The History of Antiquity, Vol. 5 (of 6)Duncker, Max
History
The History of Antiquity, Vol. 5 (of 6)
Duncker, Max
History, Ancient
The epithet which Moses gives to
Asdahag, Biurasp, is also of Iranian origin; Baevaraçpa means the lord
of 10,000 horses. That the descendants of Astyages are spoken of in the
national legend of Armenia as the descendants of the dragon, shows that
the Armenians had confounded Astyages of Media with Azhi dahaka or
Zohak. The Armenians can only claim as their own the legend of King
Tigran, who overcomes and slays Asdahag of Media. They ascribe to their
princes the overthrow of the Medes. As already remarked, the Armenian
legend of Tigran must come down from an early date. Xenophon makes
Tigran the son of the king of Armenia, the most faithful helper and
associate of Cyrus.[540]
Leaving out of sight the romance of Xenophon, and the Armenian
tradition, which involve special hypotheses, the accounts in the West of
the fall of Astyages go back to two distinct versions, one of which we
have in the narrative of Herodotus, the other in the narrative of
Ctesias-Nicolaus, which is presupposed in Deinon and Polyaenus. In
Trogus we have a third version, which combines the two. So far as
Justin's excerpt allows us to form an opinion, this version, and the
fragments of Diodorus, are based upon the Persian history of Deinon. The
introduction is distinguished from the account of Herodotus by the fact
that only one dream of Astyages is mentioned; that Cyrus is already
exposed, and a dog is suckling him before the herdsman's wife, whose
name was "dog," brings him up; then follows the story of Herodotus,
including the letter, which Harpagus sends to Cyrus in the hare's belly.
At this point Trogus passes into the account of Nicolaus; he represents
Cyrus as receiving in a dream the exhortation to rise against Astyages,
and to take the first man he meets as his associate. Cyrus meets
Oebares, though not, it is true, on the borders of the Cadusians. The
place of the horsemen, who in Nicolaus are first sent by Astyages, is
taken in Trogus by the march of Harpagus, and his desertion to Cyrus;
then follows the narrative of the war, which in the most essential
traits agrees with the version of Ctesias-Nicolaus. From Deinon's
fragments we shall add to the excerpt from Trogus, that Cyrus before his
rebellion had served at the court of Astyages as overseer of the
staff-bearers, and then of the body-guard; that Astyages was warned by
Angares; and, finally, the defection of the Medes after the battle of
Pasargadae, as given in the fragments of Diodorus.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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