your father's invasion—harm, however, far surpassed by the good that I did him during his retreat, which brought no danger for me but much for him." (Thucydides) Thucydides and Plutarch say that Themistocles asked for a year's grace to learn the Persian language and customs, after which he would serve the king, and Artaxerxes granted this. Plutarch reports that, as might be imagined, Artaxerxes was elated that such a dangerous and illustrious foe had come to serve him. At some point in his travels, Themistocles's wife and children were extricated from Athens by a friend, and joined him in exile. His friends also managed to send him many of his belongings, although up to 100 talents worth of his goods were confiscated by the Athenians. When, after a year, Themistocles returned to the king's court, he appears to have made an immediate impact, and "he attained...very high consideration there, such as no Hellene has ever possessed before or since". Plutarch recounts that "honors he enjoyed were far beyond those paid to other foreigners; nay, he actually took part in the King's hunts and in his household diversions". Themistocles advised the king on his dealings with the Greeks, although it seems that for a long period, the king was distracted by events elsewhere in the empire, and thus Themistocles "lived on for a long time without concern". He was made governor of the district of Magnesia on the Maeander River in Asia Minor, and assigned the revenues of three cities: Magnesia (about 50 talents per year—"for bread"); Myus ("for opson"); and Lampsacus ("for wine"). According to Plutarch, Neanthes of Cyzicus and Phanias reported two more, the city of Palaescepsis ("for clothes") and the city of Percote ("for bedding and furniture for his house"), both near Lampsacus. Greek exiles in the Achaemenid Empire Themistocles was one of the several Greek aristocrats who took refuge in the Achaemenid Empire following reversals at home, other famous ones being Hippias, Demaratos, Gongylos or later Alcibiades. In general, those were generously welcomed by the Achaemenid kings, and received land grants to support them, and ruled on various cities of Asia Minor. Conversely, some Achaemenid satraps were welcomed as exiles in western courts, such as Artabazos II. First portraiture of a ruler on coinage Coins are the only contemporary documents remaining from the time of Themistocles. Although many of the first coins of Antiquity illustrated the images