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Icarus (disambiguation)

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62-480: Icarus is a character in Greek mythology. Icarus or Ikarus may also refer to: Icarus In Greek mythology , Icarus ( / ˈ ɪ k ə r ə s / ; Ancient Greek : Ἴκαρος , romanized :  Íkaros , pronounced [ǐːkaros] ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus , the architect of the labyrinth of Crete . After Theseus , king of Athens and enemy of Minos, escaped from

124-661: A brief statement of its contents. The main focus of the book are events in mainland Greece, principally the Second Persian invasion of Greece under Xerxes (1-19, 27-39), Themistocles ' construction of the Peiraeus and Long walls and his defection to Persia (41-50, 54-59) and the Pentecontaetia (60-65, 78–84, 88). Interweaved with this is an account of events in Sicily, focussing on Gelon of Syracuse 's war with

186-668: A didactic purpose. The book is devoted to two parallel narratives, one describing Agathocles' ultimately unsuccessful invasion of Carthage, and the other devoted to the continued wars of the Diadochi, which are dominated by Antigonus Monophthalmus and Demetrius Poliorcetes . The only significant side narrative is the account of Cleonymus of Sparta 's wars in Italy (104-105). These books do not survive intact, but large sections were preserved by Byzantine compilers working under Constantine VII and by epitomators like Photius . They covered

248-558: A prologue arguing that democracy is usually overthrown by the most powerful members of society, not the weakest, and advancing Agathocles of Syracuse as a demonstration of this proposition. The narrative of the book continues the account of the Diadochi, recounting the Second and Third Wars of the Diadochi; the Babylonian War is completely unmentioned. Interwoven in this narrative is the rise to power of Agathocles of Syracuse and

310-468: A tomb for him. Accounts of Icarus's story are found in Pseudo-Apollodorus's Bibliotheca (Epitome i.12–13); Diodorus Siculus's Bibliotheca historica (4.77.5–9); Hyginus's Fabulae (40); Virgil's Aeneid (vi.14–33); and Ovid's Metamorphoses (viii.183–235). A number of other ancient writers allude to the story in passing, notably Lucian . The account by Pseudo-Apollodorus

372-520: A very talented Athenian craftsman, built a labyrinth for King Minos of Crete near his palace at Knossos to imprison the Minotaur , a half-man, half-bull monster born of his wife and the Cretan bull . Minos imprisoned Daedalus himself in the labyrinth because he believed Daedalus gave Minos's daughter, Ariadne , a clew (or ball of string) in order to help Theseus escape the labyrinth and defeat

434-498: Is Octavian 's vengeance on the city of Tauromenium , whose refusal to help him led to Octavian's naval defeat nearby in 36 BC (16.7). Diodorus shows no knowledge that Egypt became a Roman province—which transpired in 30 BC—so presumably he published his completed work before that event. Diodorus asserts that he devoted thirty years to the composition of his history, and that he undertook a number of dangerous journeys through Europe and Asia in prosecution of his historical researches. In

496-429: Is a work of universal history by Diodorus Siculus . It consisted of forty books, which were divided into three sections. The first six books are geographical in theme, and describe the history and culture of Egypt (book I), of Mesopotamia , India , Scythia , and Arabia (II), of North Africa (III), and of Greece and Europe (IV–VI). In the next section (books VII–XVII), he recounts human history starting with

558-681: Is brief. Ovid 's account in the Metamorphoses is among the lengthiest, and the Latin poet refers to Icarus's myth elsewhere. Hyginus , among the Augustan writers who wrote about it in Latin in his Fabulae , tells of the bovine love affair of Pasiphaë , daughter of the Sun, that resulted in the birth of the Minotaur . Ovid's version of the Icarus myth and its connection to Phaethon influenced

620-466: Is every reason to believe that he used the best sources and that he reproduced them faithfully. His First Book, which deals almost exclusively with Egypt, is the fullest literary account of the history and customs of that country after Herodotus . Books II-V cover a wide range, and because of their inclusion of much mythological material are of much less value. In the period from 480 to 301 BC, which he treats in annalistic fashion and in which his main source

