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Histories

§3.10.1-3.10.3

Death of Amasis and Portentous Rain at Thebes

While Psammenitus awaits Cambyses' army at Pelusium, the death and burial of the former king Amasis are narrated, and an ominous portent of an unprecedented rainfall in Egyptian Thebes during Psammenitus' reign is recorded.

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§3.10.1

ἐν δὲ τῷ Πηλουσίῳ καλεομένῳ στόματι τοῦ Νείλου ἐστρατοπεδεύετο Ψαμμήνιτος ὁ Ἀμάσιος παῖς ὑπομένων Καμβύσεα.

​At the so-called Pelusian mouth of the Nile, Psammenitus, the son of Amasis, was encamped, awaiting Cambyses.

§3.10.2

Ἄμασιν γὰρ οὐ κατέλαβε ζῶντα Καμβύσης1 ἐλάσας ἐπʼ Αἴγυπτον, ἀλλὰ βασιλεύσας ὁ Ἄμασις τέσσερα καὶ τεσσεράκοντα ἔτεα ἀπέθανε, ἐν τοῖσι2 οὐδέν οἱ μέγα ἀνάρσιον πρῆγμα συνηνείχθη· ἀποθανὼν δὲ καὶ ταριχευθεὶς ἐτάφη ἐν τῇσι ταφῇσι ἐν τῷ ἱρῷ, τὰς αὐτὸς οἰκοδομήσατο.

​For Cambyses did not find Amasis alive when he marched against Egypt; rather, having ruled for forty-four years, Amasis died, during which years no great misfortune befell him. After he died and was embalmed, he was buried in the tombs in the temple which he himself had built.

§3.10.3

ἐπὶ Ψαμμηνίτου δὲ τοῦ Ἀμάσιος βασιλεύοντος3 Αἰγύπτου φάσμα Αἰγυπτίοισι μέγιστον δὴ ἐγένετο· ὕσθησαν γὰρ Θῆβαι αἱ Αἰγύπτιαι, οὔτε πρότερον οὐδαμὰ ὑσθεῖσαι οὔτε ὕστερον τὸ μέχρι ἐμεῦ, ὡς λέγουσι αὐτοὶ Θηβαῖοι· οὐ γὰρ δὴ ὕεται τὰ ἄνω4 τῆς Αἰγύπτου τὸ παράπαν· ἀλλὰ καὶ τότε ὕσθησαν αἱ Θῆβαι ψακάδι.

​Under the reign of Psammenitus, the son of Amasis, over Egypt, a most extraordinary portent occurred for the Egyptians: for it rained at Egyptian Thebes, which had never been rained upon before, nor has been since down to my own time, as the Thebans themselves say. For indeed, Upper Egypt is not rained upon at all, but even then, Thebes was rained upon with a drizzle.

Syntax notes4 items
  1. 3.10.2Ἄμασιν γὰρ οὐ κατέλαβε ζῶντα Καμβύσης

    The participle ζῶντα acts as a predicative adjective modifying Ἄμασιν, meaning "did not catch (find) Amasis alive"—that is, Cambyses did not arrive in Egypt before Amasis' death.

  2. 3.10.2ἐν τοῖσι

    The antecedent of the relative pronoun τοῖσι (Ionic for οἷς) is the preceding phrase τέσσερα καὶ τεσσεράκοντα ἔτεα (forty-four years). Combined with the preposition ἐν, it means "during which [years]."

  3. 3.10.3Ψαμμηνίτου ... βασιλεύοντος

    The preposition ἐπὶ ("in the time of") governs the genitive noun phrase with the participle (Ψαμμηνίτου ... βασιλεύοντος), not a genitive absolute. Αἰγύπτου is the genitive object governed by the participle βασιλεύοντος.

  4. 3.10.3ὕσθησαν γὰρ Θῆβαι / ὕεται τὰ ἄνω

    The verb ὕω (to rain) is typically used in the impersonal active (ὕει, "it rains"), but here it appears in a passive personal construction (meaning "to be rained upon"), where the locations (Θῆβαι, "Thebes"; τὰ ἄνω, "the upper parts") function as the grammatical subjects.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)
  • 2026-09-21 AI review — note 1
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:3.10.1-3.10.3