Semiramis’ Legacy: The History of Persia According to Diodorus of Sicily

Presents and contextualises extracts from the Historical Library of DiodorusThere are only a few detailed histories of Persia from Ancient Greek historiography that have survived time. Diodorus of Sicily, a first century BC author, is the only one to have written a comprehensive history (the Bibliotheca Historica or Historical Library) in which more than cursory attention is paid to Persia. The ‘Bibliotheca Historica’ covers the entire period from Persia’s prehistory until the arrival of the Parthians from the East and that of Roman power throughout Asia Minor and beyond from the West, around 750 years after Assyrian rule ended.Diodorus’ contribution to our knowledge of Persian history is therefore of great value for the modern historian of the Ancient Near East and in this book Jan Stronk provides the first complete translation of Diodorus’ account of the history of Persia. He also examines and evaluates both Diodorus’ account and the sources he used to compose his work, taking into consideration the historical, political and archaeological factors that may have played a role in the transmission of the evidence he used to acquire the raw material underlying his Bibliotheca.Contains the first comprehensive account of Ancient Persian History and its context as seen by Diodorus - a well-informed GreekPresents a complete review of the historical sources used by Diodorus, not merely for the Persian history but for the entire ‘Biblioteca Historica'Offers a historic and cultural background to the account of Diodorusof interest to anyone studying the Achamenids or the Ancient Near East