682-564: Is notable for the inclusion of the lives of Diophantus of Abae , Callon of Epidaurus , and others who transitioned between genders. The record of Callon's medical treatment is the first known account of gender-affirming surgery . Diodorus is mentioned briefly in Pliny the Elder 's Natural History as being singular among the Greek historians for the simple manner in which he named his work. Diodorus' liberal use of earlier historians underlies

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744-527: Is usually identified as Timaeus of Tauromenium . Diodorus explains that, given the amount of material to be covered, his prologue must be brief. This book opens with the account of the Sicilian Expedition , culminating in two very long speeches at Syracuse deliberating about how to treat the Athenian prisoners (1-33). After that the two areas again diverge, with the Greek narrative covering

806-449: Is without colouring, and monotonous; and his simple diction, which stands intermediate between pure Attic and the colloquial Greek of his time, enables us to detect in the narrative the undigested fragments of the materials which he employed. As damaging as this sounds, other more contemporary classical scholars are likely to go even further. Diodorus has become infamous particularly for adapting his tales ad maiorem Graecorum gloriam ("to

868-459: The Excerpta of Constantine Porphyrogenitus . The earliest date Diodorus mentions is his visit to Egypt in the 180th Olympiad (between 60 and 56 BC). This visit was marked by his witnessing an angry mob demand the death of a Roman citizen who had accidentally killed a cat, an animal sacred to the ancient Egyptians ( Bibliotheca historica 1.41, 1.83). The latest event Diodorus mentions

930-460: The Bibliotheca historica , Diodorus sets out to write a universal history, covering the entire world and all periods of time. Each book opens with a table of its contents and a preface discussing the relevance of history, issues in the writing of history or the significance of the events discussed in that book. These are now generally agreed to be entirely Diodorus' own work. The degree to which

992-682: The Boeotian War (81-86, 91–92, 94). The Sicilian narrative focusses on Dionysios the Elder's establishment of his tyranny in Sicily (7-9, 11–16, 18), his second war with the Carthaginians (41-78, 85–91, 95-96), and his invasion of southern Italy (100-108, 111-112). Fairly brief notes mention Roman affairs year by year, including the war with Veii (93), and the Gallic Sack (113-117). Ephorus and Timaeus are assumed to have still been Diodorus' sources. Some details in his account of

1054-607: The Carthaginians (20-26), his successors ' prosperity and fall (51, 53, 67-68), and the Syracusans' war with Ducetius (76, 78, 88-92). Diodorus' source for his account of mainland Greece in this book is generally agreed to be Ephorus of Cyme , but some scholars argue that he supplemented this using the accounts of Herodotus , Thucydides , and others. The book's prologue muses on the mutability of fortune. Diodorus notes that bad events can have positive outcomes, like

1116-613: The Decelean War down to the battles of Arginusae and Aigospotami (35-42, 45–53, 64–74, 76-79). The Sicilian narrative recounts the beginning of the Second Carthaginian War , culminating in the rise of Dionysius the Elder to the tyranny (43-44, 54–63, 75, 80–96, 108-114). Ephorus is generally agreed to have continued to be the source of the Greek narrative and Timaeus of the Sicilian narrative. The source of

1178-751: The Muses , Herakles , the Argonauts , Medea , the hero Theseus and the Seven against Thebes . In this book, Diodorus describes the geography of Europe . He covers the islands of Sicily , Malta , Corsica , Sardinia and the Balearic Islands . He then covers Britain, 'Basilea ', Gaul , the Iberian peninsula, and the regions of Liguria and Tyrrhenia in the Italian peninsula. Finally he describes

1240-695: The Scythians of the Eurasian steppe , including the Amazons and the Hyperboreans (chapters 43-47), and Arabia Felix (chapters 48-54). He finishes the book with an account of the traveller Iambulus ' journey to a group of islands in the Indian Ocean , which appears to be based on a Hellenistic utopian novel. In this book, Diodorus describes the geography of North Africa including Aethiopia ,

1302-481: The Social War (7, 21-22), Artaxerxes III 's reconquest of Egypt (40-52), and the expedition of Timoleon (interleaved in 65-90). The initial sources for the main narrative was probably Ephorus, but his account came to an end in 356 BC, and Diodorus' sources after that point are disputed. Possibilities include Demophilus , Diyllus , Duris of Samos and Theopompus ; contradictions in his account suggest that he

