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“Now when Midas had grown to be a fine and handsome man there was trouble and strife among the Phrygians, and an oracle told them that a wagon would bring them a king, who would put an end to their quarrels. While they were still debating what to do about these things, Midas with his father and mother drove up in the wagon and came to a stop at their place of meeting. Taking this to be the fulfilment of the oracle, the Phrygians decided that here was the man whom the god had foretold that a wagon would bring. So they put Midas on the throne, and he made an end of their trouble and strife and laid up his father’s wagon on the acropolis as a thank-offering to Zeus the King for sending the eagle.” <ref> Arrian. <i> The Campaigns of Alexander.</i> Translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. (London: Penguin Books, 1971), Book II, 3</ref>

According to this legend, Midas may not have had the literal touch of gold, but his ascension to the throne was otherworldly and he did display a metaphorical golden touch by bringing different factions of Phrygians together. The legend of Midas’ golden touch, though, was retold in different legends, one of the most memorable being in Ovid’s <i>Metamorphoses</i>.