They were prevented from plundering the city by the fact that most of the houses in Sardis [28.0167,38.475] (Perseus) Sardis were made of reeds, and those made of brick had roofs of reeds. Accordingly, when one of these was seton fire by a soldier, the flames spread from house to house all over the whole city.

While the city was burning, the Lydians and all the Persians who were in the citadel, being hemmed in on every side since the fire was consuming the outer parts and having no exit from the city, came thronging into the marketplace and to the river Pactolus, which flows through the marketplace carrying down gold dust from Tmolus and issues into the river Hermus, which in turn issues into the sea. They assembled in the marketplace by this Pactolus and were forced to defend themselves there.

When the Ionians saw some of their enemies defending themselves and a great multitude of others approaching, they were afraid and withdrew to the mountain called Tmolus, from where they departed to their ships at nightfall.