{"product_id":"darius-in-the-shadow-of-alexander-9780674493094","title":"Darius in the Shadow of Alexander","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe last of Cyrus the Great's dynastic inheritors and the legendary enemy of Alexander the Great, Darius III ruled over a Persian Empire that stretched from the Mediterranean to the Indus River. Yet, despite being the most powerful king of his time, Darius remains an obscure figure.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs Pierre Briant explains in the first book ever devoted to the historical memory of Darius III, the little that is known of him comes primarily from Greek and Roman sources, which often present him in an unflattering light, as a decadent Oriental who lacked the masculine virtues of his Western adversaries. Influenced by the \u003ci\u003eAlexander Romance\u003c\/i\u003e as they are, even the medieval Persian sources are not free of harsh prejudices against the king Dārā, whom they deemed deficient in the traditional kingly virtues. Ancient Classical accounts construct a man who is in every respect Alexander's opposite--feeble-minded, militarily inept, addicted to pleasure, and vain. When Darius's wife and children are captured by Alexander's forces at the Battle of Issos, Darius is ready to ransom his entire kingdom to save them--a devoted husband and father, perhaps, but a weak king.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhile Darius seems doomed to be a footnote in the chronicle of Alexander's conquests, in one respect it is Darius who has the last laugh. For after Darius's defeat in 331 BCE, Alexander is described by historians as becoming ever more like his vanquished opponent: a Darius-like sybarite prone to unmanly excess.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Pierre Briant\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Harvard University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/05\/2015\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 608\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 2.30lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.90h x 6.20w x 1.60d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780674493094\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e French\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 05\/01\/2015 pg. 1566\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBriant, Pierre:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - Pierre Briant is Emeritus Professor of History of the Achaemenid World and Alexander's Empire at the Collège de France.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harvard University Press","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":40085630812275,"sku":"9.78E+12","price":42.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_3af58e5d-7ee2-408a-a32a-501609904c39.jpg?v=1652450719","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/en-de\/products\/darius-in-the-shadow-of-alexander-9780674493094","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}