Search engine for discovering works of Art, research articles, and books related to Art and Culture
Javascript must be enabled to continue!
Herodotus and the Transformation of Ancient Near Eastern Motifs
View through CrossRef
A revealing and intriguing example of how Ancient Near Eastern story-patterns have been reshaped and reworked is Herodotus’ report about the enthronement of Darius as new King of the Persian Empire (Hdt. 3.84–9). In a fanciful and ironic way Herodotus explains the success of Darius in being chosen as the new King, with the assistance of his groom and an omen of a neighing horse. Herodotus also introduces a fictitious monument as a means of authentication allegedly celebrating Darius’ enthronement with the help of his smart groom. This monument reveals striking similarities with an Urartian royal relief which is described in detail in two inscriptions of the Assyrian king Sargon II (721–705 BC). Together with other Ancient Near Eastern elements referring to horse oracles and their specific setting as well as a parallel tradition testified by Ctesias of Cnidos an Ancient Near Eastern story-pattern comes to the fore that was, however, transferred by Herodotus into a completely new narrative.
Title: Herodotus and the Transformation of Ancient Near Eastern Motifs
Description:
A revealing and intriguing example of how Ancient Near Eastern story-patterns have been reshaped and reworked is Herodotus’ report about the enthronement of Darius as new King of the Persian Empire (Hdt.
3.
84–9).
In a fanciful and ironic way Herodotus explains the success of Darius in being chosen as the new King, with the assistance of his groom and an omen of a neighing horse.
Herodotus also introduces a fictitious monument as a means of authentication allegedly celebrating Darius’ enthronement with the help of his smart groom.
This monument reveals striking similarities with an Urartian royal relief which is described in detail in two inscriptions of the Assyrian king Sargon II (721–705 BC).
Together with other Ancient Near Eastern elements referring to horse oracles and their specific setting as well as a parallel tradition testified by Ctesias of Cnidos an Ancient Near Eastern story-pattern comes to the fore that was, however, transferred by Herodotus into a completely new narrative.
Related Results
The Dynamics of Time
The Dynamics of Time
The paper starts with re-assessing Fornara’s thesis that that the account of the Persian Wars in the Histories ought to be seen in light of the intra-Hellenic conflicts of the seco...
Ecologizing Late Ancient and Byzantine Worlds
Ecologizing Late Ancient and Byzantine Worlds
How can we study the late ancient and Byzantine history from ecological perspectives? How might one grapple with the more-than-human in sources and media created by humans? Explori...
Dogs That Do Not (Always) Bark
Dogs That Do Not (Always) Bark
The chapter collects and discusses the historical information provided by Herodotus about Egypt between the Persian conquest and his own time. Egypt attracts more post-conquest att...
Gifts for Cyrus, Tribute for Darius
Gifts for Cyrus, Tribute for Darius
In the introduction to the famous list of nomes Herodotus offers a rather idiosyncratic characterization of Darius I by means of calling him a huckster. Furthermore, he maintains t...
Technologies of Mind and Body in the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc
Technologies of Mind and Body in the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc
The project to create a ‘New Man’ and ‘New Woman’ initiated in the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc constituted one of the most extensive efforts to remake human psychophysiology ...
The Ancient Greeks
The Ancient Greeks
The ancient Greeks established the very blueprint of Western civilization—our societies, institutions, art, and culture—and thanks to remarkable new findings, we know more about th...
Suluk Ukkil on the Barong Expressions, motifs and meanings
Suluk Ukkil on the Barong Expressions, motifs and meanings
With its origin dating back to as early as the 500 BC, the ukkil forms part of a centuries-old woodcarving art and tradition of the Suluk, one of the many indigenous ethnic groups ...