The History of Herodotus, parallel English/Greek: Book 8: Urania: 20

Sacred Texts Classics Index Previous Next

The History of Herodotus, parallel English/Greek, tr. G. C. Macaulay, [1890], at sacred-texts.com

Herodotus Book 8: Urania [20]

20. For in fact the Eubœans, neglecting the oracle of Bakis as if it had no meaning at all, had neither carried away anything from their land nor laid in any store of provisions with a view to war coming upon them, and by their conduct moreover they had brought trouble upon themselves. For the oracle uttered by Bakis about these matters runs as follows:

"Mark, when a man, a Barbarian, shall yoke the Sea with papyrus,
Then do thou plan to remove the loud-bleating goats from Eubœa."

In the evils which at this time were either upon them or soon to be expected they might feel not a little sorry that they had paid no attention to these lines.

20. [1] οἱ γὰρ Εὐβοέες, παραχρησάμενοι τὸν Βάκιδος χρησμὸν ὡς οὐδὲν λέγοντα, οὔτε τι ἐξεκομίσαντο οὐδὲν οὔτε προσεσάξαντο ὡς παρεσομένου σφι πολέμου, περιπετέα τε ἐποιήσαντο σφίσι αὐτοῖσι τὰ πρήγματα. [2] Βάκιδι γὰρ ὧδε ἔχει περὶ τούτων ὁ χρησμός·

φράζεο, βαρβαρόφωνος ὅταν ζυγὸν εἰς ἅλα βάλλῃ
βύβλινον, Εὐβοίης ἀπέχειν πολυμηκάδας αἶγας.

τούτοισι οὐδὲν τοῖσι ἔπεσι χρησαμένοισι ἐν τοῖσι τότε παρεοῦσί τε καὶ προσδοκίμοισι κακοῖσι παρῆν σφι συμφορῇ χρᾶσθαι πρὸς τὰ μέγιστα.

21. While these were thus engaged, there came to them the scout from Trachis: for there was at Artemision a scout named Polyas, by birth of Antikyra, to whom it had been appointed, if the fleet should be disabled, to signify this to those at Thermopylai, and he had a vessel equipped and ready for this purpose; and similarly there was with Leonidas Abronichos son of Lysicles, an Athenian, ready to carry news to those at Artemision with a thirty-oared galley, if any disaster should happen to the land-army. This Abronichos then had arrived, and he proceeded to signify to them that which had come to pass about Leonidas and his army; and then when they were informed of it no longer put off their retreat, but set forth in the order in which they were severally posted, the Corinthians first and the Athenians last.

21. [1] οἳ μὲν δὴ ταῦτα ἔπρησσον, παρῆν δὲ ὁ ἐκ Τρηχῖνος κατάσκοπος. ἦν μὲν γὰρ ἐπ᾽ Ἀρτεμισίῳ κατάσκοπος Πολύας, γένος Ἀντικυρεύς, τῷ προσετέτακτο, καὶ εἶχε πλοῖον κατῆρες ἕτοιμον, εἰ παλήσειε ὁ ναυτικὸς στρατός, σημαίνειν τοῖσι ἐν Θερμοπύλῃσι ἐοῦσι· ὣς δ᾽ αὕτως ἦν Ἀβρώνιχος ὁ Λυσικλέος Ἀθηναῖος καὶ παρὰ Λεωνίδῃ ἕτοιμος τοῖσι ἐπ᾽ Ἀρτεμισίω ἐοῦσι ἀγγέλλειν τριηκοντέρῳ, ἤν τι καταλαμβάνῃ νεώτερον τὸν πεζόν. [2] οὗτος ὦν ὁ Ἀβρώνιχος ἀπικόμενός σφι ἐσήμαινε τὰ γεγονότα περὶ Λεωνίδην καὶ τὸν στρατὸν αὐτοῦ. οἳ δὲ ὡς ἐπύθοντο ταῦτα, οὐκέτι ἐς ἀναβολὰς ἐποιεῦντο τὴν ἀποχώρησιν, ἐκομίζοντο δὲ ὡς ἕκαστοι ἐτάχθησαν, Κορίνθιοι πρῶτοι, ὕστατοι δὲ Ἀθηναῖοι.

