The Persian Sibyl was the prophetic priestess presiding over the Apollonian Oracle. The Sibyl is sometimes referred to as the Babylonian Sibyl.
The word Sibyl comes (via Latin) from the ancient Greek word sibylla, meaning prophetess. There were many Sibyls in the ancient world, but the Persian Sibyl is said to have foretold the exploits of Alexander of Macedon. Nicanor, who wrote the life of Alexander mentions her.
The Persian Sibyl, by name Sambethe, was said to be of the family of Noah. A painting of Sibilla Persica by Guercino hangs in the Capitoline Museum, Rome.
Famous quotes containing the word persian:
“Come, give thy soul a loose, and taste the pleasures of the poor.
Sometimes ‘tis grateful for the rich to try
A short vicissitude, and fit of poverty:
A savory dish, a homely treat,
Where all is plain, where all is neat,
Without the stately spacious room,
The Persian carpet, or the Tyrian loom,
Clear up the cloudy foreheads of the great.”
—Horace [Quintus Horatius Flaccus] (65–8)