THE BURIED CITIES OF ASIA MINOR 



5 



SARDES 



The castle hill at Sardes, even today, 

 is practically inaccessible. What it must 

 "have been 2,500 years ago, before earth- 

 quakes and the natural process of ero- 

 sion rendered the ascent less steep, can 

 only be conjectured. This hill, rising 

 from the plain to a height of 1,000 feet, 

 with a small, flat table-land at the top, 

 was an admirable place to choose for the 

 purpose of defense. 



There is considerable fable connected 

 with the early people who located here, 

 and beyond a surmise that they must 

 nave been tribes sprung from the great 

 Indo-Germanic race of central Asia, 

 nothing seems to be definitely known, 

 not even the dates of their migrations. 

 These early races were succeeded by the 

 Lydians, a Semitic race which probably 

 wandered in from Assyria. 



From all accounts the Lydians were 

 -extremely industrious, and the city of 

 Sardes, which they founded at the base 

 of the hill just described, became pro- 

 verbial for its wealth and luxury. That 

 the country-side about Sardes must have 

 been very rich in ancient times those 

 who visit the place today see ample signs. 

 'The soil is of a deep light or dark colored 

 loam, depending upon the location, and 

 it is especially adapted for vineyards, 

 which at present form the chief wealth 

 -of these parts. 



In addition to the natural richness of 

 the soil, the Lydians found that the Pac- 

 tolus, which flowed through the center of 

 their Agora, or market-place, contained 

 rich deposits of gold, and this soon be- 

 came the chief source of their wealth. 

 'They turned all their natural advantages 

 to account, and at that time Sardes easily 

 rivaled any one of the Ionian cities with 

 which close commercial relations were 

 -fostered. Such was the need for com- 

 mercial facilities that Sardes soon began 

 to feel the lack of direct communication 

 with the sea, and for this reason war 

 -was made upon Colophon and Magnesia, 

 •on the Mseander, which cities were cap- 

 tured and Lydian influence extended 

 toward the coast. 



About 600 B. C. Smyrna also became 

 Lydian, and Miletus, which at that time 

 was mistress of the ^Egean Sea, formed 

 an alliance with Sardes, thus practically 

 uniting the chief land and sea powers of 

 Asia Minor. 



the; richest man oe ancient times 



Under Croesus Lydia reached the acme 

 of its power. Ephesus also came under 

 the control of Sardes. While the Ionian 

 cities lost much of their self-govern- 

 ment, they had the satisfaction of seeing 

 Sardes become more or less Grecianized. 

 Croesus himself was very favorably dis- 

 posed toward Ionian civilization, and is 

 said to have lavished vast sums upon the 

 temples at Ephesus and Didyma. 



Lydian supremacy, however, in Asia 

 Minor was short lived. In 546 B. C. 

 Croesus was defeated in the valley of the 

 Hermus by the Persians, and even 

 Sardes and the castle capitulated, Croesus 

 himself becoming a prisoner. 



There is a story about this surrender 

 of Croesus which is worth relating here. 

 Whether it is fact or fable I do not pre- 

 sume to know. When the kingdom of 

 Lydia was at the height of its power 

 Croesus was very wealthy, and he was 

 at the same time very fond of making 

 an ostentatious display of his treasures. 

 When Solon, the great lawgiver of 

 Greece, visited Croesus in his castle at 

 Sardes the vaults containing the gold of 

 the Pactolus were shown to him, and the 

 question asked who, in his opinion, was 

 the happiest man in the world. 



The sage of Athens replied by naming 

 an obscure Athenian of humble position 

 who left his wife and many children, 

 with whom he was happy, to fight for 

 his country, and had fallen fighting in 

 the moment of victory. That man, in 

 Solon's modest judgment, was happier 

 than Croesus with all his wealth, and he 

 warned his host that one might be 

 wealthy and in a position to gratify all 

 the whims of life, yet a change might 

 come. Therefore he could call no man 

 happy until he had seen his end and 

 knew the nature of his death. 



