arshba.ru

Pseudo-Scymnus "Periplus" (c. 90 BC)

900-910. The Mossynoeci: in their customs, laws and deeds — the crudest barbarians. They say that they all live in very high wooden towers and always do everything openly, and they diligently guard their king, chained and locked in a tower, in the very topmost room; those guarding him ensure that all his orders are in accordance with the law; if he transgresses the law in any way, they say, they subject him to the harshest punishment, but without giving food.

911-916. Cerasus, a colony of the Sinopeans, before which stretches a deserted island called Ares' Island. Nearby lived the Tibareni people; they try in every way to laugh, considering this the greatest good fortune.


Materials:

NEWS OF ANCIENT GREEK AND LATIN WRITERS ABOUT SCYTHIA AND THE CAUCASUS. Latyshev V.V. 1947

The Pontic strategos, commander of Mithridates VI, Mithridates Neoptolemus defeated the Scythian fleet, taking Tyras and Olbia from them. And a little later in the Kerch Strait he also defeats the Scythian fleet, and in winter on the ice he inflicts defeat on the allied forces of Bosporus and the Scythians. The strength and authority of the Scythians were shaken, but they continued to influence the politics of their region. More details.

The stay of the Pontic king Mithridates VI Eupator in Dioscurias, who was waging war against Rome. It took Rome a hundred years to conquer the northeastern part of the Black Sea.

Materials:

"History of Abkhazia in Dates." T.A. Achugba 2011

Strabo (c. 64/63 BC — c. 23/24 AD)

Strabo Geography (translated by G.A. Stratakovsky) M., 1994

I. II. 1. Mithridates, surnamed Eupator, and his generals acquainted us with the countries beyond the Tyras River as far as Lake Maeotis and the sea coast that ends at Colchis.

II. II. 39. For, as all agree, the original voyage to Phasis by order of Pelias, the return and the occupation of the islands (however long it may have been) during the voyage along the coasts contain some element of plausibility. I assert that even the more distant wanderings of Jason (as well as the wanderings of Odysseus and Menelaus) are also to some extent plausible, as is proved by the monuments that still exist and are trustworthy, and also by the words of Homer. For example, near Phasis they show the city of Aea, and it is accepted as true that Aeetes reigned in Colchis, and the name of Aeetes is often found among the local inhabitants of that country. Furthermore, the sorceress Medea is a historical figure, and the riches of that country, consisting of gold, silver, iron and copper mines, suggest the true motive of the campaign, which also prompted Phrixus even earlier to undertake such a journey. Moreover, there are monuments of both campaigns: the sanctuary of Phrixus, located on the borders of Colchis and Iberia, and the sanctuaries of Jason, which are shown in many places in Armenia and Media and in the neighboring countries. And, besides, as they say, there is much evidence of the campaign of Jason and Phrixus in the region of Sinope and the adjacent coast, as well as in the area of the Propontis and Hellespont, up to the Lemnos region. There are traces of the campaign of Jason and the Colchians who pursued him in a vast area as far as Crete, Italy and the Adriatic Sea.

I. III. 2. Eratosthenes can be reproached not only for such stories; he asserts that in his time there were still no precise and detailed reports about the seas, and at the same time urges us not to heedlessly believe reports from random sources and expounds at length the reasons why we should not believe anyone who writes mythical tales about the countries along the Euxine Pontus and the Adriatic Sea; he himself, however, believes the tales of the first person he meets. For example, he accepted the report that the Issian Gulf is the easternmost point of the Mediterranean Sea, whereas the gulf at Dioscurias in the farthest corner of the Euxine Pontus is almost 3000 stadia further east, even if we follow Eratosthenes' own reckoning of stadia, which he mentions.

I. III. 7. The current in the straits is explained by another reason, not by the fact that deposits of river silt have filled up the deep places in the sea. For deposits are formed at the very mouths of rivers, for example the so-called "Breasts" at the mouth of the Ister, the Scythian desert and Salmydessus (where other torrential streams also contribute to the formation of deposits); the sandy low mouth of the Phasis and the marshy coast of Colchis; the mouth of the Thermodon and Iris, all of Themiscyra, the plain of the Amazons and most of Sidene.

II. V. 22. Along the Chersonese lies a strait 7 stadia wide, near Sestus and Abydus; through it the Aegean Sea and the Hellespont flow north into another sea, which is called the Propontis. This in turn flows into another sea, called the Euxine Pontus. The latter consists as it were of two seas; for approximately in the middle of it two capes project: one from Europe and from the northern regions, and another opposite it from Asia, which narrow the passage in the middle and form two large seas. The European cape is called Criu Metopon, and the Asian — Carambis; they are about 2500 stadia apart. The western sea is 3800 stadia long from Byzantium to the mouth of the Borysthenes, and 2800 stadia wide; in this sea lies the island of Leuca. The eastern sea, oblong in shape, ends in a narrow recess at Dioscurias, having a length of 5000 stadia or a little more, while its width is about 3000 stadia. The circumference of the whole sea is about 25,000 stadia. Some compare the shape of this circumference to a stretched Scythian bow, likening the string to the so-called right parts of Pontus (i.e., the coast from the mouth to the recess at Dioscurias; for, except for Cape Carambis, the rest of the coast has only insignificant indentations and projections, so that it resembles a straight line). The remaining part is compared to the horn of the bow with a double curve; the upper curve is more rounded, the lower more straight; thus, the left bank forms two gulfs, of which the western is much more rounded than the eastern.

