herodotus

whenever any man of the Egyptians committed any transgression, hewould never put him to death, but he gave sentence upon each manaccording to the greatness of the wrong-doing, appointing them work atthrowing up an embankment before that city from whence each man cameof those who committed wrong. Thus the cities were made higher stillthan before; for they were embanked first by those who dug thechannels in the reign of Sesostris, and then secondly in the reign ofthe Ethiopian, and thus they were made very high: and while othercities in Egypt also stood[121] high, I think in the town at Bubastisespecially the earth was piled up. In this city there is a temple verywell worthy of mention, for though there are other temples which arelarger and built with more cost, none more than this is a pleasure tothe eyes. Now Bubastis in the Hellenic tongue is Artemis, 138, and hertemple is ordered thus:--Except the entrance it is completelysurrounded by water; for channels come in from the Nile, not joiningone another, but each extending as far as the entrance of the temple,one flowing round on the one side and the other on the other side,each a hundred feet broad and shaded over with trees; and the gatewayhas a height of ten fathoms, and it is adorned with figures six cubitshigh, very noteworthy. This temple is in the middle of the city and islooked down upon from all sides as one goes round, for since the cityhas been banked up to a height, while the temple has not been movedfrom the place where it was at the first built, it is possible to lookdown into it: and round it runs a stone wall with figures carved uponit, while within it there is a grove of very large trees planted rounda large temple-house, within which is the image of the goddess: andthe breadth and length of the temple is a furlong every way. Oppositethe entrance there is a road paved with stone for about threefurlongs, which leads through the market-place towards the East, witha breadth of about four hundred feet; and on this side and on thatgrow trees of height reaching to heaven: and the road leads to thetemple of Hermes. This temple then is thus ordered.139. The final deliverance from the Ethiopian came about (they said)as follows:--he fled away because he had seen in his sleep a vision,in which it seemed to him that a man came and stood by him andcounselled him to gather together all the priests of Egypt and cutthem asunder in the midst. Having seen this dream, he said that itseemed to him that the gods were foreshowing him this to furnish anoccasion against him,[122] in order that he might do an impious deedwith respect to religion, and so receive some evil either from thegods or from men: he would not however do so, but in truth (he said)the time had expired, during which it had been prophesied to him thathe should rule Egypt before he departed thence. For when he was inEthiopia the Oracles which the Ethiopians consult had told him that itwas fated for him to rule Egypt fifty years: since then this time was