罗德岛的太阳神巨像(2/3)

Throughout most of its history, ancient Greece was comprised of city-states which had limited power beyond their boundary. On the small island of Rhodes were three of these, Ialysos, Kamiros, and Lindos. In 408 BC, the cities united to form one territory, with a unified capital, Rhodes. The city thrived commercially and had strong economic ties with their main ally, Ptolemy I Soter Egypt. In 305 BC, the Antigonids of Macedonia who were also rivals of the Ptolemies, besieged Rhodes in an attempt to break the Rhodo-Egyptian alliance. They could never penetrate the city. When a peace agreement was reached in 304 BC, the Antagonids lifted the siege, leaving a wealth of military equipment behind.

古希腊在历史上大部分时间中都是由各个城邦制的国家组成的，这些城邦国家在国界之外只拥有很有限的权利。 在小小的罗德岛上就有三个城邦:Ialysos、Kamiros和Lindos。在公元前408年，这三个城邦联合成了一个区域，并有统一的首都:罗德。 座都城商业发达，并和它的重要盟友，埃及的托勒密一世存在着很牢固的经济联系。公元前305年，托勒密一世的对手，马其顿王国安提柯一世，为了打破罗德—埃及联盟包围了罗德岛。 但他们从未能攻入这座城市。公元前304年达成和约时，安提柯一世撤除对罗德岛包围，而且舍弃了巨额的军事设备。