III. V. 31. From the Tanais and Maeotis extend the Asian regions on this side of Taurus, adjoining the Tanais and Maeotis, and after them follow the regions beyond Taurus. The mountain chain of Taurus divides Asia into two parts (and Taurus stretches from the extremity of Paphlagonia to the eastern sea at India and to the Scythians living there); the Greeks called that part of the continent which faces north "inside" Taurus, and the part facing south "outside" Taurus; accordingly, the lands adjacent to Maeotis and to the Tanais belong to the regions inside Taurus. The first of these parts are situated between the Caspian Sea and the Euxine Pontus and end in one direction at the Tanais and the Ocean, i.e., both at the Outer Ocean and at that part of it that forms the Hyrcanian Sea; in the other direction they end at the isthmus, where the distance from the recess of Pontus to the Caspian Sea is the shortest. Then follow the regions inside Taurus north of Hyrcania, to the sea at India, to the Scythians living there and to Mount Imaus. In these regions live partly the Maeotian Sauromatians and the Sauromatians living between the Hyrcanian Sea and Pontus, up to the Caucasus and the region of the Iberians and Albanians, as well as the Scythians, Achaei, Zygi and Heniochi; and partly beyond the Hyrcanian Sea live the Scythians, Hyrcanians, Parthians, Bactrians, Sogdians and the rest of the inhabitants of the regions lying north of India. To the south of part of the Hyrcanian Sea and of the whole isthmus between this sea and Pontus extend the greater part of Armenia, Colchis, all of Cappadocia as far as the Euxine Pontus and the Tibarenian tribes.

IX. II. 42. They say that the so-called Achaei on Pontus were colonists of the Orchomenians, who wandered in this region after the capture of Troy under the leadership of Ialmenus.

XI. II. 1. With this geographical situation, the first part — from the northern regions and the ocean — is inhabited by some Scythian nomads living in wagons, and further inland from them — by the Sarmatians (also Scythians), Aorsi and Siraces, extending south to the Caucasus Mountains; they are partly nomads, partly live in tents and engage in agriculture. Around Lake Maeotis live the Maeotians. On the sea are located the Asian part of Bosporus and the Sindian region. Beyond it live the Achaei, Zygi, Heniochi, Kerkets and Macropogones. Above these regions lies the gorge of the Phteirophagi. Beyond the Heniochi lies Colchis, lying at the foot of the Caucasus and Moschian mountains. But since the Tanais River is the boundary of Europe and Asia, I will begin from here the description of the individual regions.

XI. II. 11. Among the Maeotians belong the Sindians themselves and the Dandarii, Toreatae, Agri and Arrechi, as well as the Tarpetes, Obidiaceni, Sittaceni, Doschi and some others. To them belong the Aspurgiani, living in a space of 500 stadia between Phanagoria and Gorgippia. When King Polemon, attacking them under the pretext of concluding a treaty of friendship, was unable, however, to conceal his intention, they outwitted him and, having captured him, killed him. All the Asian Maeotians were subject partly to the rulers of the trading center on the Tanais, partly to the Bosporans. However, sometimes one side or the other rose up against their rulers. Often the rulers of the Bosporans captured regions as far as the Tanais, especially their last rulers: Pharnaces, Asander and Polemon. Pharnaces, as they say, once cleared some old canal and led the Hypanis River through it into the country of the Dandarii and flooded it.

XI. II. 12. After the Sindian region and Gorgippia, which is on the sea, follows the coast of the Achaei, Zygi and Heniochi, mostly lacking harbors and mountainous, as it is part of the Caucasus. These peoples live by piracy, for which they have small, narrow and light boats with a capacity of approximately up to 25 people, rarely up to 30; the Greeks call them "camaras." As they say, this Achaea was settled by the Phthiotic Achaei from Jason's army, and the Laconians settled in Heniochia; their leaders were Crecas and Amphistratus — charioteers of the Dioscuri; in all probability, the Heniochi received their name from them. Equipping fleets of such "camaras" and attacking either merchant ships or even some country or city, they dominated the sea. Sometimes even the inhabitants of Bosporus help them, providing their ship moorings and a market for selling booty. When they return to their native places, in the absence of ship moorings, they have to carry the "camaras" on their shoulders into the forests, where they live, cultivating the poor land. When the sailing season arrives, they again carry their boats to the shore. They do the same in foreign countries, where they know the wooded places well; there they hide their "camaras," and themselves wander on foot day and night, kidnapping people to sell into slavery. They willingly offer to release the kidnapped for a ransom, notifying their relatives after going to sea. In lands subject to local rulers, the authorities assist the victims of violence; they often in turn attack the robbers and, having captured their "camaras," bring them back along with the crew. The areas subject to the Romans are more powerless against this evil due to the negligence of the rulers sent there.

XI. II. 13. Such is the way of life of these peoples. They are ruled by so-called "sceptuchi," and these latter are themselves subject to tyrants and kings. For example, among the Heniochi there were 4 kings at the time when Mithridates Eupator, expelled from the country of his ancestors to Bosporus, marched through their land. This country turned out to be easily passable; he had to abandon the intention of passing through the country of the Zygi because of its harshness and wildness; only with difficulty did Mithridates manage to make his way along the coast, moving along the sea for most of the way, until he arrived in the country of the Achaei. With their support, the king managed to complete his journey from Phasis — almost 4000 stadia.

XI. II. 14. From Corocondama the sea route immediately goes eastward. At 180 stadia from it are the Sindian harbor and city. Then at a distance of 400 stadia follow the so-called Batae — a village and harbor where, going south, as they think, almost opposite this coast lies Sinope, just as Cape Carambis (which has already been mentioned) lies opposite Criu Metopon. After Batae, Artemidorus calls the coast of the Kerkets (where there are ship moorings and villages) almost 850 stadia long; then the coast of the Achaei — 500 stadia; then the coast of the Heniochi — 1000 stadia; then Great Pitiunt — 360 stadia long up to Dioscurias. The historians of the Mithridatic wars, who are more worthy of trust, on the contrary, name first the Achaei, then the Zygi, then the Heniochi, then the Kerkets, Moschi, Colchians, the Phteirophagi living above them and the Soani and other small peoples around the Caucasus. At first the coast, as I said, stretches eastward and faces south, but from Batae it gradually turns and then faces west, ending at Pitiunt and Dioscurias; for these regions of Colchis adjoin the aforementioned coast. After Dioscurias follow the rest of the coast of Colchis and, after a significant bend, the adjacent coast of Trapezus; then it continues almost in a straight line and forms the right side of Pontus, facing north. The entire coast of the Achaei and the other peoples up to Dioscurias and the localities lying on a straight line south of it in the interior of the country lies at the foot of the Caucasus.

