A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

712 SARDANAPALUS. SARPEDON.
sloth, till their degradation reached its deepest to have lasted 1306 years; but Herodotus says
point in the person of their last king Sardanapalus, (i. 95) that the Assyrians had ruled over Upper
who passed his time in his palace unseen by any of Asia for 520 years, when the Medes revolted
his subjects, dressed in female apparel, surrounded from them. This statement is in accordance with
by concubines, and indulging in every species of that in the Armenian translation of Eusebius, il
licentiousness and effeminacy. At length Arbaces, which it is recorded that Assyrian kings ruled over
satrap of Media, was admitted into the presence of Babylon for 526 years. Herodotus says, in the
the sovereign, and was so disgusted with what he passage already referred to, that other nations
saw, that he resolved to throw off his allegiance to imitated the example of the Medes, and revolted
such a worthless monarch. Supported by Belesys, from the Assyrians, and among these other nations
the noblest of the Chaldaean priests, Arbaces ad- we are doubtless to understand the Babylonians.
vanced at the head of a formidable army against This revolt of the Medes occurred in the latter
Sardanapalus. But all of a sudden the effeminate half of the eighth century, probably about B. c. 710.
prince threw off his luxurious habits, and appeared According to Herodotus, however, an Assyrian
an undaunted warrior. Placing himself at the kingdom, of which Nineveh was the capital, still
head of his troops, he twice defeated the rebels, but continued to exist, and was not destroyed till the
was at length worsted and obliged to shut himself capture of Nineveh by the Median king Cyaxares,
up ill Nineveh. Here he sustained a siege for two about B. C. 606, that is, nearly three hundred years
years, till at length, finding it impossible to hold after the date assigned to its overthrow by Ctesias
out any longer, he collected all his treasures, wives, (Herod. i. 106; Clinton, F. H. vol. i. p. 218).
and concubines, and placing them on an immense Further, the writers of the Old Testament reprepile which he had constructed, set it on fire, and sent the Assyrian empire in its glory in the eighth
thus destroyed both himself and them. The ene- century before the Christian aera. It was during
mies then obtained possession of the city. The this period that Pul, Tiglath-pileser, Shalmaneser,
account of Ctesias has been given at some length and Sennacherib, appear as powerful kings of Asin Diodorus Siculus (ii. 23-27), and his state- syria, who, not'contented with their previous
ments respecting the Assyrian monarchy were dominions, subdued Israel, Phoenicia, and the
followed by most subsequent writers and chrono- surrounding countries. In order to reconcile these
logists. (Comp. Justin, i. 1-3; Athen. xii. pp. statements with those of Ctesias, modern writers
529, 530.) Justin places the death of Sardana- have invented two Assyrian kingdoms at Nineveh,
palus in the first half of the ninth century before one which was destroyed on the death of Sardathe Christian aera, and according to his chronology napalus, and another which was established after
Ninus therefore falls in the twenty-second century. that event, and fell on the capture of Nineveh by
Clinton gives B. C. 2182 for the commencement, Cyaxares. But this is a purely gratuitous assumpand B. c. 876 for the close of the Assyrian em- tion, unsupported by any evidence. We have only
pire. records of one Assyrian empire, and of one deOwing to the detailed accounts in Diodorus, struction of Nineveh. On this point some good
many modern writers have repeated his history remarks are made by Loebell, Weltgeschiclte, vol. i.
with full confidence, though they have been not a pp. 152, 555-558.
little puzzled to reconcile it with the conflicting SARDO (eapasi), a daughter of Sthenelns,
statements of other authorities. But the whole from whom the city of Sardes was said to have
narrative of Ctesias is purely mythical, and cannot derived its name. (Hygin. Fab. 275.) [L. S.]
for one moment be received as a genuine history. SARDUS (:a'pbos), a son of Maceris, and
Ctesias, it must be recollected, is the only autho- leader of a colony from Libya to Sardinia, which
rity on which the whole rests, and as he lived at was believed to have derived its name from him.
the beginning of the fourth century before the (Paus. x. 17. ~ 1.) [L. S.]
Christian aera, that is, nearly 500 years after the SA'RNACUS, a Greek architect, who wrote
events which he professes to describe, his account on the orders of architecture, praecepta symnzewill not appear of much value to those who are triarumn. (Vitruv. vii. Praef. ~ 14.) [P. S.]
acquainted with the laws of historical evidence. SARON (dpewv), a mythical king of Troezene,
The fact of thirty effeminate kings reigning in who built a sanctuary of Artemis Saronia on the
succession, from father to son, for such an immense sea-coast. Once while chasing a stag into the sea
period of time, is of itself sufficient to prove the he was drowned, and his body, which was washed
fabulous nature of the account; and the legend of on shore in the grove of Artemis, was buried there,
Sardanapalus, who so strangely appears at one and the gulf between Attica and Argolis was,
time sunk in the lowest effeminacy, and imme- from this circumstance, called the Saronic Gulf.
diately afterwards an heroic warrior, has probably (Paus. ii. 30. ~ 7.) Near Troezene there was a
arisen from his being the same with the god little town called Saron (Steph. Byz. s. v.), and
Sandon, who was worshipped extensively in Asia, Troezene itself is said at one time to have been
both as an heroic and a female divinity. The called Saronia. (Eustath. ad Honz. p. 287; comp.
identity between the god Sandon and the king Schol. ad Eurip. Hipp. 1190.) [L. S.]
Sardanapalus was first asserted by K. O. Miiller, SARO'NIS (eapowves), a surname of Artemis
in a very ingenious essay (Sandon und Sardanapal at Troezene, where an annual festival was celein Rhleinisches iouseuns for 1829, pp. 22-39, re- brated in honour of her under the name of Sarolia.
printed in Rleine Schriften, vol. ii. pp. 100-113), (Paus. ii. 30. ~ 7, 32. ~ 9; SARON.) [L. S.]
and has been supported with further arguments by SARPE'DON (,apcrrri5Yv) 1. A son of Zeus
Movers (Die Phlnizicr, p. 458, &c.). by Europa, and a brother of Minos and RhaThe account of Ctesias, besides its inherent damanthys. Being involved in a quarrel with
improbability, is in direct contradiction to Hero- Minos about Miletus, he took refuge with Cilix,
dotus and the writers of the Old Testament. We whom he assisted against the Lycians; and afterhave seen that Ctesias makes the Assyrian empire wards he became king of the Lycians, and Zeus