first of all they filled the plain with a deep sound and a terrific
noise; for the Parthians do not excite themselves to battle with horns
or trumpets, but they have hollow instruments,[71] made of skin, and
furnished with brass bells, on which they strike at the same time in
various parts; and these instruments produce a kind of deep and dismal
sound, compounded of the roaring of wild beasts and the harsh crash
of thunder; for the Parthians rightly judge that of all the senses
the hearing is that which causes the greatest alarm in the mind, and
that, when this sense is affected, there is the speediest and greatest
disturbance in the judgment.

XXIV. The Romans were startled at the noise, when all of a sudden
throwing off the covering of their armour the Parthians appeared, with
their helmets and breastplates flashing like flame, the Margian
steel[72] glittering sharp and bright, and the horses equipped in mail
of brass and iron; but Surena was most conspicuous of all, being the
tallest and handsomest man among them, though his personal appearance,
owing to his feminine beauty, did not correspond to his reputation for
courage, for he was dressed more in the Median fashion, with his face
painted[73] and his hair parted, while the rest of the Parthians,
still keeping to the Scythian fashion, wore their hair long and bushy
to make themselves more formidable. At first the Parthians intended to
fall upon them with their long spears, and to drive the front ranks
from their ground; but when they saw the depth of their close-locked
ranks, and the firmness and stability of the men, they drew back; and
while they seemed to be at the same time dispersing themselves and
breaking their ranks, they threw themselves around the square before
the Romans were aware of it. Crassus ordered the light-armed troops to
spring forward; but they had not advanced far before they were met by
a shower of arrows, which galled them, and they ran back for shelter