Herodotus' Impressions of Egypt

Abstract

For some three and a half months Herodotus of Halicarnassus travelled about Egypt in pursuit of ιστορίη (research); yet it is obvious, from his enthusiastic account, that he enjoyed himself thoroughly. Egypt's stable climate was a Θῶμα (wonder). The people's unusual customs were Θῶμα (amazing). The grandeur of the ἔργα (monuments) caused him such Θῶμα (admiration), that he found himself quite at a loss to describe them. Even Egypt's river- the Nile -behaved differently from other rivers and was a source of Θῶμα (astonishment) for him. These were the four major contributing factors that combined to make Herodotus' visit to the land of the great Pharaohs an enjoyable one. In fact, Herodotus found the country so interesting, that he wrote: ἔρχομαι δέ περὶ Αἰγύπτου μηκυνέων τόν λόγον, ὄτι πλεῖστα θωμάσια ἔχει. I proceed by speaking at length about Egypt, because it has so many remarkable things there.