Since those who had earlier attempted to sail around +Mount Athos [24.316,40.166] (inhabited place), Pangaion Oros, Macedonia, Greece, Europe Athos had suffered shipwreck, for about three years preparations had been underway there. Triremes were anchored off Elaeus in the Gelibolu Yarimadasi (peninsula), Canakkale, Marmara, Turkey, AsiaChersonese; with these for their headquarters, all sorts of men in the army were compelled by whippings to dig a canal, coming by turns to the work; the inhabitants about +Mount Athos [24.316,40.166] (inhabited place), Pangaion Oros, Macedonia, Greece, Europe Athos also dug.

Bubares son of Megabazus and Artachaees son of Artaeus, both Persians, were the overseers of the workmen. +Mount Athos [24.316,40.166] (inhabited place), Pangaion Oros, Macedonia, Greece, Europe Athos is a great and famous mountain, running out into the sea and inhabited by men. At the mountain's landward end it is in the form of a peninsula, and there is an isthmus about twelve stadia wide; here is a place of level ground or little hills, from the sea by Acanthus to the sea opposite +Torone [23.8167,40.05] (Perseus) Torone.

On this isthmus which is at the end of +Mount Athos [24.316,40.166] (inhabited place), Pangaion Oros, Macedonia, Greece, Europe Athos, there stands a Greek town, Sane; there are others situated seaward of Sane and landward of +Mount Athos [24.316,40.166] (inhabited place), Pangaion Oros, Macedonia, Greece, Europe Athos, and the Persian now intended to make them into island and not mainland towns; they are +Dion [22.5,40.175] (Perseus) Dion, Olophyxus, Acrothoum, Thyssus, and Cleonae.