XI. II. 15. This mountain rises above both seas — the Pontic and the Caspian — blocking like a wall the isthmus dividing them. The mountain separates Albania and Iberia to the south, and the Sarmatian plains to the north. It is covered with forests of all kinds and especially shipbuilding timber. According to Eratosthenes, the locals call the Caucasus the Caspius, perhaps from the name of the Caspian tribe. Some spurs of the mountain jut out southward; they embrace the middle of Iberia, touch the Armenian and so-called Moschian mountains, as well as Scydises and Paryadres. All these mountains are parts of Taurus, forming the southern side of Armenia; they are as if torn off from Taurus to the north and protrude as far as the Caucasus and part of the Euxine coast from Colchis to Themiscyra.

XI. II. 16. Since Dioscurias lies in such a bay, occupying the easternmost point of the whole sea, it is considered the "recess" of the Euxine Pontus and [sailing to it] the most distant. For this is how we must understand the well-known line: "To Phasis, where ships' farthest course lies," (Unknown tragedy, frg. 559. Nauck) but not as if the author of the iamb meant the river, and not the city of the same name lying on the river; rather, by one part of the country he designated all of Colchis, since from the river and the city to the "recess" there remains no less than 600 stadia of direct travel. This same Dioscurias is the beginning of the isthmus between the Caspian Sea and Pontus and a common trading center for the peoples living above and neighboring. In any case, 70 peoples gather in this city (according to others, who do not care at all about reality, even 300). They all speak different languages, since they live separately and in isolation due to their pride and wildness. Most of them are Sarmatians, but they are all Caucasians. Such are my reports about Dioscurias.

XI. II. 17. As for the rest of Colchis, most of it is located on the sea. Through Colchis flows the Phasis — a large river originating in Armenia; it receives the tributaries — the waters of Glaucus and Hippus, flowing from the neighboring mountains. The Phasis is navigable up to Sarapana — a fortress that can accommodate even the population of a whole city. From here by dry land along a carriage road one reaches the Cyrus in 4 days. On the Phasis River lies the city of the same name — the trading center of the Colchians, protected on one side by the river, on another by a lake, and on the third by the sea. Sailing from here to Amisus and Sinope takes 2 or 3 days because the land on the sea coasts is marshy and the river mouths are swampy. The country is remarkable not only for its fruits (except for honey, which is mostly bitter), but also for everything necessary for shipbuilding. It produces much timber and floats it down the rivers. The inhabitants make much linen cloth, hemp, and obtain wax and resin. Locally produced linen fabrics are even widely known. Indeed, they exported linen fabrics to foreign countries, and some, wishing to show some kinship of the Colchians with the Egyptians, find in this fact confirmation of their view. In the country of the Moschi above the aforementioned rivers is the sanctuary of Leucothea founded by Phrixus and the oracle of Phrixus, where they do not sacrifice a ram. Once rich, in our time the oracle was plundered by Pharnaces and somewhat later by Mithridates of Pergamum. For, according to Euripides, after the devastation of the country, "The deity suffers, does not desire worship."

(Trojan Women 26)

XI. II. 18. How famous this country was in antiquity is shown by the myths which relate, albeit in a vague form, the campaign of Jason who reached Media, and the even earlier campaign of Phrixus. The subsequent kings-successors held the country, divided into "sceptuchies," but their prosperity was small. When the power of Mithridates Eupator greatly increased, the country submitted to his dominion. The king constantly sent someone from his "friends" [courtiers] as "governor" or "ruler." Among these "governors" was Moaphernes — my mother's uncle on her father's side. From this country the king received the most help for equipping his fleet. After the collapse of Mithridates' power, his entire empire fell apart and was divided among many rulers. In the end, Colchis was seized by Polemon, and after his death his wife Pythodoris ruled, who was queen of Colchis, of the cities of Trapezus and Pharnacia and of the barbarian regions lying above them, which will be discussed further. The country of the Moschi, in which the sanctuary is located, is divided into 3 parts: one part under the rule of the Colchians, another under the Iberians, and the third is held by the Armenians. In Iberia there is also a town (the town of Phrixus) — modern Ideessa, a well-fortified point on the border of Colchis. Near Dioscurias flows the River Chares.

XI. II. 19. Among the peoples who gather in Dioscurias belong the Phteirophagi, who received this name from their uncleanliness and filth. Nearby live the Soani, who are not inferior to them in terms of untidiness, but surpass them in power; and perhaps they are almost the most warlike and strongest of all. In any case, they dominate all the peoples around them, occupying the peaks of the Caucasus rising above Dioscurias. They have a king and a council of 300 men; as they say, they can field an army of up to 200,000 men. Indeed, the whole mass of the people represents a combat-ready, albeit disorganized, force. In their country, as they say, mountain streams bring gold, and the barbarians catch it with sieves and shaggy skins. From this, they say, the myth of the golden fleece arose. Some also call them Iberians — the same as the western ones — from the gold placers found in both countries. The Soani use for arrowheads a poison of wonderful effect, which by its smell causes suffering even to those not wounded by the poisoned arrows. The other peoples living around the Caucasus occupy meager and insignificant spaces of land; on the contrary, the Albanian and Iberian tribes, which occupy most of the aforementioned isthmus, can perhaps also be called Caucasian tribes. They possess fertile land and can develop good agriculture.

XI. III. 4. There are 4 passages into the country. One leads through the Colchian fortress of Sarapana and the gorge near it. Through this gorge the Phasis (because of the sinuosity of this river, 120 bridges lead across it) rushes in a violent and rapid stream into Colchis, and during rains the country is covered with gullies from the many mountain streams. The sources of the Phasis are in the mountains above Iberia, where it fills with waters from many springs, and on the plains it receives other rivers, among them Glaucus and Hippus. Filled with the waters of its tributaries and becoming navigable, this river flows into Pontus; at its mouth lies the city of the same name and near it a lake. Such is the passage from Colchis to Iberia, blocked by rocks, fortresses and turbulent rivers.

