The History of Antiquity, Vol. 6 (of 6)Duncker, Max
History
The History of Antiquity, Vol. 6 (of 6)
Duncker, Max
History, Ancient
A third story of the death of Cambyses, that of Trogus, is also retained
in an excerpt only. It is apparently taken from the Persian history of
Deinon. "Cambyses added Egypt to the kingdom of his father. Enraged at
the superstition of the Egyptians, he commanded the temples of Apis and
the other gods to be destroyed. He also sent an army to conquer the
far-famed temple of Ammon, but it was overwhelmed by storms of sand.
Then in a dream he saw his brother as the future king. Terrified by this
vision, he did not hesitate to add the murder of a brother to the
burning of temples. For this horrible service he sent Cometes, a Magian,
one of his trusted servants. Meantime, his sword coming accidentally out
of the sheath, he wounded himself deeply in the thigh, and died, as a
penalty either for the murder of his brother which he had commanded, or
for the burning of the temples. When the Magian heard this he hastened
to commit the crime before the news of the death of the king was spread
abroad; and when he had killed Smerdis, to whom the throne belonged, he
brought in his brother Oropastes. This brother was very like Smerdis in
form and feature; and as no one suspected the deception, Oropastes
became king instead of Smerdis. The matter was the more secret because
among the Persians the king lives in retirement by reason of his
majesty."[189]
Darius, in his inscriptions on Mount Behistun, has left us the authentic
though very compressed history of Cambyses. "Kambujiya, the son of
Kurus," he tells us, "was of our race, was previously king here. This
Kambujiya had a brother, Bardiya by name, of the same father and mother
as Kambujiya. Kambujiya slew this Bardiya. When Kambujiya had slain
Bardiya the people did not know that Bardiya was dead. Then Kambujiya
marched against Egypt. When Kambujiya marched against Egypt the people
became rebellious, and the lie spread both in Persia and in Media and in
the other provinces. There was a man, a Magian, Gaumata by name; he rose
up from Pisiyauvada, from mount Arakadris, which is there. It was in the
month Viyakhna, on the fourteenth day, that he rose up. He lied to the
people; I am Bardiya, the son of Kurus, the brother of Kambujiya. Then
the whole kingdom rebelled against Kambujiya; it went over to the other,
both Persia and Media and the rest of the provinces. He took them for
his own; he was king; he seized the empire. In the month Garmapada, on
the ninth day, it was that he seized the dominion. Then Kambujiya died,
for he took his own life."[190]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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