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Jun 10, 2014 · Centuries ago, having molten gold poured down your throat was actually the preferred means of death by molten metal. Marcus Lincinius Crassus, an astoundingly wealthy Roman general, is...
Crassus and his legions were defeated by the Parthian King Orodes II. Crassus was taken alive and, according to legend, executed by having molten gold poured down his throat as literal reference to his unquenchable thirst for wealth.
After his death, the Parthians allegedly poured molten gold down his throat in a symbolic gesture mocking Crassus's renowned greed. Plutarch reports that Crassus' severed head was then used as a prop for part of a play, Euripides' Bacchae, performed at a banquet before the king.
- 53 BC
- Parthian victory [a] [1]
- Near Carrhae ( Harran ), Upper Mesopotamia
A story later emerged to the effect that, after Crassus' death, the Parthians poured molten gold into his mouth in a symbolic mockery of his thirst for wealth. [46]
May 30, 2019 · Although none of the Roman sources could have seen how Crassus died and how his body was treated after death, a rich set of myths are written about that. One myth said the Parthians poured molten gold into his mouth, to show the futility of greed.
Jul 25, 2023 · Moreover, being well-known for his obsession with wealth, Dio claims (Book XL, 27.3) that the Parthians poured molten gold down the dead man’s throat. Not to be beaten, Plutarch ( Crass. 33.2) says that the dead general’s head was later presented at a royal Parthian wedding feast.
Another account records that Crassus was killed when a Parthian soldier poured molten gold down his throat as a symbol of Crassus' greed and love of wealth. Then, it is said, Crassus' head was used as a prop in a play which was being performed for the Parthian king.
