SAINT, was born in Egypt in 251, and inherited a large fortune, which he distributed among his neighbours and the poor, retired into solitude, founded a religious order, built many monasteries, and died anno 356. Many ridiculous stories are told of his conflicts with the devil, and of his miracles. There are seven epistles extant attributed to him.

St Anthony is sometimes represented with a fire by his side, signifying that he relieves persons from the inflammation called after his name; but always accompanied by a hog, on account of his having been a swineherd, and curing all disorders in that animal. To do him the greater honour, the Romans in several places keep at common charges a hog denominated St Anthony's hog, for which they have great veneration. Some will have St Anthony's picture on the walls of their houses, hoping by that to be preserved from the plague; and the Italians, who do not know the true signification of the fire painted at the side of their saint, concluding that he preserves houses from being burnt, invoke him on such occasions. Both painters and poets have made very free with this saint and his followers: the former by the many ludicrous pictures of his temptation; and the latter, by divers epigrams on his disciples or friars: one of which is the following, printed in Stephen's World of Wonders:

Once fed'dst thou, Anthony, an herd of swine, And now an herd of monks thou feedest still. For wit and gut alike both charges bin; Both loven fith alike; both like to fill Their greedy paunch alike: nor was that kind More beastly, fustify, twinish, than this last. All else agrees: one fault I only find, Thou feedest not thy monks with oaken mast.

or Knights of St Anthony, a military order, instituted by Albert duke of Bavaria, Holland, and Zealand, when he designed to make war against the Turks in 1382. The knights wore a collar of gold. ANTHROPOLITÆ, in church history, an appellation given to the Nestorians, on account of their worshipping Christ, notwithstanding that they believed him to be a mere man.