Seeing Old Egypt
March 19, 2020![]() |
Herodotus |
Herodotus, An
Account of Egypt: Being the Second Book of His Histories Called
Euterpe
Vol. 33, pp. 72-84 of
The Harvard Classics
The mysterious
Egyptian temples, the floating islands, the huge pyramids and the
many wonders of ancient Egypt are pictured for you by Herodotus.
(Last recorded event
in Herodotus' history dated March 19, 478 B. C.)
Among the Hellenes Heracles, and
Dionysos and Pan are accounted the latest-born of the gods; but with
the Egyptians Pan is a very ancient god, and he is one of those which
are called the eight gods, while Heracles is of the second rank, who
are called the twelve gods, and Dionysos is of the third rank, namely
of those who were born of the twelve gods. Now as to Heracles I have
shown already how many years old he is according to the Egyptians
themselves, reckoning down to the reign of Amasis, and Pan is said to
have existed for yet more years than these, and Dionysos for the
smallest number of years as compared with the others; and even for
this last they reckon down to the reign of Amasis fifteen thousand
years. This the Egyptians say that they know for a certainty, since
they always kept a reckoning and wrote down the years as they came.
Now the Dionysos who is said to have been born of Semele the
daughter of Cadmos, was born about sixteen hundred years before my
time, and Heracles who was the son of Alcmene, about nine hundred
years, and that Pan who was born of Penelope, for of her and of
Hermes Pan is said by the Hellenes to have been born, came into being
later than the wars of Troy, about eight hundred years before my
time. Of these two accounts every man may adopt that one which he
shall find the more credible when he hears it. I however, for my
part, have already declared my opinion about them. For if these also,
like Heracles the son of Amphitryon, had appeared before all men’s
eyes and had lived their lives to old age in Hellas, I mean Dionysos
the son of Semele and Pan the son of Penelope, then one would
have said that these also had been born mere men, having the names of
those gods who had come into being long before: but as it is, with
regard to Dionysos, the Hellenes say that as soon as he was born Zeus
sewed him up in his thigh and carried him to Nysa, which is above
Egypt in the land of Ethiopia; and as to Pan, they cannot say whither
he went after he was born. Hence it has become clear to me that the
Hellenes learnt the names of these gods later than those of the other
gods, and trace their descent as if their birth occurred at the time
when they first learnt their names.
Thus far then the history is told by
the Egyptians themselves; but I will now recount that which other
nations also tell, and the Egyptians in agreement with the others, of
that which happened in this land: and there will be added to this
also something of that which I have myself seen.
Being set free after the reign of the
priest of Hephaistos, the Egyptians, since they could not live any
time without a king, set up over them twelve kings, having divided
all Egypt into twelve parts. These made intermarriages with one
another and reigned, making agreement that they would not put down
one another by force, nor seek to get an advantage over one another,
but would live in perfect friendship: and the reason why they made
these agreements, guarding them very strongly from violation, was
this, namely that an oracle had been given to them at first when they
began to exercise their rule, that he of them who should pour a
libation with a bronze cup in the temple of Hephaistos, should be
king of all Egypt (for they used to assemble together in all the
temples). Moreover they resolved to join all together and leave a
memorial of themselves; and having so resolved they caused to be made
a labyrinth, situated a little above the lake of Moiris and nearly
opposite to that which is called the City of Crocodiles. This I saw
myself, and I found it greater than words can say. For if one should
put together and reckon up all the buildings and all the great works
produced by Hellenes, they would prove to be inferior in labour and
expense to this labyrinth, though it is true that both the temple at
Ephesos and that at Samos are works worthy of note. The pyramids also
were greater than words can say, and each one of them is equal to
many works of the Hellenes, great as they may be; but the labyrinth
surpasses even the pyramids. It has twelve courts covered in, with
gates facing one another, six upon the North side and six upon the
South, joining on one to another, and the same wall surrounds them
all outside; and there are in it two kinds of chambers, the one kind
below the ground and the other above upon these, three thousand in
number, of each kind fifteen hundred. The upper set of chambers we
ourselves saw, going through them, and we tell of them having looked
upon them with our own eyes; but the chambers under ground we heard
about only; for the Egyptians who had charge of them were not willing
on any account to show them, saying that here were the sepulchres of
the kings who had first built this labyrinth and of the sacred
crocodiles. Accordingly we speak of the chambers below by what we
received form hearsay, while those above we saw ourselves and found
them to be works of more than human greatness. For the passages
through the chambers, and the goings this way and that way through
the courts, which were admirably adorned, afforded endless matter for
marvel, as we went through from a court to the chambers beyond it,
and from the chambers to colonnades, and from the colonnades to other
rooms, and then from the chambers again to other courts. Over the
whole of these is a roof made of stone like the walls; and the walls
are covered with figures carved upon them, each court being
surrounded with pillars of white stone fitted together most
perfectly; and at the end of the labyrinth, by the corner of it,
there is a pyramid of forty fathoms, upon which large figures are
carved, and to this there is a way made under ground.
