|
 Xanthos
is the Greek appellation of the name of the city
of Arñna, of Lycian origin. The Hittite and
Luwian name of the city is given as Arinna. The
Romans called the city Xanthus, as all the Greek
-os suffixes were changed to -us in Latin.
Xanthos was a center of culture and commerce for
the Lycians, and later for the Persians,
Macedonians, Greeks, and Romans who in turn
conquered the city and occupied the adjacent
territory. Xanthos is mentioned by numerous
ancient Greek and Roman writers. Strabo notes
Xanthos as the largest city in Lycia. Both
Herodotus and Appian describe the conquest of
the city by Harpagos on behalf of the Persian
Empire, in approximately 540 BC. According to
Heredotus, the Persians met and defeated a small
Lycian army in the flatlands to the north of the
city. After the encounter, the Lycians retreated
into the city which was besieged by Hapargos.
The Lycians destroyed the Xanthos acropolis,
killed their wives, children, and slaves, then
proceeded on a suicidal attack against the
superior Persian troops. Thus, the entire
population of Xanthos perished but for 80
families who were absent during the fighting.
During the Persian occupation, a local
leadership was installed at Xanthos, which by
520 BC was already minting its own coins. By 516
BC, Xanthos was included in the first nomos of
Darius I in the tribute list. Xanthos' fortunes
were tied to Lycia's as Lycia changed sides
during the Greco-Persian wars, archeological
digs demonstrate that Xanthos was destroyed in
approximately 475 BC-470 BC, whether by the
Athenian Kimon or by the Persians is open to
debate. As we have no reference to this
destruction in either Persian or Greek sources,
some scholars attribute the destruction to
natural or accidental causes. In the final
decades of the 5th century BC, Xanthos conquered
nearby Telmessos and incorporated it into Lycia.
Reports on the city's surrender to Alexander the
Great differ: Arrian reports a peaceful
surrender, but Appian claims that the city was
sacked. After Alexander's death, the city
changed hands among his rival heirs; Diodorus
notes the capture of Xanthos by Ptolemy I Soter
from Antigonos. Appian, Dio Cassius, and
Plutarch each report that city was once again
destroyed in the Roman Civil Wars, circa 42 BC,
by Brutus, but Appian notes that it was rebuilt
under Marc Antony. Remains of a Roman
amphitheater remain on the site. Marinos reports
that there was a school of grammarians at
Xanthos in late antiquity. The archeological
excavations at Xanthos have yielded many texts
in Lycian and Greek, including several bilingual
texts that are useful in the decipherment of
Lycian. |
|
