Editing Polycrates (section)

=== Rebellion and Spartan attack ===
[[File:Samos, Temple of Hera, Statue of a warrior 530 BCE.jpg|thumb|Samos, Temple of Hera, Statue of a warrior, 530 BC]]
[[File:Polycrates leaving his daughter to encounter Oroetus.jpg|thumb|Polycrates leaving his daughter to encounter Oroetus.]]
Herodotus states that Polycrates later established a fleet of 40 [[trireme]]s, probably becoming the first Greek state with a fleet of such ships, which he crewed with sailors he considered to be politically dangerous, and sent to the [[Achaemenid Empire|Persian]] king [[Cambyses II|Cambyses]]  with instructions to put the crews to death.<ref>Herodotus, ''Histories'' 3.39</ref> Modern scholars consider this story unlikely.<ref>Carty (2005) 136</ref> The dispatch of these ships is usually connected with the [[Battle of Pelusium (525 BC)|Persian invasion of Egypt]] in 525 BC. Herman Wallinga argues that the ships were built at Amasis' expense, crewed by Polycrates, and sent by him to fight against the Persians.<ref>H. T. Wallinga, ''Ships and Sea-Power before the Great Persian War'' (1993), 88 and 117.</ref> By contrast, [[Hans Van Wees]] thinks that this fleet was a gift from the Persians, crewed by Polycrates, in order to assist the Persians ''against'' Amasis.<ref>H. Van Wees, ''Greek Warfare'' (2004), 306 n. 19</ref>

The naval detachment turned back to attack Polycrates. They defeated him at sea but could not take the island. The rebels then sailed to mainland [[Greece]] and allied with [[Sparta]] and [[Corinth, Greece|Corinth]]. Sparta and Corinth invaded the island of Samos in support of the Samian rebels around 520 BC. After 40 days they withdrew their unsuccessful siege.<ref name="Routledge">{{cite book |last1=Hart |first1=John |title=Herodotus and Greek History (Routledge Revivals) |date=2014 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781317678373 |page=88 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PPVQAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT88 |language=en}}</ref>

"It's said that Polycrates was one of the earliest known coin counterfeiters. Herodotus wrote that Polycrates bought off the besieging Spartans in 525/4 B.C. with counterfeit Samian coins. Some of these fakes still exist and are described in Spink's coin catalogue."<ref>The Counterfeit Coin Storey by Ken Peters ISBN 0-9543487-0-2</ref>