Such is this labyrinth: but a cause
for marvel even greater than this is afforded by the lake, which is
called the lake of Moiris, along the side of which this labyrinth is
built. The measure of its circuit is three thousand six hundred
furlongs (being sixty schoines), and this is the same
number of furlongs as the extent of Egypt itself along the sea. The
lake lies extended lengthwise from North to South, and in depth where
it is deepest it is fifty fathoms. That this lake is artificial and
formed by digging is self-evident, for about in the middle of the
lake stand two pyramids, each rising above the water to a height of
fifty fathoms, the part which is built below the water being of just
the same height; and upon each is placed a colossal statue of stone
sitting upon a chair. Thus the pyramids are a hundred fathoms high;
and these hundred fathoms are equal to a furlong of six hundred feet,
the fathom being measured as six feet or four cubits, the feet being
four palms each, and the cubits six. The water in the lake does not
come from the place where it is, for the country there is very
deficient in water, but it has been brought thither from the Nile by
a canal; and for six months the water flows into the lake, and for
six months out into the Nile again; and whenever it flows out, then
for the six months it brings into the royal treasury a talent of
silver a day from the fish which are caught, and twenty pounds when
the water comes in. The natives of the place moreover said that this
lake had an outlet under ground to the Syrtis which is in Libya,
turning towards the interior of the continent upon the Western side
and running along by the mountain which is above Memphis. Now since I
did not see anywhere existing the earth dug out of this excavation
(for that was a matter which drew my attention), I asked those who
dwelt nearest to the lake where the earth was which had been dug out.
These told me to what place it had been carried away; and I readily
believed them, for I knew by report that a similar thing had been
done at Nineveh, the city of the Assyrians. There certain thieves
formed a design once to carry away the wealth of Sardanapallos son of
Ninos, the king, which wealth was very great and was kept in
treasure-houses under the earth. Accordingly they began from their
own dwelling, and making estimate of their direction they dug under
ground towards the king’s palace; and the earth which was brought
out of the excavation they used to carry away, when night came on, to
the river Tigris which flows by the city of Nineveh, until at last
they accomplished that which they desired. Similarly, as I heard, the
digging of the lake in Egypt was effected, except that it was done
not by night but during the day; for as they dug the Egyptians
carried to the Nile the earth which was dug out; and the river, when
it received it, would naturally bear it away and disperse it. Thus is
this lake said to have been dug out.
Now the twelve kings continued to rule
justly, but in course of time it happened thus:—After sacrifice in
the temple of Hephaistos they were about to make libation on the last
day of the feast, and the chief-priest, in bringing out for them the
golden cups with which they had been wont to pour libations, missed
his reckoning and brought eleven only for the twelve kings. Then that
one of them who was standing last in order, namely Psammetichos,
since he had no cup took off from his head his helmet, which was of
bronze, and having held it out to receive the wine he proceeded to
make libation: likewise all the other kings were wont to wear helmets
and they happened to have them then. Now Psammetichos held out his
helmet with no treacherous meaning; but they taking note of that
which had been done by Psammetichos and of the oracle, namely how it
had been declared to them that whosoever of them should make libation
with a bronze cup should be sole king of Egypt, recollecting, I say,
the saying of the Oracle, they did not indeed deem it right to slay
Psammetichos, since they found by examination that he had not done it
with any forethought, but they determined to strip him of almost all
his power and to drive him away into the fen-country, and that from
the fen-country he should not hold any dealings with the rest of
Egypt. This Psammetichos had formerly been a fugitive from the
Ethiopian Sabacos who had killed his father Necos, from his, I say,
he had then been a fugitive in Syria; and when the Ethiopian had
departed in consequence of the vision of the dream, the Egyptians who
were of the district of Saïs brought him back to his own country.
