of friendship which he gave to several among them, he also granted the
city of Naucratis for those of them who came to Egypt to dwell in; and
to those who did not desire to stay, but who made voyages thither, he
granted portions of land to set up altars and make sacred enclosures for
their gods. Their greatest enclosure and that one which has most name
and is most frequented is called the Hellenion, and this was established
by the following cities in common:--of the Ionians Chios, Teos,
Phocaia, Clazomenai, of the Dorians Rhodes, Cnidos, Halicarnassos,
Phaselis, and of the Aiolians Mytilene alone. To these belongs this
enclosure and these are the cities which appoint superintendents of the
port; and all other cities which claim a share in it, are making a claim
without any right. Besides this the Eginetans established on their own
account a sacred enclosure dedicated to Zeus, the Samians one to Hera,
and the Milesians one to Apollo. Now in old times Naucratis alone was an
open trading-place, and no other place in Egypt: and if any one came to
any other of the Nile mouths, he was compelled to swear that he came not
thither of his own free will, and when he had thus sworn his innocence
he had to sail with his ship to the Canobic mouth, or if it were not
possible to sail by reason of contrary winds, then he had to carry his
cargo round the head of the Delta in boats to Naucratis: thus highly
was Naucratis privileged. Moreover when the Amphictyons had let out the
contract for building the temple which now exists at Delphi, agreeing to
pay a sum of three hundred talents (for the temple which formerly stood
there had been burnt down of itself), it fell to the share of the people
of Delphi to provide the fourth part of the payment; and accordingly the
Delphians went about to various cities and collected contributions. And
when they did this they got from Egypt as much as from any place, for
Amasis gave them a thousand talents' weight of alum, while the Hellenes
who dwelt in Egypt gave them twenty pounds of silver.
Also with the people of Kyrene Amasis made an agreement for friendship
and alliance; and he resolved too to marry a wife from thence, whether
because he desired to have a wife of Hellenic race, or, apart from that,
on account of friendship for the people of Kyrene: however that may be,
he married, some say the daughter of Battos, others of Arkesilaos, and
others of Critobulos, a man of repute among the citizens; and her name
was Ladike. Now whenever Amasis lay with her he found himself unable to
have intercourse, but with his other wives he associated as he was wont;
and as this happened repeatedly, Amasis said to his wife, whose name was
Ladike: "Woman, thou hast given me drugs, and thou shall surely perish
more miserably than any other." Then Ladike, when by her denials Amasis
was not at all appeased in his anger against her, made a vow in her
soul to Aphrodite, that if Amasis on that night had intercourse with
her (seeing that this was the remedy for her danger), she would send an
image to be dedicated to her at Kyrene; and after the vow immediately
Amasis had intercourse, and from thenceforth whenever Amasis came in to
her he had intercourse with her; and after this he became very greatly
attached to her. And Ladike paid the vow that she had made to the
goddess; for she had an image made and sent it to Kyrene, and it is
still preserved even to my own time, standing with its face turned away
from the city of the Kyrenians. This Ladike Cambyses, having conquered
Egypt and heard from her who she was, sent back unharmed to Kyrene.
Amasis also dedicated offerings in Hellas, first at Kyrene an image
of Athene covered over with gold and a figure of himself made like by
painting; then in the temple of Athene at Lindos two images of stone
and a corslet of linen worthy to be seen; and also at Samos two wooden
figures of himself dedicated to Hera, which were standing even to my own
time in the great temple, behind the doors. Now at Samos he dedicated
offerings because of the guest-friendship between himself and Polycrates
the son of Aiakes; at Lindos for no guest-friendship but because the
temple of Athene at Lindos is said to have been founded by the daughters
of Danaos, who had touched land there at the time when they were fleeing
from the sons of Aigyptos. These offerings were dedicated by Amasis; and
he was the first of men who conquered Cyprus and subdued it so that it
paid him tribute.