CHAP. 10.—THE RIVERS CYRUS AND ARAXES.
The river Cyrus[1] takes its rise in the mountains of the
Heniochi, by some writers called the Coraxici; the Araxes rises
in the same mountains as the river Euphrates, at a distance from
it of six miles only;[2] and after being increased by the waters
of the Usis, falls itself, as many authors have supposed, into
the Cyrus, by which it is carried into the Caspian Sea.
The more famous towns in Lesser Armenia are Cæsarea,[3]
Aza,[4] and Nicopolis;[5] in the Greater Arsamosata,[6] which
lies near the Euphrates, Carcathiocerta[7] upon the Tigris,
Tigranocerta[8] which stands on an elevated site, and, on a
plain adjoining the river Araxes, Artaxata.[9] According to
Aufidius, the circumference of the whole of Armenia is five
thousand miles, while Claudius Cæsar makes the length, from
Dascusa[10] to the borders of the Caspian Sea, thirteen[11] hundred
miles, and the breadth, from Tigranocerta to Iberia,[12] half that
distance. It is a well-known fact, that this country is divided
into prefectures, called "Strategies," some of which singly
formed a kingdom in former times; they are one hundred
and twenty in number, with barbarous and uncouth names.[13]
On the east, it is bounded, though not immediately, by the
Ceraunian Mountains and the district of Adiabene. The
space that intervenes is occupied by the Sopheni, beyond
whom is the chain of mountains,[14] and then beyond them the
inhabitants of Adiabene. Dwelling in the valleys adjoining
to Armenia are the Menobardi and the Moscheni. The Tigris
and inaccessible mountains surround Adiabene. To the left[15]
of it is the territory of the Medi, and in the distance is seen
the Caspian Sea; which, as we shall state in the proper place,
receives its waters from the ocean,[16] and is wholly surrounded
by the Caucasian Mountains. The inhabitants upon the confines of Armenia shall now be treated of.
1. This river is said by Ammianus to have taken its name from Cyrus.
It appears, however, to have been a not uncommon name of the rivers of
Persia.
2. It is probable that these rivers take their rise near each other, but it
is not improbable that the intervening distance mentioned in the present
passage is much too small.
3. Hardouin thinks that this is Neo-Cæsarea, mentioned as having been
built on the banks of the Euphrates.
4. Now called Ezaz, according to D'Anville. Parisot suggests that it
ought to be Gaza or Gazaca, probably a colony of Median Gaza, now
Tauris.
5. Originally called Tephrice. It stood on the river Lycus, and not far
from the sources of the Halys, having been founded by Pompey, where he
gained his first victory over Mithridates, whence its name, the "City of
Victory." The modern Enderez or Devrigni, probably marks its site.
6. Ritter places it in Sophene, the modern Kharpat, and considers that
it may be represented by the modern Sert, the Tigranocerta of D'Anville.
7. The capital of Sophene, one of the districts of Armenia. St. Martin
thinks that this was the ancient heathen name of the city of Martyropolis,
but Ritter shows that such cannot be the case. It was called by the
Syrians Kortbest; its present name is Kharput.
8. Generally supposed, by D'Anville and other modern geographers, to
be represented by the ruins seen at Sert. It was the later capital of Armenia,
built by Tigranes.
9. The ancient capital of Armenia. Hannibal, who took refuge at the
court of Artaxias when Antiochus was no longer able to afford him protection, superintended the building of it. Some ruins, called Takt Tiridate,
or Throne of Tiridates, near the junction of the Aras and the Zengue,
were formerly supposed to represent Artaxata, but Colonel Monteith has
fixed the site at a bend in the river lower down, at the bottom of which
were the ruins of a bridge of Greek or Roman architecture.
10. A fortress in Lesser Armenia, upon the Euphrates, seventy-five miles
from Zimara, as mentioned in B. v. c. 20. It has been identified with the
modern ferry and lead mines of Kebban Ma'den, the points where the Kara
Su is joined by the Murad Chaï, 270 miles from its source
11. Justin makes it only 1100, and that estimate appears to be several hundreds too much.
12. 81 A country lying to the north of Armenia.
13. We find in Strabo the names of some of them mentioned, such as
Sophene, Acilisene, Gorgodylene, Sacassene, Gorgarene, Phanene, Comisene, Orchestene, Chorsene, Cambysene, Odomantis, &c.
14. The Ceraunian Mountains. Parisot remarks that in this description,
Pliny, notwithstanding his previous professions, does not appear to have
made any very great use of the list drawn up by Corbulo.
15. That is, looking towards the south.
16. The Septentrional Ocean, with which the ancients imagined that the
northern part of the Caspian Sea is connected. See c. 15.