9. Study Questions Copy

1. What things did Cambyses do that caused him to gain such a bad reputation?

The murder of the Apis Bull; the murder of his sister/wife; the murder of his brother; the murder of Prexaspes’ son; the treatment of Amasis’ mummy

2. What evidence do we have that suggests that Cambyses was a good ruler in Egypt?

Egyptian evidence suggests he respected Egyptian religion.

3. What might the rule of Cambyses tell us about the nature of historical evidence and how we interpret the evidence?

It tells us that different sources can give wildly different versions of history. If we distrust Herodotus here, does that mean we should cast doubt on all his historical writing? This makes Herodotus problematic, and also means that we must be careful not to place too much uncritical faith in what Herodotus writes.

9. Study Questions Copy

9. Study Questions Copy

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