XI. V. 6. The highest parts of the present Caucasus are its southernmost parts — near Albania, Iberia, the country of the Colchians and Heniochi. There live tribes which, as I indicated above, gather in Dioscurias, and they gather there mainly for salt. Of these tribes, some occupy the summits of the mountains, while others live in forested valleys, feeding mostly on the meat of wild animals, wild fruits and milk. In winter the summits of the mountains are inaccessible, and in summer people climb them, tying to their feet, because of the snow and ice, wide pieces of rawhide oxhide studded with spikes in the shape of timbrels. They have to descend with their loads, lying on the skins and sliding over the ice, just as is done in Atropatian Media and on Mount Masius in Armenia. There, however, they put under the soles of their boots wooden wheels studded with spikes. Such are the peaks of the Caucasus.

XII. III. 17. Beyond Sidene is the fortified city of Pharnacia. Beyond it lies the Greek city of Trapezus, the sea route to which from Amisus is 2200 stadia. Then from here to Phasis is about 1400 stadia, so that the total distance from the [Chalcedonian] sanctuary to Phasis is approximately 8000 stadia, perhaps a little more or less. If one sails along this coast from Amisus, first opens Cape Heracleum, then Cape Iasonium and the Genetes River, then the town of Cotyora, from which a colony was sent to Pharnacia; further — the destroyed Ischopolis, then a bay in which are located Cerasus and Hermonassa — insignificant settlements; not far from Hermonassa are Trapezus and then Colchis. Here somewhere is a settlement called Zygopolis. About Colchis and the coast lying above it, I have already spoken.

XII. III. 18. Above Trapezus and Pharnacia are located the Tibareni, Chaldei, Sanni, who were formerly called Macrones, and Lesser Armenia; the Appeti, formerly called the Cerceitae, live somewhere near these places. These regions are crossed by the very rocky Mount Scydises, connecting with the Moschian mountains above Colchis (its peaks are occupied by the Heptacometae), and Mount Paryadres, which stretches from the Sidene region and Themiscyra to Lesser Armenia, forming the eastern side of Pontus. All the inhabitants of these mountainous regions are completely wild, but the Heptacometae surpass the others in this respect. Some even live in trees or in towers, therefore the ancients called them Mosynoeci, since these towers are called "mosynae." They feed on animal meat and tree fruits; they also attack travelers, jumping down on them from their wooden huts on the trees. The Heptacometae destroyed 3 maniples of Pompey's army when they passed through this mountainous region; the barbarians prepared vessels on the roads with intoxicating honey obtained from tree branches. Then they attacked the Roman soldiers who had drunk the honey and lost consciousness, and easily killed them. Some of these barbarians were called Bizeri.

XII. III. 19. The modern Chaldei in ancient times were called Chalybes. Exactly opposite their region lies Pharnacia, which on the sea has advantages from the catching of pelamyds (for here they first began to catch this fish), and on land — mines, now iron mines, but formerly even silver ones. In general, the coast in this region is quite narrow; for just above it rise mountains with many mines, covered with dense forest, and only a small part of the land is cultivated. Thus, the miners have only to obtain their living by working in the mines, and those engaged in sea fishing — by fishing, especially for pelamyds and dolphins. For these latter, pursuing schools of fish — corduyla, tunas and the pelamyds themselves — become fat, and because they approach the shore too quickly in pursuit of the bait, they are easily caught. Only the inhabitants of Pharnacia catch dolphins with bait, cut them into pieces, using the fat for all sorts of purposes.

XII. III. 20. These Chalybes, I think, are mentioned by Homer in the "Ship Catalogue" after the Paphlagonians, calling them Halizones:
"The Halizones, led by Odius and Epistrophus from Alybe,"
"Distant lands, from where silver has no shortage;"

(Il. II, 856)
or, if the text is changed, from:
"Chalybes, from distant lands,"
or this people in former times was called "Alibi" instead of "Chalybes." For just as it is now impossible to call them "Chaldei," deriving this name from "Chalybes," so in former times it was impossible to give them the name "Chalybes" instead of "Alibi," especially since the names of peoples, especially among barbarians, have greatly changed. Thus, for example, some Thracians were called Sintians, then Saiians, where Archilochus, as he himself says, threw away his shield:
"Now proudly the Saiian bears my flawless shield:"
"Willingly or not, I had to leave it in the bushes."

(Frg. 6. Bergk)
This same people is now called Sapei. They all lived near Abdera and on the islands near Lemnos. Further, the Brygians, Brygi and Phrygians — one and the same people; as are the Mysians, Maeonians and Meiones. There is no need to increase the number of examples. Demetrius of Scepsis also supposes the transformation of their name from Alibi to Chalybes; but since he does not understand what should and what corresponds to this, especially why Homer called the Chalybes Halizones, he rejects this opinion. I, for my part, having compared my and his considerations, will also examine the assumptions of other writers.

XII. III. 28. Above the region of Pharnacia and Trapezus live the Tibareni and Chaldei, extending to Lesser Armenia. The latter country is quite fertile. Lesser Armenia, like Sophene, was always ruled by local rulers, who either maintained friendly relations with the other Armenians or were independent of them. The Chaldei and Tibareni were subject to them, so that their power extended as far as Trapezus and Pharnacia. Having strengthened his power, Mithridates Eupator became the ruler of Colchis and all these countries, ceded to him by Antipater, son of Sisidas. Mithridates showed such great care for these regions that he built 15 fortifications there, where he kept most of his treasures. The most significant of them are Hydara, Basgedariza and Sinoria. The latter town was located on the very border of Greater Armenia, which is why Theophanes changed its name to Synoria. Indeed, along the entire mountain range of Paryadres there are many suitable places for such fortifications, since the area is rich in water and wood and in many places covered with sheer cliffs and precipices. In any case, most of the fortified treasuries were built here. In the end, Mithridates himself, when Pompey attacked his country, fled in search of refuge to these outskirts of the Pontic kingdom. Having captured near Dastira in Acilisene a mountain rich in water (nearby also flowed the Euphrates, separating Acilisene from Lesser Armenia), Mithridates remained there until he was forced by siege to flee through the mountains to Colchis, and from there to Bosporus. Near this place in Lesser Armenia, Pompey founded the city of Nicopolis, which still exists and is well populated.