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1364-580: The Sun himself, and the god punished him by directing his powerful rays at him, melting the beeswax. Afterwards, it was Helios who named the Icarian Sea after Icarus. Hellenistic writers give euhemerising variants in which the escape from Crete was actually by boat, provided by Pasiphaë , for which Daedalus invented the first sails, to outstrip Minos's pursuing galleys , that Icarus fell overboard en route to Sicily and drowned, and that Heracles erected

1426-651: The Trojan War , down to the death of Alexander the Great . The last section (books XVII to the end) concern the historical events from the successors of Alexander down to either 60 BC or the beginning of Caesar 's Gallic War in 59 BC. (The end has been lost, so it is unclear whether Diodorus reached the beginning of the Gallic War, as he promised at the beginning of his work, or, as evidence suggests, old and tired from his labors he stopped short at 60 BC.) He selected

1488-470: The secession of the Plebs at Rome (24-25). An account of the war between Leontini and Syracuse, culminating in the embassy of Gorgias to Athens (54-56), sets up the account of the Sicilian Expedition in book XIII. Diodorus is believed to have continued to use Ephorus, perhaps supplemented with other historians, as his source for Greek events in this book, while the source for the events in western Greece

1550-617: The skytalismos in Argos (57-58), the career of Jason of Pherae (57, 60, 80, 95), and the Great Satraps' Revolt (90-93). Diodorus' main source is generally believed to have been Ephorus , but (through him?) he also seems to have drawn on other sources, like the Hellenica Oxyrhynchia . It is disputed whether he continued using Timaeus of Tauromenium for his description of Sicilian affairs in this book or if this too

1612-744: The Cadmeia (8-12, 18-23), but also the Spartan defeat in the Boeotian War which resulted in the rise of the Theban Hegemony (25-35, 37–40, 62‑69, 75, 82‑88). The main side narratives are Euagoras war with the Persians in Cyprus (2‑4, 8‑9), the wars of Dionysius I against the Illyrians, Etruscans and Carthaginians and his death (13-17, 73-74), Artaxerxes II 's failed invasion of Egypt (41-43),

1674-760: The Fall of Icarus , ) attributed to Pieter Bruegel the Elder , was the inspiration for two of the 20th century's most notable ekphrastic English-language poems, " Musée des Beaux Arts " by W. H. Auden and " Landscape with the Fall of Icarus " by William Carlos Williams . Other English-language poems referring to the Icarus myth are "To a Friend Whose Work Has Come to Triumph" by Anne Sexton ; "Icarus" by John Updike ; "Icarus Again" by Alan Devenish; "Mrs Icarus" by Carol Ann Duffy ; "Failing and Flying" by Jack Gilbert ; "It Should Have Been Winter" by Nancy Chen Long, " Up like Icarus " by Mark Antony Owen, "Age 10, 3am" by Sheri Wright, and "Yesterday's Myth" by Jennifer Chang. While

1736-475: The Minotaur. Daedalus fashioned two pairs of wings for himself and his son, made of metal feathers held to a leather frame by beeswax. Before trying to escape the island, he warned his son to follow his flight path and not fly too close to the sun or the sea. Overcome by giddiness while flying, Icarus disobeyed his father and soared higher into the sky. Without warning, the heat from the sun softened (and melted)

1798-496: The Sicilian expedition is disputed - both Ephorus and Timaeus have been put forward. Sacks argues that the two speeches at the end of that account are Diodorus' own work. In the prologue, Diodorus identifies reproachful criticism ( blasphemia ) as the punishment for evil deeds which people take to heart the most and which the powerful are especially subject to. Powerful men, therefore, should avoid evil deeds in order to avoid receiving this reproach from posterity. Diodorus claims that

1860-544: The Ten Thousand may derive from a lost work of Sophaenetus . In the prologue of this book, Diodorus makes several statements that have been considered important for understanding the philosophy behind his entire work. Firstly, he announces the importance of parrhesia (free speech) for the overall moral goal of his work, insofar as he expects his frank praise of good people and criticism of bad ones will encourage his readers to behave morally. Secondly, he declares that

