Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 1 (CLIO) Complete

Translated by G. Macaulay.

Herodotus Bilingual Anthology  Studies  Herodotus in Print

107 pages - You are on Page 38

74. After this, seeing that Alyattes would not give up the Scythians when Kyaxares demanded them, there had arisen war between the Lydians and the Medes lasting five years; in which years the Medes often discomfited the Lydians and the Lydians often discomfited the Medes (and among others they fought also a battle by night): [88] and as they still carried on the war with equally balanced fortune, in the sixth year a battle took place in which it happened, when the fight had begun, that suddenly the day became night. And this change of the day Thales the Milesian had foretold to the Ionians laying down as a limit this very year in which the change took place. The Lydians however and the Medes, when they saw that it had become night instead of day, ceased from their fighting and were much more eager both of them that peace should be made between them. And they who brought about the peace between them were Syennesis the Kilikian and Labynetos the Babylonian: [89] these were they who urged also the taking of the oath by them, and they brought about an interchange of marriages; for they decided that Alyattes should give his daughter Aryenis to Astyages the son of Kyaxares, seeing that without the compulsion of a strong tie agreements are apt not to hold strongly together. Now these nations observe the same ceremonies in taking oaths as the Hellenes, and in addition to them they make incision into the skin of their arms, and then lick up the blood each of the other.

[88] It has been suggested by some that this clause is not genuine. It should not, however, be taken to refer to the battle which was interrupted by the eclipse, for (1) that did not occur in the period here spoken of; (2) the next clause is introduced by {de} (which can hardly here stand for {gar}); (3) when the eclipse occurred the fighting ceased, therefore it was no more a {nuktomakhin} than any other battle which is interrupted by darkness coming on.

[89] See ch. 188. Nabunita was his true name.

Previous / First / Herodotus History: Next Page of this Book (Clio)

Herodotus History - Table of Contents

Herodotus Home Page ||| Elpenor's Free Greek Lessons

Thucydides

Reference address : https://ellopos.net/elpenor/greek-texts/ancient-Greece/herodotus/history-1.asp?pg=38