XII. III. 29. Lesser Armenia was governed at different times by various rulers at the will of the Romans; in recent times it was under the rule of Archelaus. The Tibareni and Chaldei up to Colchis, Pharnacia and Trapezus are governed by Pythodoris, a wise woman capable of directing state affairs. She is the daughter of Pythodorus of Tralles. Having married Polemon, she was his co-ruler for some time; after her husband's death in the country of the so-called Aspurgians (one of the barbarian tribes living near Sindica), she inherited his power. From Polemon she had two sons and a daughter. The latter married Cotys the Sapean; after Cotys was treacherously killed, she remained a widow with children from him. The eldest of her sons now rules the country. As for Pythodoris' sons, one of them helps his mother in governing as a private individual, while the other has recently been made king of Greater Armenia. Pythodoris herself married Archelaus and lived with him until his death. Now she is a widow, holds the above-mentioned regions and others even more cultured, to the description of which I will now proceed.

XVII. III. 24. Such is the state of the parts of the inhabited world. But since the Romans possess the best and most famous part of it, surpassing all previous rulers known to us, it is worth giving at least a brief outline of the extent of their empire. I have already mentioned earlier how they, setting out from one city, namely Rome, conquered all of Italy through wars and wise statecraft; how they, acting with the same skill, besides Italy, also added the surrounding lands to their dominion. Of the three continents, they possess almost all of Europe, except for the lands beyond the Ister and the oceanic regions between the Rhine and the Tanais. The entire Libyan coast of Our Sea is subject to them; the other part of Libya is either entirely uninhabited or poorly inhabited by nomadic tribes. Similarly, the entire Asian coast of Our Sea is subject to them, except for the regions of the Achaei, Zygi and Heniochi, where in the gorges and barren regions the population leads a predatory and nomadic life. As for the interior regions of the continent and the lands lying in the depths, one part of them is owned by the Romans themselves, another by the Parthians and the barbarians living above them; to the east and north live the Indians, Bactrians and Scythians, and then the Arabs and Ethiopians. However, some part of these peoples constantly passes to the Romans. Of all the land subject to the Romans, some parts are ruled by kings, others the Romans themselves possess under the name of provinces and send prefects and tax collectors there. There are even several free cities: some of them were originally in "friendship" with the Romans, others were themselves liberated by the Romans as a sign of respect for them. There are several rulers of tribal chiefs and priests subject to them. These live governed by some ancestral laws. COPY

Diodorus Siculus (second half of the 1st century BC) "Library"

IV.46. About Medea they tell that she learned from her mother and sister all the properties of potions, but was distinguished by a completely opposite character: she constantly saved from danger the foreigners who came to their country: sometimes with requests and caresses she begged her father for mercy for those condemned to death, sometimes she herself, releasing them from custody, took care of the safety of the unfortunate, since Aeetes, partly because of his own cruelty, partly at the instigation of his wife Hecate, kept in force the custom of killing foreigners. (2) As Medea increasingly opposed the cruel intentions of her parents, Aeetes, as they say, fearing evil designs from his daughter, placed her under free supervision; but Medea managed to escape to the sacred precinct of Helios, which lay on the seashore. (3) Just at this time the Argonauts on their way from Taurica at night sailed to the aforementioned precinct in Colchis. Here they met Medea wandering along the seashore, and having learned from her about the custom of killing foreigners, they praised the maiden's kindness; then, revealing their plan to her, they in turn learned from her what danger she faced from her father for her compassion for foreigners. (4) Thus, when their interests turned out to be common, Medea promised to assist them until they carried out the undertaken feat, and Jason gave her an oath promise to marry her and have her as his consort for the rest of his life. (5) After this the Argonauts, leaving a guard at the ship, at night together with Medea went for the golden fleece. Now we must tell in detail about it as well, so that everything that relates to the present story may be known.

47. They say that Phrixus, son of Athamas, fleeing the machinations of his stepmother, fled with his sister Helle from Hellas. When by some divine providence they were crossing from Europe to Asia on a golden-fleeced ram, the girl fell into the sea, which was named Hellespont after her, and Phrixus, having gone to Pontus, landed in Colchis and, according to the oracle's command, sacrificed the ram, and dedicated its skin to the sanctuary of Ares. (2) After this the Colchian king Aeetes was given a prediction that he would end his life when foreign visitors carried off the golden fleece. For this reason, together with his natural cruelty, he ordered the killing of foreigners with the aim that no foreigner would dare to enter his country when rumor spread everywhere about the savagery of the Colchians. Moreover, he surrounded the sacred precinct with a wall and placed there a numerous guard of Taurians. Therefore, wonderful stories were circulated among the Hellenes; (3) there were rumors that near the sanctuary there were fire-breathing bulls, and the fleece was guarded by a dragon; the name of the Taurians was transferred to the strength of the bulls, and the cruelty shown in the killing of foreigners gave rise to stories that these bulls breathed fire; similarly, the guardian of the sanctuary was called the Dragon, and the poets transferred this name to a wonderful and terrible animal. (4) The stories about Phrixus belong to the same kind of invention. Some say that he sailed across the sea on a ship that had an image of a ram's head on the prow, and that Helle, suffering from seasickness, leaned over the side of the ship and fell into the sea. (5) Others tell that at the time when Phrixus and his tutor were captured, the Scythian king, son-in-law of Aeetes, was visiting the Colchians, and he, falling in love with the boy, received him as a gift from Aeetes, loved him as his own son and left him the kingdom; his tutor, whose name was Crios [ram], was sacrificed to the gods, and the skin flayed from his body was nailed to the temple according to local custom. (6) Afterwards, when Aeetes was given the prediction that he would die when foreigners sailed into his country and carried away the skin of Crios, the king, as they say, surrounded the sanctuary with a wall, placed a guard there and, moreover, gilded the skin so that thanks to its brilliance it would be guarded as carefully as possible by the soldiers. Every reader is free to judge these stories according to his own taste.

