Croesus was the king of Lydia from 560/561 BC until his defeat by the Persians in about 547 BC. The fall of Croesus made a profound impact on the Hellenes, providing a fixed point in their calendar. "By the fifth century at least," J.A.S. Evans remarked, "Croesus had become a figure of myth, who stood outside the conventional restraints of chronology." Croesus was renowned for his wealth — Herodotus and Pausanias noted his gifts preserved at Delphi — and in Greek and Persian cultures his name became a synonym for a wealthy man; in English, expressions such as "rich as Croesus" or "richer than Croesus" are used to indicate great wealth.