sent to demand the hand of Dido in marriage, threatening to make war on the infant state in the event of a refusal. Dido at first declined, and ultimately demanded three months to make the necessary preparations. At the end of that period she caused a splendid funeral pyre to be erected in the city. Ascending this with a drawn sword in her hand, she stabbed herself in presence of all the people. The story of Dido as narrated by Virgil differs considerably from that which we have given. In the Æneid, Dido is represented as falling in love with the hero of that epic, and killing herself when she discovers that her passion is not reciprocated. The glaring anachronism involved in this version of the story has been frequently remarked.