CHAP. CVII. 



PLATANA^CE.E. PLa'tANUS. 



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History. The platanus is celebrated in the earliest records that we have of 

 Grecian history. Herodotus tells us that Xerxes, when he invaded Greece, 

 was so enchanted with a beautiful plane tree that he found in Lycia, that he 

 encircled it with a collar of gold, and confided the charge of it to one of the 

 Ten Thousand, ^lian adds to this, that Xerxes passed an entire day under 

 its shade, compeUing his whole army to encamp in its neighbourhood ; and that 

 the delay this occasioned was one of the causes of his defeat. Evelyn adds, 

 from the same author (viz. ^Elian), that Xerxes became so fond of this tree, 

 " that, spoiling both himself, his concubines, and great persons of all their 

 jewels, he covered it with gold, gems, necklaces, scarfs, bracelets, and infinite 

 riches. In sum, he was so enamoured of it, that, for some days, neither the 

 concernment of his expedition, nor interest of honour, nor the necessary 

 motion of his portentous army, could persuade him from it. He styled it his 

 mistress, his minion, his goddess ; and, when he was forced to part from it, he 

 caused a figure of it to be stamped on a medal of gold, which he continually 

 wore about him." {Hunt. Evel., ii. p. 52.) Pausanias (a. d. 170) mentions 

 a plane tree of extraordinary size and beauty in Arcadia, which was said to 

 have been planted by Menelaus, the husband of Helen, and to have been, at 

 the time Pausanias saw it, 1300 years old. According to the same author, 

 the Lacedemonians gave the name of Plataniste to an island in the Levant, 

 connected by two bridges with the Morea, which was covered with plane 

 trees, and where the young men used to perform their exercises. Some of 

 these trees, it is said, still exist. It was in this island, according to Theocritus, 

 that the flowers were gathered of which Helen's wedding garland was com- 

 posed, on the day of her nuptials with Menelaus. We are also told that, 

 in the time of Pliny, the peasants in Phrygia showed a plane tree, which they 



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