CHAPTER 25 25:1 Let us consider the wonderful sign that happeneth in the region of the east, even about Arabia.

25:2 There is a bird which is called the phoenix. This, being the only one of its kind, liveth for five hundred years. And when the time of its death draweth near, it maketh for itself a nest of frankincense and myrrh and the other perfumes, into which, when its time is fulfilled, it entereth, and then dieth.

25:3 But as its flesh rotteth, a certain worm is produced, which being nourished by the moisture of the dead animal, putteth forth feathers. Then, when it hath become strong, it taketh the nest wherein are the bones of its ancestor, and bearing them, it flieth from the region of Arabia to that of Egypt, to the city which is called Heliopolis;

25:4 there, in day-time, in the sight of all, it flieth up, and placeth them upon the altar of the sun, and having done so, returneth back.

25:5 The priests, therefore, look into the registers of the times, and find that it has come at the completion of the five-hundredth year.