22. Themistocles however selected those ships of the Athenians which sailed best, and went round to the springs of drinking-water, cutting inscriptions on the stones there, which the Ionians read when they came to Artemision on the following day. These inscriptions ran thus: "Ionians, ye act not rightly in making expedition against the fathers of your race and endeavouring to enslave Hellas. Best of all were it that ye should come and be on our side; but if that may not be done by you, stand aside even now from the combat against us and ask the Carians to do the same as ye. If however neither of these two things is possible to be done, and ye are bound down by too strong compulsion to be able to make revolt, then in the action, when we engage battle, be purposely slack, remember that ye are descended from us and that our quarrel with the Barbarian took its rise at the first from you." Themistocles wrote thus, having, as I suppose, two things together in his mind, namely that either the inscriptions might elude the notice of the king and cause the Ionians to change and come over to the side on which he was, or that having been reported and denounced to Xerxes they might cause the Ionians to be distrusted by him, and so he might keep them apart from the sea- fights.

22. [1] Ἀθηναίων δὲ νέας τὰς ἄριστα πλεούσας ἐπιλεξάμενος Θεμιστοκλέης ἐπορεύετο περὶ τὰ πότιμα ὕδατα, ἐντάμνων ἐν τοῖσι λίθοισι γράμματα. τὰ Ἴωνες ἐπελθόντες τῇ ὑστεραίῃ ἡμέρῃ ἐπὶ τὸ Ἀρτεμίσιον ἐπελέξαντο. τὰ δὲ γράμματα τάδε ἔλεγε. «ἄνδρες Ἴωνες, οὐ ποιέετε δίκαια ἐπὶ τοὺς πατέρας στρατευόμενοι καὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα καταδουλούμενοι. [2] ἀλλὰ μάλιστα μὲν πρὸς ἡμέων γίνεσθε· εἰ δὲ ὑμῖν ἐστι τοῦτο μὴ δυνατὸν ποιῆσαι, ὑμεῖς δὲ ἔτι καὶ νῦν ἐκ τοῦ μέσου ἡμῖν ἕζεσθε καὶ αὐτοὶ καὶ τῶν Καρῶν δέεσθε τὰ αὐτὰ ὑμῖν ποιέειν. εἰ δὲ μηδέτερον τούτων οἷόν τε γίνεσθαι, ἀλλ᾽ ὑπ᾽ ἀναγκαίης μέζονος κατέζευχθε ἢ ὥστε ἀπίστασθαι, ὑμεῖς δὲ ἐν τῷ ἔργῳ, ἐπεὰν συμμίσγωμεν, ἐθελοκακέετε μεμνημένοι ὅτι ἀπ᾽ ἡμέων γεγόνατε καὶ ὅτι ἀρχῆθεν ἡ ἔχθρη πρὸς τὸν βάρβαρον ἀπ᾽ ὑμέων ἡμῖν γέγονε.» [3] Θεμιστοκλέης δὲ ταῦτα ἔγραφε, δοκέειν ἐμοί, ἐπ᾽ ἀμφότερα νοέων, ἵνα ἢ λαθόντα τὰ γράμματα βασιλέα Ἴωνας ποιήσῃ μεταβαλεῖν καὶ γενέσθαι πρὸς ἑωυτῶν, ἢ ἐπείτε ἀνενειχθῇ καὶ διαβληθῇ πρὸς Ξέρξην, ἀπίστους ποιήσῃ τοὺς Ἴωνας καὶ τῶν ναυμαχιέων αὐτοὺς ἀπόσχῃ.

23. Themistocles then had set these inscriptions: and to the Barbarians there came immediately after these things a man of Histaia in a boat bringing word of the retreat of the Hellenes from Artemision. They however, not believing it, kept the messenger under guard and sent swift-sailing ships to look on before. Then these having reported the facts, at last as daylight was spreading over the sky, the whole armament sailed in a body to Artemision; and having stayed at this place till mid-day, after this they sailed to Histaia, and there arrived they took possession of the city of Histaia and overran all the villages which lie along the coast in the region of Ellopia, which is the land of Histaia.

23. [1] Θεμιστοκλέης μὲν ταῦτα ἐνέγραψε· τοῖσι δὲ βαρβάροισι αὐτίκα μετὰ ταῦτα πλοίῳ ἦλθε ἀνὴρ Ἱστιαιεὺς ἀγγέλλων τὸν δρησμὸν τὸν ἀπ᾽ Ἀρτεμισίου τῶν Ἑλλήνων. οἳ δ᾽ ὑπ᾽ ἀπιστίης τὸν μὲν ἀγγέλλοντα εἶχον ἐν φυλακῇ, νέας δὲ ταχέας ἀπέστειλαν προκατοψομένας· ἀπαγγειλάντων δὲ τούτων τὰ ἦν, οὕτω δὴ ἅμα ἡλίῳ σκιδναμένῳ πᾶσα ἡ στρατιὴ ἐπέπλεε ἁλὴς ἐπὶ τὸ Ἀρτεμίσιον. ἐπισχόντες δὲ ἐν τούτῳ τῷ χώρῳ μέχρι μέσου ἡμέρης, τὸ ἀπὸ τούτου ἔπλεον ἐς Ἱστιαίην· ἀπικόμενοι δὲ τὴν πόλιν ἔσχον τῶν Ἱστιαιέων, καὶ τῆς Ἐλλοπίης μοίρης γῆς δὲ τῆς Ἱστιαιώτιδος τὰς παραθαλασσίας χώρας πάσας ἐπέδραμον.

