ians, since they could not live any time without a king, set up
over them twelve kings, having divided all Egypt into twelve parts.
These made intermarriages with one another and reigned, making agreement
that they would not put down one another by force, nor seek to get an
advantage over one another, but would live in perfect friendship: and
the reason why they made these agreements, guarding them very strongly
from violation, was this, namely that an oracle had been given to them
at first when they began to exercise their rule, that he of them who
should pour a libation with a bronze cup in the temple of Hephaistos,
should be king of all Egypt (for they used to assemble together in all
the temples).

148. Moreover they resolved to join all together and leave a memorial of
themselves; and having so resolved they caused to be made a labyrinth,
situated a little above the lake of Moiris and nearly opposite to that
which is called the City of Crocodiles. This I saw myself, and I found
it greater than words can say. For if one should put together and reckon
up all the buildings and all the great works produced by the Hellenes,
they would prove to be inferior in labour and expense to this labyrinth,
though it is true that both the temple at Ephesos and that at Samos are
works worthy of note. The pyramids also were greater than words can say,
and each one of them is equal to many works of the Hellenes, great
as they may be; but the labyrinth surpasses even the pyramids. It has
twelve courts covered in, with gates facing one another, six upon the
North side and six upon the South, joining on one to another, and the
same wall surrounds them all outside; and there are in it two kinds of
chambers, the one kind below the ground and the other above upon these,
three thousand in number, of each kind fifteen hundred. The upper set
of chambers we ourselves saw, going through them, and we tell of them
having looked upon them with our own eyes; but the chambers under ground
we heard about only; for the Egyptians who had charge of them were
not willing on any account to show them, saying that here were the
sepulchres of the kings who had first built this labyrinth and of the
sacred crocodiles. Accordingly we speak of the chambers below by what we
received from hearsay, while those above we saw ourselves and found them
to be works of more than human greatness. For the passages through the
chambers, and the goings this way and that way thr