1922-435: The beginning of his war with Carthage . It is disputed whether this latter narrative strand is based on Callias of Syracuse , Timaeus of Tauromenium , or Duris of Samos . The prologue of this book discusses Greek historians' practice of inventing speeches for their characters to deliver. Diodorus criticises the practice as inappropriate to the genre, but acknowledges that in moderation such speeches can add variety and serve

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1984-586: The book is devoted to the history of the Assyrians , focussed on the mythical conquests of Ninus and Semiramis , the fall of the dynasty under the effeminate Sardanapallus , and the origins of the Medes who overthrew them. This section is explicitly derived from the account of Ctesias of Cnidus (chapters 1-34). The rest of the book is devoted to describing the various other peoples of Asia. He first describes India, drawing on Megasthenes (chapters 35-42), then

2046-457: The book is split into two halves, the first running down to the Battle of Gaugamela (1-63) and the second part continuing until his death (64-118). Diodorus' sources for the story of Alexander are much debated. Sources of information include Aristobulus of Cassandreia , Cleitarchus , Onesicritus and Nearchus , but it is not clear that he used these directly. Several scholars have argued that

2108-694: The central subjects of the book are negative examples, who demonstrate the truth of these remarks. The book is again divided into Greek and Sicilian narratives. The Greek narrative covers the thirty tyrants of Athens (3-6, 32-33), the establishment and souring of the Spartan hegemony (10-13, 17, 34–36, 38), Cyrus the Younger 's attempt to seize the Persian throne with the aid of the Ten Thousand (19-31), Agesilaus ' invasion of Persian Asia Minor (79-80),

2170-413: The entire night ... For no leniency or respite of any kind is given to any man who is sick, or maimed, or aged, or in the case of a woman for her weakness, but all without exception are compelled by blows to persevere in their labours, until through ill-treatment they die in the midst of their tortures. In this book, Diodorus describes the mythology of Greece . He narrates the myths of Dionysus, Priapus ,

2232-519: The fall of the Spartan empire , which is described in this book, was caused by their cruel treatment of their subjects. Sacks considers this idea about the fall of empires to be a core theme of Diodorus' work, motivated by his own experience as a subject of Rome. This book covers the height of the Spartan rule in Greece, including the invasion of Persia, the Olynthian War , and the occupation of

2294-591: The gold mines of Egypt, the Persian Gulf and Libya , where he sites mythical figures including the Gorgons , Amazons , Ammon and Atlas. Based on the writings on Agatharchides , Diodorus describes gold mining in Egypt , with horrible working conditions: And those who have been condemned in this way—and they are a great multitude and are all bound in chains—work at their task unceasingly both by day and throughout

2356-475: The greater glory of the Greeks"), leading one prominent author to refer to him as one of the "two most accomplished liars of antiquity" (the other being Ctesias ). Far more sympathetic is the estimate of Charles Henry Oldfather , who wrote in the introduction to his translation of Diodorus: While characteristics such as these exclude Diodorus from a place among the abler historians of the ancient world, there

2418-453: The harsh opinion of the author of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article on Bibliotheca historica : The faults of Diodorus arise partly from the nature of the undertaking, and the awkward form of annals into which he has thrown the historical portion of his narrative. He shows none of the critical faculties of the historian, merely setting down a number of unconnected details. His narrative contains frequent repetitions and contradictions,

2480-551: The historical change in how Western culture both propagated and interpreted the Icarus myth arguing that "We tend to forget that Icarus was also warned not to fly too low, because seawater would ruin the lift in his wings. Flying too low is even more dangerous than flying too high, because it feels deceptively safe." Each study and analysis of the myth agrees Icarus was too ambitious for his own good. Bibliotheca historica Bibliotheca historica ( Ancient Greek : Βιβλιοθήκη Ἱστορική , lit.   ' Historical Library ' )

2542-543: The history of the Hellenistic kingdoms from the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC, through the wars between Rome and Carthage, down to either 60 BC or the beginning of Caesar's Gallic War in 59 BC. For books 21–32, Diodorus drew on the history of Polybius , which largely survives and can be compared against Diodorus' text, though he may also have used Philinus of Agrigentum and other lost historians. Books 32 to 38 or 39 probably had Poseidonius as their source. Book XXXII

