In the Armenian translation of the Alexander Romance, a popular history of Alexander the Great first written in Greek many centuries after his death, there is a lavish double-page illustration of the Macedonian king confronting his greatest opponent.
King Darius III of Persia faces Alexander as if he were a reflection. Both are wearing crowns, have halos above their heads, and are flanked by their respective armies as the body parts of dead soldiers are trampled by their horses.
The event depicted is Gaugamela, the battle of 1 October 331 BC in which Alexander and his men inflicted a crushing defeat on the Persian Empire. The defeated Darius later fled and was assassinated by his relative, Bessus, for his failure to defend his vast empire.
