Ctesias F29b/Deinon F15b = Plutarch, Artaxerxes 19 And so Parysatis, who had felt hatred and jealousy towards Stateira from the very beginning, seeing that her own influence with the king stemmed from the respect and esteem he felt for her, but that Stateira’s influence - based on love and trust - was steadfast and secure, plotted against her, playing for what in her opinion were the highest possible stakes. She had a trusted servant called Gigis who held great influence with her: Deinon says that she helped in the poisoning, Ctesias only that she was unwillingly in on the secret. Ctesias says the man who procured the poison was called Belitaras, whereas Deinon says it was Melantas. After their former suspicion of each other and their differences, although they had begun to frequent the same places again and to dine together, their mutual fear and caution nevertheless led them to eat the same food as each other served on the same dishes.
The Persians have a small bird, every part of which can be eaten since it is entirely full of fat inside - and for this reason they think that this animal feeds on air and dew. It is called a rhyntaces. Ctesias says that Parysatis cut a bird of this kind in two with a small knife smeared with poison on one side, thus wiping the poison off on just one part of the bird. And she put the undefiled, clean part in her mouth and ate it, but gave the poisoned half to Stateira. Deinon says that it was not Parysatis but Melantas who did the cutting with the knife and gave the poisoned meat to Stateira.
And so this woman died in convulsions and in considerable agony. And she was herself conscious of the evil that had befallen her and made her suspicions about his mother known to the King, who was aware of his mother’s brutal nature and implacability.
For this reason he set out in search of his mother’s servants and attendants at table, arrested them and tortured them. Parysatis kept Gigis at home with her for a long time and she would not surrender her when the King asked, but when Gigis later asked for leave to go home at night, the King got wind of this, set an ambush, seized her and condemned her to death. In Persia the law prescribes that poisoners be killed in the following way: there is a broad stone on which they place the poisoners’ heads and with another stone they pound and crush until their face and head are mashed to a pulp. So it was like this that Gigis died and Artaxerxes neither reproached nor harmed Parysatis in any other way, but sent her to Babylon in accordance with her wishes, saying that so long as she lived, she would not see Babylon again. And so this was the state of affairs in the King’s household.
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