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2604-548: The islands of Hiera and Panchaea in the southern ocean, and the Greek islands . Books VI–X survive only in fragments, which cover events before and after the Trojan War including the stories of Bellerophon , Orpheus , Aeneas , and Romulus ; some history from cities including Rome and Cyrene; tales of kings such as Croesus and Cyrus; and mentions of philosophers such as Pythagoras and Zeno . This book has no prologue, just

2666-451: The labyrinth, King Minos suspected that Icarus and Daedalus had revealed the labyrinth's secrets and imprisoned them—either in a large tower overlooking the ocean or in the labyrinth itself, depending upon the account. Icarus and Daedalus escaped using wings Daedalus constructed from birds’ molted feathers, threads from blankets, the leather straps from their sandals, and beeswax. Before escaping, Daedalus warned Icarus not to fly too low or

2728-458: The memory of him. Today, the supposed site of his burial on the island bears his name, and the sea near Icaria in which he drowned is called the Icarian Sea . With much grief, Daedalus went to the temple of Apollo in Sicily, hung up his own wings as an offering, and promised to never attempt to fly again. According to scholia on Euripides , Icarus thought himself greater than Helios ,

2790-707: The myth is a major subtext throughout Hiromi Yoshida's Icarus tetralogy poetry chapbooks, Icarus is a metaphor for troubled modern young men in the Norwegian Axel Jensen 's novel Icarus: A Young Man in Sahara (1957). He is also the subject of the 2017 novel, Icarus , by Adam Wing. According to the New York Times Book Review , the hero of Andrew Boryga’s “Victim” is an “inner-city Icarus” who exaggerates his victimization narrative until it implodes. Literary interpretation has considered

2852-590: The myth of Icarus as a consequence of excessive ambition. An Icarus-related study of the Daedalus myth was published by the French hellenist Françoise Frontisi-Ducroux . In psychology, there have been synthetic studies of the Icarus complex with respect to the alleged relationship between fascination for fire, enuresis , high ambition, and Ascensionism. In the psychiatric mind, features of disease were perceived in

2914-725: The mythological tradition in English literature reflected in the writings of Chaucer , Marlowe , Shakespeare , Milton , and Joyce . In Renaissance iconography , the significance of Icarus depends on context: in the Orion Fountain at Messina, he is one of many figures associated with water; but he is also shown on the Bankruptcy Court of the Amsterdam Town Hall – where he symbolizes high-flying ambition. The 16th-century painting Landscape with

2976-566: The name "Bibliotheca" in acknowledgement that he was assembling a composite work from many sources. Of the authors he drew from, some who have been identified include: Hecataeus of Abdera , Ctesias of Cnidus , Ephorus , Theopompus , Hieronymus of Cardia , Duris of Samos , Diyllus , Philistus , Timaeus , Polybius and Posidonius . Diodorus' immense work has not survived intact; only the first five books and books 11 through 20 remain. The rest exists only in fragments preserved in Photius and

3038-405: The other years. The earliest extant manuscript of Bibliotheca historica is from about 10th century. The editio princeps of Diodorus was a Latin translation of the first five books by Poggio Bracciolini at Bologna in 1472. The first printing of the Greek original (at Basel in 1535) contained only books 16–20, and was the work of Vincentius Opsopoeus . It was not until 1559 that all of

3100-674: The prosperity of Greece which (he says) resulted from the Persian Wars. Diodorus account mostly focuses on mainland Greece, covering the end of the Pentecontaetia (1-7, 22, 27-28), the first half of the Peloponnesian War (30, 31–34, 38–51, 55–63, 66-73), and conflicts during the Peace of Nicias (74-84). Most of the side narratives concern events in southern Italy, relating to the foundation of Thurii (9-21, 23, 35) and

3162-411: The shape of the pendulous emotional ecstatic- high and depressive- low of bipolar disorder. Henry Murray having proposed the term Icarus complex , apparently found symptoms particularly in mania where a person is fond of heights, fascinated by both fire and water, narcissistic and observed with fantastical or far-fetched imaginary cognition. Seth Godin 's 2012 The Icarus Deception, points to