48. Medea, as they say, led the Argonauts to the sanctuary of Ares, which was seventy stadia from the city, which bore the name of Sybaris and was the capital of the Colchians; approaching the locked gates at night, she called out to the guards in the Taurian dialect. (2) When the soldiers readily opened the gates to her as the king's daughter, the Argonauts, they say, attacked with drawn swords, killed many of the barbarians, and drove the rest, frightened by the unexpectedness, out of the sacred precinct and, seizing the fleece, hurried with it to the ship. (3) Likewise, Medea by poison killed in the sacred precinct the fabulous sleepless dragon that coiled around the fleece, and together with Jason headed to the sea. (4) When the scattered Taurians reported to the king about the attack that had occurred, they say that Aeetes, having set out with his bodyguards in pursuit of the Hellenes, caught up with them near the sea. Straight from the road entering battle, he killed one of the Argonauts — Iphitus, brother of Eurystheus (the same one who gave orders to Heracles), but then, when he with a crowd of companions attacked the others and began to press them too hard, he was killed by Meleager. (5) When the king fell and the Hellenes took heart, the Colchians turned to flight, and most of them were killed during the pursuit; of the heroes, Jason and Laertes were wounded, then Atalanta and the so-called Thespiads; they say that Medea healed them in a few days with roots and herbs, and the Argonauts, having stocked up on provisions, sailed back...
XIV. 29. Having spent eight days in these villages, the Hellenes arrived at the Phasis River; having spent four days there, they went through the region of the Chaes and Phasians. When the natives attacked them, they defeated them in a skirmish and killed many, and themselves, seizing the natives' farms full of goods, spent fifteen days in them. (2) From there, moving up, in seven days they passed through the so-called Chaldean region and arrived at a river named Harpagus, four plethra wide. From there, moving through the region of the Scythians, they marched along a level road, on which they refreshed themselves for three days, having in abundance everything necessary. After this, moving forward, on the fourth day they came to a large city called Gymnasia. (3) From it, the commander of these regions made a treaty with them and provided guides to the sea. On the fifteenth day, when, having come to Mount Chenius, those in front saw the sea, they rejoiced greatly and raised such a shout that those in the rear, supposing an attack by enemies, took up arms. (4) When all had ascended to the place from which the sea was visible, they raised their hands, thanking the gods, considering themselves already saved; having carried stones to one place and made large piles of them, they dedicated barbarian weapons, wishing to leave an eternal monument of their campaign. To the guide they gave a silver cup and Persian clothing; he showed them the way to the Macrones and withdrew. (5) The Hellenes, having entered the territory of the Macrones, made a treaty and, as confirmation of its fidelity, received from them a barbarian spear, and themselves gave a Hellenic one: the barbarians told them that this custom was handed down to them from their ancestors as the greatest guarantee of fidelity. Passing through their borders, the Hellenes entered the land of the Colchians. (6) The natives gathered against them there, but they overcame them in battle and killed many, and themselves, occupying a fortified hill, began to ravage the country and, bringing booty to it, rested amidst abundance.

30. In these places there were numerous bee hives, from which excellent honeycombs were obtained; but those who tasted them fell into strange fits: those who ate them lost consciousness and, falling to the ground, resembled the dead. (2) And since many ate this honey because of its sweet taste, soon there were many fallen, as after a defeat in war. Therefore the army spent this day in despondency, struck by the strangeness of the event and the number of victims; but the next day about the same hour all began to recover and, gradually coming to their senses, rose and felt like people recovered from poison. (3) Having recovered and for three days, they moved to the Greek city of Trapezus, a colony of the Sinopeans, lying in the land of the Colchians. Having spent thirty days there, they found broad hospitality from the locals, and themselves offered sacrifice to Heracles and Zeus the Savior and held gymnastic competitions on the spot where, according to tradition, the ship Argo and Jason with his companions landed. (4) From there they sent their commander Chirisophus to Byzantium for ships and triremes: he said that he was friendly with the Byzantine navarch Anaxibius. So they sent him in a boat, and themselves, having taken two rowing boats from the Trapezuntines, began to plunder the surrounding barbarians on land and sea. (5) They waited for Chirisophus for thirty days; but since he did not appear, and provisions among the people were exhausted, they moved from Trapezus and on the third day arrived at the Greek city of Cerasus, a colony of the Sinopeans; having spent several days there, they came to the tribe of the Mossynoeci. (6) The barbarians gathered against them, but they overcame them in battle and killed many; when the barbarians fled to a town where they lived in seven-storied wooden towers, the Hellenes, making continuous attacks, took it by force. This town was the head of the other fortifications and in it their king lived in the highest place. (7) According to ancient custom, he remains in it all his life and from there gives orders to his subjects. The soldiers said that this people was the most barbarous of those they had passed through, that they had intercourse with women in full view of everyone, that the children of the richest parents were fed on boiled chestnuts, and that all from childhood were tattooed on the back and chest. The Hellenes traversed this region in eight days, and the next, called Tibarenian, in three. From there they arrived at the Greek city of Cotyora, a colony of the Sinopeans: COPY

Materials:

Historical Library. Greek Mythology. Diodorus Siculus

Publius Ovidius Naso (43 BC — 17/18 AD)

According to A.V. Podosinov. Ovid's Works as a Source on the History of Eastern Europe and Transcaucasia (texts, translation, commentary). M. 1985.

