Snakes with Wings and Gold-digging Ants

by Herodotus, Aubrey de Sélincourt (Translator), John M. Marincola (Revised by)

Inspired by PenguinÂ's innovative Great Ideas series, our new Great Journeys series presents the most incredible tours, voyages, treks, expeditions, and travels ever written—from Isabella BirdÂ's exaltation in the dangers of grizzlies, rattlesnakes, and cowboys in the Rocky Mountains to Marco PoloÂ's mystified reports of a giant bird that eats elephants during his voyage along the coasts of India. Each beautifully packaged volume offers a way to see the world anew, to rediscover great civilizations and legends, vast deserts andunspoiled mountain ranges, unusual flora and strange new creatures, and much more.

Genres: Travel, History, Nonfiction, Classics, Ancient History, Adventure, Iran

128 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2007

About the author

Herodotus (Greek: Ηρόδοτος) (c. 484 – c. 425 BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He is known for having written the Histories – a detailed account of the Greco-Persian Wars. Herodotus was the first writer to perform systematic investigation of historical events. He has been described as "The Father of History", a title conferred on him by the ancient Roman orator Marcus Tullius Cicero.
The Histories primarily cover the lives of prominent kings and famous battles such as Marathon, Thermopylae, Artemisium, Salamis, Plataea, and Mycale. His work deviates from the main topics to provide a cultural, ethnographical, geographical, and historiographical background that forms an essential part of the narrative and provides readers with a wellspring of additional information.
Herodotus has been criticized for his inclusion of "legends and fanciful accounts" in his work. The contemporaneous historian Thucydides accused him of making up stories for entertainment. However, Herodotus explained that he reported what he could see and was told. A sizable portion of the Histories has since been confirmed by modern historians and archaeologists.

Reviews

[Laurel Narizny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first time reading Herodotus. Conclusion: Herodotus is basically a gossipy (and very entertaining) tourist. Now I want to read the rest of his Histories.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The final chapter was the stand-out, and I particularly enjoyed the brief political dialogue between Otanes, Megabyzus and Darius. However, much of the book is too dodgy and unreliable, and I couldn't recommend it to someone seriously interested in learning about the world, hence no more than three stars.

[Daren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short collection of excerpts from The Histories of Herodotus. A mixture of fantastic stories (such as the titular snakes and ants) and history - in this case Cambyses, son of Cyrus, and the end of his reign.
This reads well as an excerpt.

[Elatia · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book makes me glad i live in a society where i don't have to marry my brother.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the Penguin Great Journeys series, which pulls abridgements from things like Herodotus's History and creates attractive little reads like this one out of them. Lu read me the New Yorker review of the new Landmark Herodotus that has just came out, and I returned the favor by reading to her some of these odd traveler's tales from the ancient historian in the loud hawaiian shirt. Lots of fun. My only objection is there are none of the Scythian parts here, but that is just because I have kind of a thing for the Scythians, tricky little mail-clad horse-happy buggers that they were.

[Ruthmarie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why didn't I enjoy Herodotus the first time around (high school/college)? I'm glad I gave it a second go! Picked it up at the Carlsberg Glyptotek.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting.

My favourite quotes:

'Everybody here paints himself red and eats monkeys'

'There are many tribes of Indians...some live in the marsh country and eat raw fish...Another tribe further to the east is nomadic...they live on raw meat...Among their customs, it is said that when a man falls sick, his closest companions kill him, because, as they put it, their meat would be spoilt if he were allowed to waste away with the disease. The invalid, in these circumstances, protests that there is nothing the matter with him - but to no purpose. His friends refuse to accept his protestations, kill him, and hold a banquet...If anyone is lucky enough to live to an advanced age, he is offered in sacrifice before the banquet - this, however, rarely happens, because most of them will have had some disease or other before they get old, and will consequently have been killed by their friends.'

'There is found in this desert a kind of ant of great size - bigger than a fox, though not so big as a dog.'

'... infested by winged creatures very much like bats, which screech alarmingly and are very pugnacious'.

'It is the custom, at a man's first marriage, to give a party, at which the bride is enjoyed by each of the guests in turn; they take her one after another, and then give her a present - something or other they have brought from home.'

'In every village once a year all the girls of marriageable age used to be collected together in one place, while all the men stood round them in a circle; an auctioneer then called each one to stand up and offered her for sale, beginning with the best-looking...The rich men...bid against each other for the prettiest girls, while the humbler folk, who had no use for good looks in a wife, were actually paid to take the ugly ones, for when the auctioneer had got through all the pretty girls he would call upon the plainest, or even perhaps a crippled one...and then ask who was willing to take the least money to marry her...The money came from the sale of the beauties, who in this way provided dowries for their ugly or misshapen sisters.'

Not sure what to say about this...

[Neil Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The process of collecting cinnamon is still more remarkable. Where it comes from and what country produces it, they do not know; the best some of them can do is to make a fair guess that it grows somewhere in the region where Dionysus was brought up. What they say is that the dry sticks, which we have learnt from the Phoenicians to call cinnamon, are brought by large birds, which carry them to their nests, made of mud, on mountain precipices, which no man can climb, and that the method the Arabians have invented for getting hold of them is to cut up the bodies of dead oxen, or donkeys, or other animals into very large joints, which they carry to the spot in question and leave on the ground near the nests. They then retire to a safe distance and the birds fly down and carry off the joints of meat to their nests, which, not being strong enough to bear the weight, break and fall to the ground. Then the men come along and pick up the cinnamon, which is subsequently exported to other countries."

