When the Argives inquired at Delphi about the safety of their city, a common response was given, one part regarding the Argives themselves, but there was an additional response for the Milesians. I will mention the part concerning the Argives when I come to that part of my history; this was the prophecy given to the Milesians in their absence: Then, Miletus, contriver of evil deeds, For many will you become a banquet and glorious gifts; Your wives will wash the feet of many long-haired men; Other ministers will tend my Didyman shrine! All this now came upon the Milesians, since most of their men were slain by the Persians, who wore long hair, and their women and children were accounted as slaves, and the temple at Didyma with its shrine and place of divination was plundered and burnt. Of the wealth that was in this temple I have often spoken elsewhere in my history.
The Greek stands ready in the workroom; the English is served. Both faces will read together.
fall of Miletus — a deed taking of Miletus — a candidate entry
The Histories, Herodotus — translated by A. D. Godley, 1920–25
Perseus Digital Library — Herodotus, The Histories (Godley translation) · A. D. Godley, Loeb Classical Library, Harvard University Press / William Heinemann, 1920–25
license: public-domain (US: pre-1930 publication); Perseus digital edition CC BY-SA 4.0, attribution recorded in ops/corpus-staging/SOURCES.md