HEROIDES

Epistle VI Hypsipyle to Jason

1-2 They say that you [i.e. Jason], enriched with the skin of the golden sheep, returning, moored your ship to the coasts of Thessaly.
9-14 [Hypsipyle reproaches Jason for not sending her a letter telling her about his adventures in Colchis.]
9 Why did rumor about you reach me before a letter?
[They say that] the sacred bulls of Mars were yoked to the curved yoke. From the scattered seeds grew shoots of men, but your right hand was not needed to destroy them; the sheepskin was guarded by a constantly vigilant dragon, yet the red wool was stolen by a brave hand.
[ Reproaches follow for Jason's silence. ]
19-20
19 They say that a barbarian sorceress came with you, possessing the part of the [marriage] bed promised to me.
32-37 [ Recently a guest from Thessaly came, who told about Jason. ]
32 He tells how the bronze-footed bulls of Mars plowed, how the poisonous teeth fell into the soil instead of seed and suddenly armed men suddenly appeared;
35 -how the earth-born people perished from civil Mars and the fate of their lives, limited to one day, was fulfilled. The serpent was conquered.
83-109 [From line 79, Hypsipyle proceeds to discuss Medea, her new rival.]
83 [Medea] pleases not by the beauty of her face nor by her merits, but she knows incantations and reaps ominous herbs with a charmed sickle.
85 She tries to force the Moon from her path and hide the Sun's horses in darkness, she restrains the waters and stops the winding rivers, she moves forests from their places and brings rocks to life. She wanders about
90 graves, with hair disheveled, and chooses from warm [still funeral] pyres the bones she needs. She casts curses on the absent and pierces wax images, thrusts thin needles into the unfortunate liver and [does] such things as it would be better for me not to know: it is bad to win love with herbs — it must be won by
95 [good] character and beauty. And her can you embrace and, alone with her on the couch, surrender fearlessly to sleep in the silence of the night? So, she made you bear the yoke, just like the bulls, and tamed you with the same means as the wild serpents. Add [to this] that she wishes to attribute to herself your exploits and those of your com-
100 -panions — a wife hinders her husband's glory! And some of Pelias's followers will attribute the success of the enterprise to poisons and convince the people that it was not the son of Aeson, but the Phasian woman, daughter of Aeetes, who obtained
105 the golden fleece of Phrixus's sheep. Neither your mother Alcimede approves of [your marriage] — ask her — nor your father, to whom a daughter-in-law from the icy pole has come. Let her seek a husband on the Tanais, in the marshes of damp Scythia and at the sources of the Phasis.
125-136 [Up to line 125, the speech is about Jason's treachery, Hypsipyle's nobility and wealth, and two sons born to Hypsipyle by Jason.]
125 I had already ordered [the sons] to be taken to you as envoys of their mother, but the cruelty of the stepmother stopped the journey begun. I was afraid of Medea, for Medea is more than a stepmother: Medea's hands are capable
130 of any crime. Will she spare my children, she who was able to scatter the torn body of her brother over the fields? And this is the one, as they say, you preferred to the bed of Hypsipyle, O madman, stolen from me by Colchian poisons! Shamefully did she, a maiden, know a man who was not her husband, while me to you and you to me was entrusted by the modest
135 wedding torch. She betrayed her father — I snatched Toas from under the knife. She left the Colchians — I live on my Lemnos.
Epistle XII Medea to Jason
1-2 1 As I recall, when I was queen of the Colchians, I had time for you when you asked that my skill help you.
7-18 [Medea laments her misfortunes]
7 Alas! Why did the Pelian wood once sail for the fleece of Phrixus, driven by youthful hands? Why did we Colchians
10 once see the Magnesian Argo and you Greeks drink the Phasian water? Why did your blond curls, your beauty and the insincere charm of your speech please me more than usual? Let [rather] the forgetful son of Aeson, when the previously unseen ship of the daring man arrived at our sands and brought the men, go
15 into the fire belched by the bulls and into their fiery jaws, not anointed beforehand with potion; let him scatter the seeds and sow the same number of enemies, so that the sower himself might fall from his own sowing.
[ Then Medea would not have to suffer so much grief.]
23-30 You by order [of Pelias] directed the previously untested ship to the Colchians and arrived in the happy kingdom of my homeland. There
25 I, Medea, was what your new wife is here. My father was as rich as hers. This one possesses Ephyra, washed by two seas, that one — all [lands] as far as snowy Scythia, where the left bank of Pontus is located. Cordially received
30 Aeetes the Pelasgian youths, and you Greeks reclined on painted couches.
[Next Medea tells how, as soon as she saw Jason, she fell in love with him.]
39-52
39 Meanwhile, you are commanded to yoke their strong necks to the plow, unfamiliar to wild bulls. The bulls of Mars were terrible not only with their horns: their breath was terrible flame, their feet were hard with bronze, and their nostrils were also covered with bronze, which
45 was blackened by the bulls' breath. Next, it was commanded that you should scatter with sacrificial hand over the broad field seeds that would give birth to crowds of men, so that they would hurl into your body spears born
50 together with them. Such a harvest is dangerous for its reaper. The last trial was to somehow deceive the eyes of the guard, unacquainted with sleep. So said Aeetes. You all rise in dismay, and the high table is moved away from the purple couches.
67-70 [Medea decides to help Jason.]
67 There is a grove, dark with pine and oak crowns, where the rays of the sun can barely penetrate; in it is located — at least it was
70 located before — the sanctuary of Diana. [There] stands a golden [statue] of the goddess, made by a barbarian hand.
[ In this grove Jason and Medea met, where Jason asked for her help, promising to make her his wife; Medea agrees.]
93-116
93 You yoke the bronze-footed bulls, without scorching your body, and plow the hard earth with the plow you were commanded. The field
95 you fill instead of seeds with poisonous teeth; warriors are born, having swords and shields. Even I, who gave you the drugs, sat pale when I saw the unexpected men with weapons in their hands, until the earth-born brothers — wonderful thing — did not enter
100 into hand-to-hand combat with each other. Behold, the sleepless guardian, bristling with clanging scales, hisses and, arching his back, scrapes the ground. Where then were the riches of Creusa's dowry? Where was your royal wife, where the Isthmus dividing the waters of two seas? For
