nature recurs throughout Indo‐European mythology.
SEE ALSO: Myth; Targitaus
FURTHER READING
1 Corcella in ALC, 575–77.
2 Ivantchik, Askold, I. 1999. “Une légende sur l’origine des Scythes (Hdt. IV, 5–7) et le problème des sources du Scythicos Logos d’Hérodote.” REG 112: 141–92.
ARSAMENES (Ἀρσαμένης, ὁ)
CHRISTOPHER BARON
University of Notre Dame
In his CATALOGUE of XERXES’ invasion force of 480 BCE, Herodotus names Arsamenes as commander of the UTIANS and MYCIANS (7.68). He was a son of DARIUS I and thus a brother of XERXES, but is otherwise unattested.
SEE ALSO: Persia
FURTHER READING
1 Schmitt, IPGL, 94–95 (no. 51).
ARSAMES (Ἀρσάμης, ὁ; OP Aršāma) son of Ariaramnes
CHRISTOPHER BARON
University of Notre Dame
Patronymic, father of HYSTASPES and grandfather of the Persian king DARIUS I (1.209.2, 7.11.2 (spoken by Xerxes as he lists his lineage), 7.224.2). Arsames (OP Aršāma) appears in royal INSCRIPTIONS of Darius (e.g., DB §2), and XERXES states that both Hystaspes and Arsames were alive when Darius became king (XPf §3). Thus Arsames himself was never king (Briant 2002, 110). A brief inscription on a GOLD tablet from Hamadan, claiming to be of “Arsames the Great King” (AsH; Lecoq 1997, 180), is believed by most scholars to be an ancient forgery, part of Darius’ effort to legitimize his seizure of the throne (Rollinger 1998, 181–82).
SEE ALSO: Achaemenids; Ariaramnes son of Teispes; Arsames son of Darius; Bisitun; Pharnaces
REFERENCES
1 Briant, Pierre. 2002. From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire, translated by Peter T. Daniels. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns.
2 Lecoq, Pierre. 1997. Les inscriptions de la Perse achéménide. [Paris]: Gallimard.
3 Rollinger, Robert. 1998. “Der Stammbaum des achaimenidischen Königshauses oder die Frage der Legitimität der Herrschaft des Dareios. ”AMI(T) 30: 155–209.
ARSAMES (Ἀρσάμης, ὁ) son of Darius
CHRISTOPHER BARON
University of Notre Dame
In his CATALOGUE of XERXES’ invasion force of 480 BCE, Herodotus names Arsames as commander of the ARABIANS and ETHIOPIANS (7.69.2). Arsames was the son of DARIUS I and his favorite wife ARTYSTONE, thus a half‐brother of Xerxes; he was named after Darius’ grandfather, according to the GENEALOGY Xerxes gives for himself (7.11.2). Arsames is attested (Elam. Iršama) in the Elamite Persepolis Fortification texts, often alongside his mother in the operation of a royal estate (Henkelman 2010, 699–703). AESCHYLUS places his death at the Battle of SALAMIS (Pers. 308), though he is probably incorrect in naming him satrap of EGYPT (Pers. 36–37).
SEE ALSO: Achaemenids; Arsames son of Ariaramnes; Parmys
REFERENCE
1 Henkelman, Wouter. 2010. “‘Consumed before the King’: The Table of Darius, That of Irdabama and Irtaštuna, and That of his Satrap, Karkiš.” In Der Achämenidenhof—The Achaemenid Court, edited by Bruno Jacobs and Robert Rollinger, 667–775. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.
ART
MARGARET C. MILLER
University of Sydney
Art, as a concept, is modern. In the archaic world that Herodotus reported and the classical world in which he lived, very little of what we would call “art” was produced: that is, very little was produced solely for aesthetic pleasure or for self‐expression. Most of the Greek "arts" prized in modern times were originally produced for practical purposes such as funerary monuments or votive offerings; the latter includes thanks offerings for military victories, such as the famed “Serpent Column” dedicated at DELPHI to commemorate the Greek victory at PLATAEA (9.81.1) and now found in Istanbul. Of these, Herodotus mentions only votive or, rarely, commemorative works (7.225). He particularly commends clever production and prestigious material rather than attractiveness or originality and rarely notes imagery. Similarly, craftsmen rather than “artists” are named, like GLAUCUS OF CHIOS as the inventor of welding, whose wrought IRON krater stand, gift of ALYATTES, is one of the few items "worth seeing" at Delphi (1.25, θέης ἄξιον; see also THEODORUS).
Figure 5 The “Serpent Column” dedicated by thirty‐one Greek city‐states at Delphi after defeating the Persians; now in Istanbul. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Snake_column_Hippodrome_Constantinople2007.jpg. Gryffindor This panoramic image was created with Autostitch (stitched images may differ from reality). Public domain.
SCULPTURES (stone and BRONZE) formed part of the votive landscape in Greek sanctuaries, and hence were rarely deemed worthy of mention by Herodotus. He notes very special DEDICATIONS that were made entirely of GOLD: a Spartan statue of APOLLO (1.69.4) and a representation of ALEXANDER I of MACEDON, at Delphi (8.121). Other gold statues are non‐Greek products: Lydian (1.50.3, 51.5); Babylonian (1.183.2–3); Persian (7.69.2). Gilded statues also appear (2.182, given by the Egyptian king AMASIS to CYRENE; 6.118, stolen statue of Apollo). The magnificent fragmentary archaic gold and ivory seated statues discovered in the "Halos" deposit at Delphi, along with a life‐sized SILVER bull, provide testimony to the richness of the offerings there, not least because Herodotus makes no mention of them (Colonia 2006, 167–219 illustrates).
Anecdotal utility or historical significance can create exceptions to the practice of no specific reference to artworks. For example, whereas in some archaic sanctuaries, the stone kouros (single‐standing youth) was the preferred masculine dedication, the type is mentioned only once (and then only by inference): at the close of the tale of CLEOBIS AND BITON (1.31.5), Herodotus notes that the Argives had εἰκόνες (images) of the valorous youths made to be dedicated at Delphi, without comment on their form or medium. Discovery at Delphi of a pair of stone kouroi, datable c. 580 BCE, with fragmentary texts mentioning an Argive sculptor, initially led to their association with Cleobis and Biton. Modern readings of the INSCRIPTIONS establish that the pair of statues represents, rather, the DIOSCURI (Vatin 1982; Faure 1985).
Herodotus’ occasional references to bronze sculpture probably refer to life‐sized works (1.164.3; 5.82) rather than the solid‐cast statuettes that survive in some sanctuaries. In the mid‐sixth