[Brian Kovesci · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the anecdotes in this book are wildly unrealistic (descriptions of humans were recounted from others to Herodotus, so exaggerations were more rule than exception), the stories told are simply incredible. I applaud anyone who is able to create mythology, and this volume describes interesting details from several groups of people, their customs, rituals and group dynamics in a way few have been able to pull off (I'm thinking Aesop, Gaiman, Tolkien, Carroll, Lewis).

I will be a bit picky here by saying this volume sticks out from the rest of the series. The other books I've read in the Great Journeys series concentrate on a single explorer's experience in traveling uncharted lands. Herodotus seemingly discusses history without the first-person journey. Not complaining, just pointing out the continuity error.

[James Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being excerpts from Herodotus’ Histories, this book provides great snippets of what life was like, and what myths prevailed, over 2,300 years ago. Tails of Phoenixes, burying the dead in honey and crystal coffins, and master deceit, Herodotus provides a lyrical account of stories provided to him by people he met on his travels across Northern Africa and Western Asia, aided by a well edited translation.

A recommended read for those wishing to gain a foothold in classical reading.

[Aleah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know this is an old text and can be appreciated as such but I did not enjoy reading most of this. I stuck it out as it’s an ancient text but it was all very gory and gross and fantastical. The women were treated horribly and just about everyone else was too. If the stories have even a grain of truth. I liked the beginning chapter about Egypt and that’s about it and the Ethiopians and that’s about it.

[Andy Hickman · Rating 3 out of 5]

“The Flying Snakes of Arabia” & “The Gold-Digging Ants” (Herodotus antiquity)

“The winged snakes resemble water-snakes; their wings are not feathered, but are like bat's.”
“There is found in this desert a kind of ant of great size – bigger than a fox, tough not so big as a dog.”

[Lynn Kilpatrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

For a short book it took longer than expected. Too many odd names and connections between people/tribes being explained! And not so much of a travelogue as a social history of tribes in Egypt and surrounding Arabia etc. Well I guess that’s how they wrote in 415BC...

[Rich LeDuc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun modern translation of a 400BCE work.

[Thanushya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Only the last chapter stands out. The rest seemed like brain dump of different cultures and knowledge.

[Nicky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed the first half more

[Sam Gregg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult to score a book like this… I enjoyed reading these tales from the 5th century BC Middle East more than expected.

[Stefan]

Wildly entertaining. No wonder this fascinated learned men and women for centuries to come. As far out, as fantastic, as any story from the Golden Age of pulp fiction.

[Caleb Barron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Treated as a bit of fun, it's a compelling and bizarre read with all the weirdness you could want. Really enjoyed Herodotus constantly trying to justify some incredible claims.

[bella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually really enjoy these books

[Petra Deane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gossipy and whackadoo. This man out here making shit up.

[Felicity Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

With all of the books paying homage to works that are much longer, all of the books in the Penguin series of Great Journeys {each around one hundred - one hundred and fifty pages} offer the reader a glimpse into a much longer, possibly daunting, text that they may well have never considered. I know a few of them even made me want to take a look at the book from which the abridged excerpt had been taken ... others, well, not so much.

With regard to this book ...

A mix of fantastic stories and history, a fun if ever so slightly bonkers read
that nevertheless offers a fifth century perspective insight into some 'exotic' peoples and places. I'm still trying to figure out what percentage of Herodotus' writings are reliable and which, a sort of Wikipedia of his time, are questionable.

Copyright ... Felicity Grace Terry @ Pen and Paper

[Bob Finch · Rating 3 out of 5]

This selection from Herodotus’ History was a fun short read that gives a little insight into some ancient perspectives about exotic peoples and places. Some passages were laugh-out-loud funny, and several descriptions were truly bizarre. Herodotus’ explanation of reproduction in animals was probably the craziest of all. Not sure it whets my appetite for reading the full History, but I think it’d be fun to read more of it. This little book was like an appetizer.

[Lara Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

So interesting & powerful. Travel writing way, way before it became popular. Has inspired me to research more black African history & lead me to spoken word artist Akala. Much easier & enjoyable read them I expected & I learned so much!

[Merlin Zuni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Egypt, Arabia and all the silly things that make that place neat. I've never been but my home boy "Herodotus" is giving me the 411.

[Jasper Meer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Penguin did an excellent job choosing choice bits from the histories of Herodotus. This thin volume reads very quickly and straddles the border between history and fantastic yarn.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I suppose accuracy was never a strong suit of Herodotus, so this is more amusing than informative. The editor's clear inclination for sexual culture is interesting to note.

[dianne b. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Herodotus' adventures in Egypt, Libya and (mostly) Persia after he was exiled for a failed coup attempt - circa 400 BCE. Quite the raconteur.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

What's not to love about Greek history written from a quirky half-believable perspective?

[Miranda Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is obvious now where he was embellishing, but I am sure at the time it must have seemed magical. Fun to read all in all.