105 it was I, who suddenly became a barbarian to you now, who now seems poor to you and dangerous, who put to sleep the fiery eyes with a sleeping potion and gave you the opportunity to steal the fleece without risk. My father was betrayed,
110 I left my kingdom and homeland and endured the trials befitting exiles. My virginity became the prey of a foreign brigand, I abandoned the best sister in the world and a dear mother, but you, my brother, I did not abandon in my flight. In this one
115 place in my letter there will be an omission: my hand does not dare to write about what it itself dared to do; I should have been torn apart together with you, [brother].
Metamorphoses.
Having endured many hardships under the leadership of the famous Jason, at last they entered the swift waters of the muddy Phasis. When they came to the king and demanded the fleece of Phrixus, they are offered to perform a great many of the most difficult feats. Meanwhile, the daughter of Aeetes felt
10 a strong flame [of love]; after a long struggle, unable to overcome her mad passion by reason, she said: "In vain you resist, Medea! Against you — some god, it is amazing that this or something like this is called love..."
[Medea reflects on what to do — help Jason and leave with him or stay in her homeland.]
VII, 55-58
55 "Within me is the greatest god! I will leave little [in my homeland]; I will achieve more: I will be glorified for saving the Achaean youth, I will get to know a better land and cities, the fame of which also reaches here, [learn] the customs and arts of [those] places."
VII, 72-77
[Then Medea realizes the criminality of her plans and is horrified by them.]
72 [So] she said, and before her eyes rose justice, piety and shame, and already had put to flight the vanquished Cupid. She went to the ancient altars of Persean Hecate,
75 hidden by a shady grove and dense forest, she was already strengthened [in spirit], and already the banished passion had subsided, when suddenly she sees the son of Aeson, and again the extinguished flame blazes up.
[ Follows a description of the revived passion. ]
VII, 84-143
84 On this day the son of Aeson appeared more beautiful than usual: [this] is quite enough to excuse a woman in love. She gazes, not taking her eyes off his face, as if she had only just [for the first time] seen him; to her, the madwoman, it seems that she sees the face of not a mortal [man] and cannot
90 turn away from him. And as soon as the guest began to speak and, taking her by the hand, with a humble voice asked for help, promised [for her] the marriage bed, she, shedding tears, said: "I see what I must do; my ignorance of the truth will not deceive me, but love; you will be saved with my help, but, having been saved, fulfill your promise." He swears
95 by the sanctuaries of the three-faced goddess, whose divinity dwelt in that grove, by the all-seeing father of his future father-in-law, by the [success] of his enterprise and by the great dangers. She believed him, and he immediately received the charmed herbs, learned their use and, joyful,
100 returned to his chambers. The next Aurora drove away the twinkling stars. Crowds of people gather on the sacred field of Mars and settle on the hills. Amid the crowd the king himself sat in purple [garment], distinguished by his ivory scepter.
105 Behold, the bronze-footed bulls breathe out Vulcan from their steel nostrils, and the grass touched by the steam burns. As full hearths hiss, or as flints scattered in an earthen oven flare up with fire when sprinkled with water — so hiss their breasts
110 emitting the flame enclosed within, and their scorched throats. However, the son of Aeson goes to meet them. In rage they turned their terrible muzzles and iron-shod horns toward the approaching [Jason], began to beat the dusty ground with their cloven hooves and filled
115 the place with bellowing and smoke. The Minyans froze with fear. He approaches, not feeling the flame they breathe out — such is the power of potions — with a bold hand strokes the hanging dewlaps and, having put a yoke on them, forces them to drag the heaviest plow and cut
120 with iron the field unaccustomed [to plowing]. The Colchians are amazed, while the Minyans with shouts strengthen and add [Jason's] courage. Then he takes the serpent's teeth in a bronze helmet and scatters them over the plowed field. The soil softens the seeds soaked in strong poison;
125 the sown teeth grow and turn into new bodies. As a child in the mother's womb takes on human form, in due time it is formed inside the womb and, only having matured, comes out into the air, common [to all people], so here, after the image of man has been created in the depths of the burdened earth, it grows on the fertile
130 field and, what is even more surprising, only appearing into the world, brandishes weapons. When the Pelasgians saw the spears with sharpened blades ready to fly into the head of the Haemonian youth, — they lowered their eyes in fear and lost heart. Even she who made
135 him invulnerable was herself frightened and, seeing that so many enemies were attacking one youth, turned pale and suddenly sat down, deadened and chilled [with terror]. So that the potions she had given would not prove too weak, she pronounces an additional incantation and calls upon secret arts. He [i.e., Jason], throwing into the midst of
140 the enemies a heavy stone, averts Mars from himself and turns him against them themselves. The earth-born brothers die, wounding each other, and perish in internecine battle. The victor is greeted by the Achaeans, they receive him to themselves and press him in their greedy embraces.
[ Medea was also glad of this victory. ]
VII, 149-158
149 It remains to put to sleep with potions the ever-vigilant dragon, which, furnished with a crest, three tongues and crooked fangs, guarded, causing terror to all, the golden tree. After [Medea] sprinkled it with potion mixed with Lethe's moisture and three times spoke words inducing peaceful sleep, calming the stormy sea and swift
155 rivers, — sleep descended on eyes unaccustomed to it, and Aeson's hero took possession of the gold and, proud of his booty and carrying a second booty — [Medea], who had made him this gift, the victor with his wife moored at the port of Iolcus.
Epistle IV, 10
To Albinovanus Pedo
25 :. Whatever barking the monsters from the mutilated groin of Scylla may raise, still the Heniochian ships have caused more harm to sailors. You cannot compare even Charybdis with the hostile Achaei, although she three times vomits up three times swallowed sea water. Although [these tribes] sail more freely in the right part
30 [of Pontus], and this side is not safe from them. COPY

Materials:

A.V. Podosinov. Ovid's Works as a Source on the History of Eastern Europe and Transcaucasia (texts, translation, commentary). M. 1985.