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PREFACE.

Do not be surprised, excellent Reader, that I strive today to bring to public light Abaris, who has been shrouded in the most obscure darkness until this very day. I confess that, according to the opinion of some, he drew his origin from the Scythian people—a race considered by many to be savage, uncultured, scarcely different from beasts, and thus universally despised—and I fear he may be held in great hatred by all for this reason. Although it cannot in any way be denied that the Scythian people suffer a grave injustice from those enemies of the Scythian name, I trust no one is unaware of this, unless they are entirely ignorant of history. For we read, recorded by the most learned and scholarly men, that the Scythians were renowned for their integrity of character, supreme justice, laudable simplicity, and the fame of their illustrious deeds; indeed, we even read that the origin of the Germans should be sought among them. Marcus Zuerius van Boxhorn A noted Dutch scholar and historian (1612–1653) attempted to prove this, especially with weighty arguments and his own outstanding genius and singular erudition, which one can see he possessed from the illustrious monuments he produced regarding public law. But let us also assume the Scythians were as their most hostile enemies claim.