Herodotus - The Histories.pdf

The Histories–Book Five V 103
which had seized all the skirts of the town, and
finding themselves unable to get out, came in
crowds into the market-place, and gathered themselves
upon the banks of the Pactolus This stream,
which comes down from Mount Tmolus, and
brings the Sardians a quantity of gold-dust, runs
directly through the market place of Sardis, and
joins the Hermus, before that river reaches the
sea. So the Lydians and Persians, brought together
in this way in the market-place and about the
Pactolus, were forced to stand on their defence;
and the Ionians, when they saw the enemy in part
resisting, in part pouring towards them in dense
crowds, took fright, and drawing off to the ridge
which is called Tmolus when night came, went
back to their ships.
Sardis however was burnt, and, among other
buildings, a temple of the native goddess Cybele
was destroyed; which was the reason afterwards
alleged by the Persians for setting on fire the temples
of the Greeks. As soon as what had happened
was known, all the Persians who were stationed
on this side the Halys drew together, and brought