"After Solon's departure nemesis fell upon Croesus, presumably because God was angry with him for supposing himself the happiest of men. It began with a dream he had about a disaster to one of his sons; a dream which came true. . . . Croesus dreamt that Atys would be killed by a blow from an iron weapon. He woke from the dream in horror, and lost no time in getting his son a wife, and seeing to it that he no longer took the field with the Lydian soldiers, whom he used to command. He also removed all the weapons--javelins, spears and so on-- from the men's rooms, and had them piled up in the women's quarters, because he was afraid that some blade hanging on the wall might fall on Atys' head. .

Now it happened just at this time that Mount Olympus in Mysia was infested by a monstrous boar. This tremendous creature used to issue from his mountain lair and play havoc with the crops and many times the Mysians had taken the field against him, but to no purpose. The unfortunate hunters received more damage than they were able to inflict. As a last resource the Mysians sent to Croesus.

{Croesus refused to let Atys join the hunting party.}

'No one can blame you, father,' Atys replied, 'for taking care of me after a dream like that. Nevertheless there is something which you have failed to observe, and it is only right that I should point it out to you. You dreamt that I should be killed by an iron weapon. Very well: has a boar got hands? Can a boar hold this weapon you fear so much? Had you dreamt that I should be killed by a boar's tusk or anything of that sort, your pecautions would be justified. But you didn't: it was a weapon which was to kill me. Let me go, then it is only to hunt an animal, not to fight against me.'

. . .

the party set out, men, dogs, and all. They made their way to Olympus and kept their eyes open for the boar. As soon as they spotted him, they surounded him and let fly with spears-- and then it was that the stranger--Adrastus, the very man whom Croesus had cleansed from the stain of blood--aimed at the boar, missed him, and struck the king's son. Croesus' dream had come true.

Herodotus, p 54-56.