Then afterwards, when he was king, it was his fate to be a fugitive a
second time on account of the helmet, being driven by the eleven
kings into the fen-country. So then holding that he had been
grievously wronged by them, he thought how he might take vengeance on
those who had driven him out: and when he had sent to the Oracle of
Leto in the city of Buto, where the Egyptians have their most
truthful Oracle, there was given to him the reply that vengeance
would come when men of bronze appeared from the sea. And he was
strongly disposed not to believe that bronze men would come to help
him; but after no long time had passed, certain Ionians and Carians
who had sailed forth for plunder were compelled to come to shore in
Egypt, and they having landed and being clad in bronze armour, one of
the Egyptians, not having before seen men clad in bronze armour, came
to the fen-land and brought a report to Psammetichos that bronze men
had come from the sea and were plundering the plain. So he,
perceiving that the saying of the Oracle was coming to pass, dealt in
a friendly manner with the Ionians and Carians, and with large
promises he persuaded them to take his part. Then when he had
persuaded them, with the help of those Egyptians who favoured his
cause and of these foreign mercenaries, he overthrew the kings.
Having thus got power over all Egypt, Psammetichos made for
Hephaistos that gateway of the temple at Memphis which is turned
towards the South Wind; and he built a court for Apis, in which Apis
is kept when he appears, opposite to the gateway of the temple,
surrounded all with pillars and covered with figures; and instead of
columns there stand to support the roof of the court colossal statues
twelve cubits high. Now Apis is in the tongue of the Hellenes
Epaphos. To the Ionians and to the Carians who had helped him
Psammetichos granted portions of land to dwell in, opposite to one
another with the river Nile between, and these were called
“Encampments”; these portions of land he gave them, and he paid
them besides all that he had promised: moreover he placed with them
Egyptian boys to have them taught the Hellenic tongue; and from
these, who learnt the language thoroughly, are descended the present
class of interpreters in Egypt. Now the Ionians and Carians occupied
these portions of land for a long time, and they are towards the sea
a little below the city of Bubastis, on that which is called the
Pelusian mouth of the Nile. These men king Amasis afterwards removed
from thence and established them at Memphis, making them into a guard
for himself against the Egyptians: and they being settled in Egypt,
we who are Hellenes know by intercourse with them the certainty of
all that which happened in Egypt beginning from king Psammetichos and
afterwards; for these were the first men of foreign tongue who
settled in Egypt: and in the land from which they were removed there
still remained down to my time the sheds where their ships were drawn
up and the ruins of their houses.
Thus then Psammetichos obtained Egypt:
and of the Oracle which is in Egypt I have made mention often before
this, and now I will give an account of it, seeing that it is worthy
to be described. This Oracle which is in Egypt is sacred to Leto, and
it is established in a great city near that mouth of the Nile which
is called Sebennytic, as one sails up the river from the sea; and the
name of this city where the Oracle is found is Buto, as I have said
before in mentioning it. In this Buto there is a temple of Apollo and
Artemis; and the temple-house of Leto, in which the Oracle is, is
both great in itself and has a gateway of the height of ten fathoms:
but that which caused me most to marvel of the things to be seen
there, I will now tell. There is in this sacred enclosure a house of
Leto made of one single stone as regards both height and length, and
of which all the walls are in these two directions equal, each being
forty cubits; and for the covering in of the roof there lies another
stone upon the top, the cornice measuring four cubits. This house
then of all the things that were to be seen by me in that temple is
the most marvellous, and among those which come next in the island
called Chemmis. This is situated in a deep and broad lake by the side
of the temple at Buto, and it is said by the Egyptians that this
island is a floating island. I myself did not see it either floating
about or moved from its place, and I feel surprise at hearing of it,
wondering if it be indeed a floating island. In this island of which
I speak there is a great temple-house of Apollo, and three several
altars are set up within, and there are planted in the island many
palm-trees and other trees, both bearing fruit and not bearing fruit.
And the Egyptians, when they say that it is floating, add this story,
namely that in this island, which formerly was not floating, Leto,
being one of the eight gods who came into existence first, and
dwelling in the city of Buto where she has this Oracle received
Apollo from Isis as a charge and preserved him, concealing him in the
island which is said now to be a floating island, at that time when
Typhon came after him seeking everywhere and desiring to find the son
of Osiris. Now they say that Apollo and Artemis are children of
Dionysos and of Isis, and that Leto became their nurse and preserver;
and in the Egyptian tongue Apollo is Oros, Demeter is Isis, and
Artemis is Bubastis. From this story and from no other Æschylus the
son of Euphorion took this which I shall say, wherein he differs from
all the preceding poets; he represented namely that Artemis was the
daughter of Demeter. For this reason then, they say, it became a
floating island.