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3224-425: The text that follows is derived from earlier historical works is debated. The first five books describe the history and culture of different regions, without attempting to determine the relative chronology of events. Diodorus expresses serious doubts that such chronology is possible for barbarian lands and the distant past. The resulting books have affinities with the genre of geography. Books six to ten, which covered

3286-480: The theories offered by different Greek scholars to explain the annual floods of the River Nile serves to showcase Diodorus' wide-reading. In the second half he presents the history of the country, its customs and religion, in a highly respectful tone. His main sources are believed to be Hecataeus of Abdera and Agatharchides of Cnidus . This book has only a short prologue outlining its contents. The majority of

3348-407: The transition from mythical times to the archaic period , are almost entirely lost. By book ten he had taken up an annalistic structure, narrating all the events throughout the world in each year before moving on to the next one. Books eleven to twenty, which are completely intact and cover events between 480 BC and 302 BC, maintain this annalistic structure. Books twenty-one to forty, which brought

3410-605: The unity of this account implies a single source, perhaps Cleitarchus. This book covers the years 323 BC-318 BC, describing the disputes which arose between Alexander's generals after his death and the beginning of the Wars of the Diadochoi . The account is largely based on Hieronymus of Cardia . There is no discussion of events outside the eastern Mediterranean, although cross-references at other points indicate that Diodorus intended to discuss Sicilian affairs. This book opens with

3472-438: The water would soak the feathers and not to fly too close to the sun or the heat would melt the wax. Icarus ignored Daedalus's instructions not to fly too close to the sun, causing the beeswax in his wings to melt. Icarus fell from the sky, plunged into the sea, and drowned. The myth gave rise to the idiom, " fly too close to the sun ." In some versions of the tale, Daedalus and Icarus escape by ship. Icarus's father Daedalus ,

3534-449: The wax. Icarus could feel melted wax dripping down his arms. The feathers then fell one by one. Icarus kept flapping his "wings", trying to stay aloft. But he realized that he had no feathers left. He was only flapping his bare arms. He also saw loose feathers falling like snowflakes. Finally, he fell into the sea, sank to the bottom, and drowned. Daedalus wept for his son and called the nearest land Icaria (an island southwest of Samos ) in

3596-418: The work down to Diodorus' own lifetime, terminating around 60 BC, are mostly lost. Book one opens with a prologue on the work as a whole, arguing for the importance of history generally and universal history in particular. The rest of the book is devoted to Egypt and is divided into two halves. In the first half he covers the origin of the world and the development of civilisation in Egypt. A long discussion of

3658-503: The years 362-302 BC Diodorus is again the only consecutive literary account, and ... Diodorus offers the only chronological survey of the period of Philip , and supplements the writers mentioned and contemporary sources in many matters. For the period of the Successors to Alexander, 323-302 BC (Books XVIII-XX), he is the chief literary authority and his history of this period assumes, therefore, an importance which it does not possess for

3720-491: Was based on Ephorus. The Prologue announces the importance of cohesion within narratives - a book or chapter should, if possible, narrate an entire story from start to finish. It then transitions into praise of Philip II , whose involvement in the Third Sacred War and resulting rise are the main subjects of the book. The principal side narratives are Dion of Syracuse 's overthrow of Dionysius II (5-6, 9-15),

3782-676: Was following multiple sources simultaneously and did not succeed in combining them perfectly. The Sicilian material probably draws on Timaeus and also cites Athanis  [ de ] . This book covers Alexander the Great from his accession, through his campaigns in Persia, to his death in Babylon. Despite a promise in the brief prologue to discuss other contemporary events, it does not contain any side-narratives, although, unlike other accounts of Alexander, it does mention Macedonian activities in Greece during his expedition. Owing to its length,

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3844-401: Was the Universal History of Ephorus, his importance varies according to whether he is the sole continuous source, or again as he is paralleled by superior writers. To the fifty years from 480 to 430 BC Thucydides devotes only a little more than thirty chapters; Diodorus covers it more fully (11.37-12.38) and his is the only consecutive literary account for the chronology of the period. ... For

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