The Anabasis of Alexander/Book VII/Chapter XXII
Having thus proved the falsity of the prophecy of the Chaldaeans, by not having experienced any unpleasant fortune in Babylon,[1] as they had predicted, but having marched out of that city without suS&ring any mishap, he grew confident in spirit and sailed again through the marshes, having Babylon on his left hand. Here a part of his fleet lost its way in the narrow branches of the river through want of a pilot, until he sent a man to pilot it and lead it back into the channel of the river. The following story is told. Most of the tombs of the Assyrian kings had been built among the pools and marshes.[2] When Alexander was sailing through these marshes, and, as the story goes, was himself steering the trireme, a strong gust of wind fell upon his broadbrimmed Macedonian hat, and the fillet which encircled it. The hat, being heavy, fell into the water; but the fillet, being carried along by the wind, was caught by one of the reeds growing near the tomb of one of the ancient kings.[3] This incident itself was an omen of what was about to occur, and so was the fact that one of the sailors[4] swam off towards the fillet and snatched it from the reed. But he did not carry it in his hands, because it would have been wetted while he was swimming; he therefore put it round his own head and thus conveyed it to the king. Most of the biographers of Alexander say that the king presented him with a talent as a reward for his zeal, and then, ordered his head to be cut off; as the prophets had directed him not to permit that head to be safe which had worn the royal fillet. However, Aristobulus says that the man received a talent; but afterwards also received a scourging for placing the fillet round his head. The same author says that it was one of the Phoenician sailors who fetched the fillet for Alexander; but there are some who say it was Seleucus, and that this was an omen to Alexander of his death and to Seleucus of his great kingdom. For that of all those who succeeded to the sovereignty after Alexander, Seleucus became the greatest king, was the most kingly in mind, and ruled over the greatest extent of land after Alexander himself, does not seem to me to admit of question.[5]
CHAPTER XXII.
An Omen of Alexander's Approaching Death.
- ↑ The Hebrew name for Babylon is Babel, i.e. Bab-Bel, court of Bel: porta vel aula, civitas Beli (Winer). In Jer. xxv. 26; li. 41, it is called Sbeshach, which Jewish commentators, followed by Jerome, explain by the Canon Atbash, i.e. after the alphabet put in an inverted order. According to this rule the word Babel, which is the Hebrew name of Babylon, would be written Sheshach. Sir Henry Eawlinson, however, says it was the name of a god after whom the city was named; and the word has been found among the Assyrian inscriptions representing a deity.
- ↑ The perfect passive δεδόμημαι is equivalent to the Epic and Ionic form δέδμημαι.
- ↑ σχεθῆναι. See p. 268, note 4.
- ↑ τῶν τὶς ναυτῶν. This position of τίς is an imitation of the usage in Ionic prose. Cf. Herod, i. 85; τῶν τὶς. See Liddell and Scott, sub voce τίς. Cf. Arrian, ii. 26, 4; vi. 9, 3; vii. 3, 4; 22, 5; 24, 2.
- ↑ Cf. Arrian v. 13 supra.