Such is the story which they tell; but
as for Psammetichos, he was king over Egypt for four-and-fifty years,
of which for thirty years save one he was sitting before Azotos, a
great city of Syria, besieging it, until at last he took it: and this
Azotos of all cities about which we have knowledge held out for the
longest time under a siege.
The son of Psammetichos was Necos, and
he became king of Egypt. This man was the first who attempted the
channel leading to the Erythraian Sea, which Dareios the Persian
afterwards completed: the length of this is a voyage of four days,
and in breadth it was so dug that two triremes could go side by side
driven by oars; and the water is brought into it from the Nile. The
channel is conducted a little above the city of Bubastis by Patumos
the Arabian city, and runs into the Erythraian Sea: and it is dug
first along those parts of the plain of Egypt which lie towards
Arabia, just above which run the mountains which extend opposite
Memphis, where are the stone-quarries,—along the base of these
mountains the channel is conducted from West to East for a great way;
and after that it is directed towards a break in the hills and tends
from these mountains towards the noon-day and the South Wind to the
Arabian gulf. Now in the place where the journey is least and
shortest from the Northern to the Southern Sea (which is also called
Erythraian), that is from Mount Casion, which is the boundary between
Egypt and Syria, the distance is exactly a thousand furlongs to the
Arabian gulf; but the channel is much longer, since it is more
winding; and in the reign of Necos there perished while digging it
twelve myriads of the Egyptians. Now Necos ceased in the midst of his
digging, because the utterance of an Oracle impeded him, which was to
the effect that he was working for the Barbarian: and the Egyptians
call all men Barbarians who do not agree with them in speech. Thus
having ceased from the work of the channel, Necos betook himself to
waging wars, and triremes were built by him, some for the Northern
Sea and others in the Arabian gulf for the Erythraian Sea; and of
these the sheds are still to be seen. These ships he used when he
needed them; and also on land Necos engaged battle at Magdolos with
the Syrians, and conquered them; and after this he took Cadytis,
which is a great city of Syria: and the dress which he wore when he
made these conquests he dedicated to Apollo, sending it to Branchidai
of the Milesians. After this, having reigned in all sixteen years, he
brought his life to an end, and handed on the kingdom to Psammis his
son.
While this Psammis was king of Egypt,
there came to him men sent by the Eleians, who boasted that they
ordered the contest at Olympia in the most just and honourable manner
possible and thought that not even the Egyptians, the wisest of men,
could find out anything besides, to be added to their rules. Now when
the Eleians came to Egypt and said that for which they had come, then
this king called together those of the Egyptians who were reputed the
wisest, and when the Egyptians had come together they heard the
Eleians tell of all that which it was their part to do in regard to
the contest; and when they had related everything, they said that
they had come to learn in addition anything which the Egyptians might
be able to find out besides, which was juster than this. They then
having consulted together asked the Eleians whether their own
citizens took part in the contest; and they said that it was
permitted to any one who desired it, both of their own people and of
the other Hellenes equally, to take part in the contest: upon which
the Egyptians said that in so ordering the games they had wholly
missed the mark of justice; for it could not be but that they would
take part with the man of their own State, if he was contending, and
so act unfairly to the stranger: but if they really desired, as they
said, to order the games justly, and if this was the cause for which
they had come to Egypt, they advised them to order the contest so as
to be for strangers alone to contend in, and that no Eleian should be
permitted to contend. Such was the suggestion made by the Egyptians
to the Eleians.
