By the beginning of spring Antiochus and Ptolemy had completed their preparations and were determined on deciding the fate of the Syrian expedition by a battle.
Now Ptolemy started from <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Alexandria&groupId=1063&placeId=1868">Alexandria</a> with an army of seventy thousand foot, five thousand horse, and seventy-three elephants,
and Antiochus, on learning of his advance, concentrated his forces. These consisted first of Daae, Carmanians, and Cilicians, light-armed troops about five thousand in number organized and commanded by Byttacus the Macedonian.
Under Theodotus the Aetolian, who had played the traitor to Ptolemy, was a force of ten thousand selected from every part of the kingdom and armed in the Macedonian manner, most of them with silver shields.
The phalanx was about twenty thousand strong and was under the command of Nicarchus and Theodotus surnamed Hemiolius.
There were Agrianian and Persian bowmen and slingers to the number of two thousand, and with them two thousand Thracians, all under the command of Menedemus of Alabanda.
Aspasianus the Mede had under him a force of about five thousand Medes, Cissians, Cadusians, and Carmanians.
The Arabs and neighbouring tribes numbered about ten thousand and were commanded by Zabdibelus.
Hippolochus the Thessalian commanded the mercenaries from Greece, five thousand in number.
Antiochus had also fifteen hundred Cretans under Eurylochus and a thousand Neocretans under Zelys of Gortyna.
With these were five hundred Lydian javelineers and a thousand Cardaces under Lysimachus the <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Gaul&groupId=598&placeId=1108">Gaul</a>.
The cavalry numbered six thousand in all, four thousand of them being commanded by Antipater the king's nephew and the rest by Themison.
The whole army of Antiochus consisted of sixty-two thousand foot, six thousand horse, and a hundred and two elephants.
Walbank Commentary