24. While they were there, Xerxes, after he had made his dispositions with regard to the bodies of the dead, sent a herald to the fleet: and the dispositions which he made beforehand were as follows:--for all those of his army who were lying dead at Thermopylai, (and there were as many as twenty thousand in all), with the exception of about a thousand whom he left, he dug trenches and buried them, laying over them leaves and heaping earth upon them, that they might not be seen by the men of the fleet. Then when the herald had gone over to Histaia, he gathered an assembly of the whole force and spoke these words: "Allies, king Xerxes grants permission to any one of you who desires it, to leave his post and to come and see how he fights against those most senseless men who looked to overcome the power of the king."

24. [1] ἐνθαῦτα δὲ τούτων ἐόντων, Ξέρξης ἑτοιμασάμενος τὰ περὶ τοὺς νεκροὺς ἔπεμπε ἐς τὸν ναυτικὸν στρατὸν κήρυκα, προετοιμάσατο δὲ τάδε· ὅσοι τοῦ στρατοῦ τοῦ ἑωυτοῦ ἦσαν νεκροὶ ἐν Θερμοπύλῃσι (ἦσαν δὲ καὶ δύο μυριάδες ), ὑπολιπόμενος τούτων ὡς χιλίους, τοὺς λοιποὺς τάφρους ὀρυξάμενος ἔθαψε, φυλλάδα τε ἐπιβαλὼν καὶ γῆν ἐπαμησάμενος, ἵνα μὴ ὀφθείησαν ὑπὸ τοῦ ναυτικοῦ στρατοῦ. [2] ὡς δὲ διέβη ἐς τὴν Ἱστιαίην ὁ κῆρυξ, σύλλογον ποιησάμενος παντὸς τοῦ στρατοπέδου ἔλεγε τάδε. «ἄνδρες σύμμαχοι, βασιλεὺς Ξέρξης τῷ βουλομένῳ ὑμέων παραδίδωσι ἐκλιπόντα τὴν τάξιν καὶ ἐλθόντα θεήσασθαι ὅκως μάχεται πρὸς τοὺς ἀνοήτους τῶν ἀνθρώπων, οἳ ἤλπισαν τὴν βασιλέος δύναμιν ὑπερβαλέεσθαι.»

25. When the herald had proclaimed this, then boats were of all things most in request, so many were they who desired to see this sight; and when they had passed over they went through the dead bodies and looked at them: and every one supposed that those who were lying there were all Lacedemonians or Thespians, though the Helots also were among those that they saw: however, they who had passed over did not fail to perceive that Xerxes had done that which I mentioned about the bodies of his own dead; for in truth it was a thing to cause laughter even: on the one side there were seen a thousand dead bodies lying, while the others lay all gathered together in the same place, four thousand of them. During this day then they busied themselves with looking, and on the day after this they sailed back to the ships at Histaia, while Xerxes and his army set forth upon their march.

25. [1] ταῦτα ἐπαγγειλαμένου, μετὰ ταῦτα οὐδὲν ἐγίνετο πλοίων σπανιώτερον· οὕτω πολλοὶ ἤθελον θεήσασθαι. διαπεραιωθέντες δὲ ἐθηεῦντο διεξιόντες τοὺς νεκρούς· πάντες δὲ ἠπιστέατο τοὺς κειμένους εἶναι πάντας Λακεδαιμονίους καὶ Θεσπιέας, ὁρῶντες καὶ τοὺς εἵλωτας. [2] οὐ μὲν οὐδ᾽ ἐλάνθανε τοὺς διαβεβηκότας Ξέρξης ταῦτα πρήξας περὶ τοὺς νεκροὺς τοὺς ἑωυτοῦ· καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ γελοῖον ἦν· τῶν μὲν χίλιοι ἐφαίνοντο νεκροὶ κείμενοι, οἳ δὲ πάντες ἐκέατο ἁλέες συγκεκομισμένοι ἐς τὠυτὸ χωρίον, τέσσερες χιλιάδες. [3] ταύτην μὲν τὴν ἡμέρην πρὸς θέην ἐτράποντο, τῇ δ᾽ ὑστεραίῃ οἳ μὲν ἀπέπλεον ἐς Ἱστιαίην ἐπὶ τὰς νέας, οἱ δὲ ἀμφὶ Ξέρξην ