Three days of farther march, (called twenty parasangs in all) brought
the army to Ikonium, (now Konieh), the extreme city of Phrygia;
where Cyrus halted three days. He then marched for five days (thirty
parasangs) through Lykaonia; which country, as being out of his
own satrapy, and even hostile, he allowed the Greeks to plunder.
Lykaonia being immediately on the borders of Pisidia, its inhabitants
were probably reckoned as Pisidians, since they were of the like
predatory character:[43] so that Cyrus would be partially realizing
the pretended purpose of his expedition. He thus, too, approached
near to Mount Taurus, which separated him from Kilikia; and he here
sent the Kilikian princess, together with Menon and his division,
over the mountain, by a pass shorter and more direct, but seemingly
little frequented, and too difficult for the whole army; in order
that they might thus get straight into Kilikia,[44] in the rear of
Syennesis, who was occupying the regular pass more to the northward.
Intending to enter with his main body through this latter pass, Cyrus
first proceeded through Kappadokia (four days’ march, twenty-five
parasangs) to Dana or Tyana, a flourishing city of Kappadokia; where
he halted three days, and where he put to death two Persian officers,
on a charge of conspiring against him.[45]
[43] Xen. Anab. iii, 2, 25.
[44] This shorter and more direct pass crosses the Taurus by
Kizil-Chesmeh, Alan Buzuk, and Mizetli; it led directly to the
Kilikian seaport-town Soli, afterwards called Pompeiopolis. It
is laid down in the Peutinger Tables as the road from Iconium to
Pompeiopolis (Ainsworth, p. 40 _seq._; Chesney, Euph. and Tigr.
ii, p. 209).
[45] Xen. Anab. i, 2, 20.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account