Thaʹis (2 syl.)

An Athenian courtesan who induced Alexander, when excited with wine, to set fire to the palace of the Persian kings at Persepʹolis.

“The king seized a flambeau with zeal to destroy;

Thais led the way to light him to his prey,

And, like another Helen; fired another Troy.”

Dryden: Alexander’s Feast.

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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.

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