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And after Ares, Lames reigned for 20 years. and after Lames, Sardanapalus the Great reigned for 35 years, and he was slain by Perseus. But the flatterers and imitators of his love of the flesh and gluttony and frenzy inscribed on his tomb, supposedly from him, the following. I have as much as I wantonly enjoyed and ate and drank and conducted my life with delightful love. but the many and prosperous things I experienced are all left behind; for now I am ashes, having reigned over great Nineveh. And the brother of Ninus, Picus, also called Zeus, remained, reigning over Italy. in those same times there was nei 20 ther city nor any government in the west, but all that land was simply inhabited by those who had migrated there from the tribe of Japheth, son of Noah. And Picus, also called Zeus, lived for 120 years, ruling the west and reigning over it. and he had many sons and daughters from comely women. and Picus, also called Zeus, himself had a son named Faunus, whom he also called Hermes, after the name of the wandering star. And after the death of the same Picus, also called Zeus, his son Faunus, also called Hermes, reigned over Italy for thirty-five years, who was a crafty man and an astrologer; who first discovered the metal of gold in the west and how to smelt it. and knowing that his brothers, from the women whom Picus, also called Zeus, his father, had, were jealous of him; for they wanted to kill him, as they were many, about seventy; for Zeus had begotten children by mingling with many women; having pocketed an excessive amount of gold, he departed, and went away to Egypt to the tribe of Ham, son of Noah, who received him with honor. and he stayed there, lording it over everyone, and wearing a golden robe he philosophized among the Egyptians, telling them prophecies of future things; for he was by nature extremely rational; and they worshipped him, calling him the god Hermes, as one who spoke of the future and ministered to them from the 21 god of the future the response and provided them with money. whom they also called the giver of wealth, as they named gold a god. Therefore, when Hermes himself came to Egypt, Mizraim, from the race of Ham, was then reigning over the Egyptians. When he died, the Egyptians made Hermes king. and he reigned over the Egyptians for 39 years in arrogance. And after him Hephaestus reigned over the Egyptians for 1680 days, which makes 4 years, 7 months, 3 days; for at that time the Egyptians did not know how to measure years, but they called the period of a day a year. and they called this same Hephaestus a god; for he was a warrior and a mystic. who, having gone to war, fell with his horse, and being wounded, remained lame. And this same Hephaestus made a law that Egyptian women should have one husband and live chastely, and that those found in adultery should be punished. and the Egyptians gave thanks to him, because they received this first law of chastity. And this same Hephaestus, from a certain mystical prayer, received tongs from the air for making weapons out of iron; whence also he was found to be a master of iron for wars; therefore they dei 22 fied him, as one who had legislated chastity and had found sustenance for men through the making of weapons and had brought about power and salvation in wars; for before him they waged war with clubs and stones.

