A List of Revenues of the Darius I, Great King of Persia, is reported by Greek Historian Herodotus c 480 BC. This serves to show the greatness of Darius and the Persian empire, show who was paying tribute to the empire and how much they were capable of paying.
A talent of silver was a considerable sum of money, but making exact conversions to modern currency is problematical at best. Further compounding the problem are differences in how weights were measured.
Annual tribute (in silver talents)
| Satrapy | Babylonian Weight | Attic Weight | |
| Ionia (Yauna) | 400 | 520 | |
| Lydia (Sparda) | 500 | 650 | |
| Phrygia-Cappadocia (Katpatuka) | 360 | 468 | |
| Cilicia (Kilikes) | 360 | 468 | |
| An Additional 140 Babylonian talents = 182 Attic talents was paid to the garrison of the Gülek Pass(Cilician Gates) | |||
| Syria (Abar-Nahara) | 350 | 455 | |
| Egypt (Mudraya) | 700 | 910 | |
| The Persian garrison in the White Tower at Memphis | |||
| was provided with provisions, including 120,000 medimnoi, | |||
| which were the annual grain rations for 20,000 men. | |||
| In Athenian money of 450 B.C. this represented a market value | |||
| of 600,000 drachmae or 100 Attic talents (= 70 Babylonian talents). | |||
| Sattagydia-Gandhara | 170 | 222 | |
| Susiana (Uvja) | 300 | 390 | |
| Babylonia & Assyria | 1,000 | 1,300 | |
| Media (Mada) | 450 | 585 | |
| Caspia | 200 | 260 | |
| Bactria | 360 | 468 | |
| Armenia | 400 | 520 | |
| Sagartia-Drangiana | 250 | 325 | |
| Sacae | 600 | 780 | |
| Parthia (Parthava) | 300 | 390 | |
| Paricania | 400 | 520 | |
| Alordia | 200 | 260 | |
| Tibarene | 300 | 390 | |
| India (Hindush) | 4,680 | 6,084 | |
| Paid in gold dust of 360 Babylonian talents (= 468 Attic talents).|- | |||
| At a gold - silver ratio of 1-13 this yields an equivalent | |||
| in silver of 4,680 Babylonian talents. | |||
| Total | 12,280 | 15,964 |
References
- Kleber, Kristin (2015). "Taxation in the Achaemenid Empire". Oxford Handbook Topics in Classical Studies. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935390.013.34. ISBN 978-0-19-993539-0. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
{{cite book}}:|website=ignored (help) - Spengler, Joseph (1955). "Herodotus on the Subject Matter of Economics". The Scientific Monthly. 81 (6): 276–285. Bibcode:1955SciMo..81..276S.
- Pierre Briant (2002-01-01). From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire. Eisenbrauns. p. 67. ISBN 978-1-57506-120-7.
Sources
- Herodotus III. 90-96 and cf. A. R. Burn, Persia & the Greeks (New York, 1962), pp. 123–126.