Mandrocles, probably a Greek architect in the service of Darius, King of
Persia, who flourished about B. C. 500, acquired a great name for the
bridge which he constructed across the Thracian Bosphorus, or Straits of
Constantinople, by order of that monarch. This bridge was formed of
boats so ingeniously and firmly united that the innumerable army of
Persia passed over it from Asia to Europe. To preserve the memory of so
singular a work, Mandrocles represented in a picture, the Bosphorus, the
bridge, the king of Persia seated on a throne, and the army that passed
over it. This picture was preserved in the Temple of Juno at Samos,
where Herodotus saw it, with this inscription:--"Mandrocles, after
having constructed a bridge of boats over the Bosphorus, by order of the
king Darius of Persia, dedicated this monument to Juno, which does honor
to Samos, his country, and confers glory on the artificer."