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Μετὰ δὲ Ἄρεα ἐβασίλευσε Λάμης ἔτη κʹ. μετὰ δὲ Λάμην ἐβασίλευσε Σαρδανάπαλλος ὁ μέγας ἔτη λεʹ, καὶ ἐσφάγη ὑπὸ τοῦ Περσέως. οἱ δέ γε κόλακες καὶ μιμηταὶ τῆς ἐκείνου φιλοσαρκίας καὶ γαστριμαργίας καὶ οἰστρηλασίας ἐπέγραψαν ὡς ἐξ αὐτοῦ δῆθεν τῷ τάφῳ αὐτοῦ τοιάδε. Τόσ' ἔχω ὅσ' ἐφύβρισα καὶ ἔφαγόν τε καὶ ἔπιον καὶ μετ' ἔρωτος τερπνοῦ ἐπολιτευσάμην. παθόντα δὲ πολλὰ καὶ ὄλβια πάντα λέλειπται· καὶ γὰρ νῦν σπόδος εἰμὶ Νίνου μεγάλης βασιλεύσας. Ὁ δὲ ἀδελφὸς τοῦ Νίνου Πῖκος ὁ καὶ Ζεὺς βασιλεύων τῆς Ἰταλίας ἐπέμεινεν. ἐν δὲ τοῖς αὐτοῖς χρόνοις οὔτε πόλις οὔ 20 τε διοίκησίς τις ἦν ἐν τῇ δύσει, ἀλλὰ ἁπλῶς ᾠκεῖτο πᾶσα ἡ γῆ ἐκείνη ἀπὸ τῶν μετοικησάντων ἐκεῖ ἐκ τῆς φυλῆς τοῦ Ἰάφεθ, υἱοῦ Νῶε. Ἔζησεν δὲ Πῖκος ὁ καὶ Ζεὺς ἔτη ρκʹ, κρατῶν τὴν δύσιν καὶ βασιλεύων αὐτῆς. καὶ ἔσχεν υἱοὺς πολλοὺς καὶ θυγατέρας ἀπὸ τῶν εὐπρεπῶν γυναικῶν. ἔσχεν δὲ αὐτὸς Πῖκος ὁ καὶ Ζεὺς υἱὸν ὀνόματι Φαῦνον, ὃν καὶ Ἑρμῆν ἐκάλεσεν εἰς ὄνομα τοῦ πλανήτου ἀστέρος. Μετὰ δὲ τὴν τελευτὴν τοῦ αὐτοῦ Πίκου τοῦ καὶ ∆ιὸς ἐβασίλευσεν ὁ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ Φαῦνος ὁ καὶ Ἑρμῆς τῆς Ἰταλίας ἔτη τριάκοντα πέντε, ὃς ἦν ἀνὴρ πανοῦργος καὶ μαθηματικός· ὅστις ἐφεῦρεν τὸ μέταλλον τοῦ χρυσίου ἐν τῇ δύσει πρῶτος καὶ τὸ χωνεύειν. γνοὺς δὲ ὅτι διαφθονοῦνται αὐτῷ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ οἱ ἀπὸ τῶν γυναικῶν ὧν ἔσχεν Πῖκος ὁ καὶ Ζεύς, ὁ αὐτοῦ πατήρ· ἠβούλοντο γὰρ αὐτὸν φονεῦσαι, ὡς ὄντες πολλοί, περί που ἑβδομήκοντα· μετὰ γὰρ πολλῶν συμμιγνύμενος γυναικῶν ἐτεκνοποίησεν ὁ Ζεύς· πολὺ χρυσίον ἐγκολπωσάμενος εἰς ὑπερβολὴν ἀνεχώρησεν, καὶ ἀπέρχεται εἰς τὴν Αἴγυπτον πρὸς τὴν φυλὴν τοῦ Χάμ, υἱοῦ Νῶε, οἵτινες ἐδέξαντο αὐτὸν ἐν τιμῇ. καὶ διέτριβεν ἐκεῖ ὑπερηφανῶν πάντας, καὶ φορῶν τὴν χρυσῆν στολὴν ἐφιλοσόφει παρὰ τοῖς Αἰγυπτίοις, λέγων αὐτοῖς μαντείας μελλόντων· ἦν γὰρ φύσει σφόδρα λογικός· καὶ προσεκύνουν αὐτόν, λέγοντες θεὸν Ἑρμῆν, ὡς λέγοντα τὰ μέλλοντα καὶ διακονοῦντα αὐτοῖς ἐκ τοῦ 21 θεοῦ τῶν μελλόντων τὴν ἀπόκρισιν καὶ παρέχοντα αὐτοῖς χρήματα. ὅντινα καὶ πλουτοδότην ἐκάλουν, ὡς τὸν χρυσὸν θεὸν ὀνομάζοντες. Ὅτε οὖν αὐτὸς Ἑρμῆς εἰς τὴν Αἴγυπτον ἦλθεν, ἐβασίλευσε τῶν Αἰγυπτίων τότε ἐκ τοῦ γένους τοῦ Χὰμ ὁ Μεστραΐμ. οὗτινος τελευτήσαντος ἐποίησαν οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι τὸν Ἑρμῆν βασιλέα. καὶ ἐβασίλευσε τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ἔτη λθʹ ἐν ὑπερηφανίᾳ. Καὶ μετ' αὐτὸν ἐβασίλευσε τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ὁ Ἥφαιστος ἡμέρας αχπʹ, ὡς γενέσθαι ἔτη δʹ, μῆνας ζʹ, ἡμέρας γʹ· οὐκ ᾔδεισαν γὰρ τότε ἐνιαυτοὺς μετρεῖν οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι, ἀλλὰ τὴν περίοδον τῆς ἡμέρας ἐνιαυτοὺς ἔλεγον. τὸν δὲ αὐτὸν Ἥφαιστον θεὸν ἐκάλουν· ἦν γὰρ πολεμιστὴς καὶ μυστικός. ὅστις ἐλθὼν εἰς πόλεμον συνέπεσεν σὺν τῷ ἵππῳ αὐτοῦ, καὶ πληγεὶς ἔμεινε χωλεύων. Ὁ δὲ αὐτὸς Ἥφαιστος νόμον ἔθηκε τὰς Αἰγυπτίας γυναῖκας μονανδρεῖν καὶ σωφρόνως διάγειν, τὰς δὲ ἐπὶ μοιχείαν εὑρισκομένας τιμωρεῖσθαι. καὶ ηὐχαρίστησαν αὐτῷ οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι, διότι πρῶτον νόμον σωφροσύνης τοῦτον ἐδέξαντο. Ὁ δὲ αὐτὸς Ἥφαιστος ἀπὸ μυστικῆς τινος εὐχῆς τὴν ὀξυλάβην ἐδέξατο ἐκ τοῦ ἀέρος εἰς τὸ κατασκευάζειν ἐκ σιδήρου ὅπλα· ὅθεν καὶ ἐπικρατὴς σιδήρου ηὑρέθη εἰς τοὺς πολέμους· ἀπεθέω 22 σαν οὖν αὐτόν, ὡς σωφροσύνην νομοθετήσαντα καὶ τροφὴν ἀνθρώποις διὰ κατασκευῆς ὅπλων εὑρηκότα καὶ ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις δύναμιν καὶ σωτηρίαν ποιήσαντα· πρὸ γὰρ αὐτοῦ ῥοπάλοις καὶ λίθοις ἐπολέμουν.