Pactolus ( Greek : Πακτωλός ), also called Chrysorrhoas (Χρυσορρόας), the modern Sart Çayı ' Sardis stream ' , is a river near the Aegean coast of Turkey . The river rises from Mount Tmolus , flows through the ruins of the ancient city of Sardis , and empties into the Gediz River , the ancient Hermus . The Pactolus once contained electrum that was the basis of the economy of the ancient state of Lydia , which used the naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver to mint the first coins under Alyattes of Lydia .
6-530: Pseudo-Plutarch in the De fluviis write that the river was initially called Chrysorrhoas (Χρυσορρόας ' streaming with gold ' ) because according to the legend, Chrysorrhoas (the son of Apollo ) threw himself into the river. Later it was called Pactolus, from Pactolus, the son of Leucothea , who during a festival of Aphrodite failed to recognize his own sister, Demodice , and ravished her. Upon realizing what he had done, overwhelmed with grief, he threw himself into
12-579: Is mentioned in Sextus Propertius' Elegy 1.6. "at tu seu mollis qua tendit Ionia, seu qua Lydia Pactoli tingit arata liquor..." ("But wherever either soft Ionia extends, or wherever the water of the Pactulus stains the Lydian fields...") 38°31′24″N 28°02′34″E / 38.52327°N 28.042774°E / 38.52327; 28.042774 Pseudo-Plutarch Pseudo-Plutarch
18-469: Is the conventional name given to the actual, but unknown, authors of a number of pseudepigrapha (falsely attributed works) attributed to Plutarch but now known to have not been written by him. Some of these works were included in some editions of Plutarch's Moralia . Among these are: These works date to slightly later than Plutarch, but almost all of them date to late antiquity (3rd to 4th century AD). D. Blank has recently shown that Pro Nobilitate
24-551: The river. Because of this the name of the river changed from Chrysorrhoas to Pactolus. As a river-god , Pactolus was said to be the brother of another river Hydaspes , and thus, offspring of the Titans Oceanus and Tethys . He was the father of Euryanassa , one of the possible mothers of Tantalus ’ children. The only myth where Pactolus was an active participant is recounted in Nonnus’ Dionysiaca detailing
30-433: The young god, Dionysus , in his Indian campaign. According to legend, King Midas divested himself of the golden touch by washing himself in the river. The historian Herodotus claimed that the gold contained in the sediments carried by the river was the source of the wealth of King Croesus , son of Alyattes. In Sophocles ' Philoctetes , the chorus recognizes Gaia as ruler of the "golden stream Pactolus." The river
36-454: Was written by Arnoul Le Ferron ( Arnoldus Ferronus ) and first published in 1556. One pseudepigraphal philosophical work, De Fato ( On Fate ; included in editions of Plutarch's Moralia ), is thought to be a 2nd-century Middle Platonic work. Stromateis (Στρωματεῖς, "Patchwork"), an important source for pre-Socratic philosophy , is also falsely ascribed to Plutarch. Some works ascribed to Plutarch are likely of medieval origin, such as
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