When Psammis had been king of Egypt
for only six years and has made an expedition to Ethiopia and
immediately afterwards had ended his life, Apries the son of Psammis
received the kingdom in succession. This man came to be the most
prosperous of all the kings up to that time except only his
forefather Psammetichos; and he reigned five-and-twenty years, during
which he led an army against Sidon and fought a sea-fight with the
king of Tyre. Since however it was fated that evil should come upon
him, it came by occasion of a matter which I shall relate at greater
length in the Libyan history, and at present but shortly. Apries
having sent a great expedition against the Kyrenians, met with
correspondingly great disaster; and the Egyptians considering him to
blame for this revolted from him, supposing that Apries had with
forethought sent them out to evident calamity, in order (as they
said) that there might be a slaughter of them, and he might the more
securely rule over the other Egyptians. Being indignant at this, both
these men who had returned from the expedition and also the friends
of those who had perished made revolt openly. Hearing this Apries
sent to them Amasis, to cause them to cease by persuasion; and when
he had come and was seeking to retrain the Egyptians, as he was
speaking and telling them not to do so, one of the Egyptians stood up
behind him and put a helmet upon his head, saying as he did so that
he put it on to crown him king. And to him this that was done was in
some degree not unwelcome, as he proved by his behaviour; for as soon
as the revolted Egyptians had set him up as king, he prepared to
march against Apries: and Apries hearing this sent to Amasis one of
the Egyptians who were about his own person, a man of reputation,
whose name was Patarbemis, enjoining him to bring Amasis alive into
his presence. When this Patarbemis came and summoned Amasis, the
latter, who happened to be sitting on horseback, lifted up his leg
and behaved in an unseemly manner, bidding him take that back to
Apries. Nevertheless, they say, Patarbemis made demand of him that he
should go to the king, seeing that the king had sent to summon him;
and he answered him that he had for some time past been preparing to
do so, and that Apries would have no occasion to find fault with him,
for he would both come himself and bring others with him. Then
Patarbemis, both perceiving his intention from that which he said,
and also seeing his preparations, departed in haste, desiring to make
known as quickly as possible to the king the things which were being
done: and when he came back to Apries not bringing Amasis, the king
paying no regard to that which he said, but being moved by violent
anger, ordered his ears and his nose to be cut off. And the rest of
the Egyptians who still remained on his side, when they saw the man
of most repute among them thus suffering shameful outrage, waited no
longer but joined the others in revolt, and delivered themselves over
to Amasis. Then Apries having heard this also, armed his foreign
mercenaries and marched against the Egyptians: now he had about him
Carian and ionian mercenaries to the number of thirty thousand; and
his royal palace was in the city of Saïs, of great size and worthy
to be seen. So Apries and his army were going against the Egyptians,
and Amasis and those with him were going against the mercenaries; and
both sides came to the city of Momemphis and were about to make trial
of one another in fight.
Now of the Egyptians there are seven
classes, and of these one class is called that of the priests, and
another that of the warriors, while the others are the cowherds,
swineherds, shopkeepers, interpreters, and boatmen. This is the
number of the classes of the Egyptians, and their names are given
them from the occupations which they follow. Of them the warriors are
called Calasirians and Hermotybians, and they are of the following
districts,—for all Egypt is divided into districts. The districts
of the Hermotybians are those of Busiris, Saïs, Chemmis, Papremis,
the island called Prosopitis, and the half of Natho,—of these
districts are the Hermotybians, who reached when most numerous the
number of sixteen myriads. Of these not one has learnt anything of
handicraft, but they are given up to war entirely. Again the
districts of the Calasirians are those of Thebes, Bubastis, Aphthis,
Tanis, Mendes, Sebennytos, Athribis, Pharbaithos, Thmuis, Onuphis,
Anytis, Myecphoris,—this last is on an island opposite to the city
of Bubastis. These are the districts of the Calasirians; and they
reached, when most numerous, to the number of five-and-twenty myriads
of men; nor is it lawful for these, any more than for the others, to
practise any craft; but they practise that which has to do with war
only, handling down the tradition from father to son. Now whether the
Hellenes have learnt this also from the Egyptians, I am not able to
say for certain, since I see that the Thracians also and Scythians
and Persians and Lydians and almost all the Barbarians esteem those
of their citizens who learn the arts, and the descendants of them, as
less honourable than the rest; while those who have got free from all
practice of manual arts are accounted noble, and especially those who
are devoted to war: however that may be, the Hellenes have all learnt
this, and especially the Lacedemonians; but the Corinthians least of
all cast slight upon those who practise handicraft.
The following privilege was specially
granted to this class and to none others of the Egyptians except the
priests, that is to say, each man had twelve yokes of land specially
granted to him free from imposts: now the yoke of land measures a
hundred Egyptian cubits every way, and the Egyptian cubit is, as it
happens, equal to that of Samos. This, I say, was a special privilege
granted to all, and they also had certain advantages in turn and not
the same men twice; that is to say, a thousand of the Calasirians and
a thousand of the Hermotybians acted as body-guard to the king during
each year; and these had besides their yokes of land an allowance
given them for each day of five pounds weight of bread to each man,
and two pounds of beef, and four half-pints of wine. This was the
allowance given to those who were serving as the king’s body-guard
for the time being.
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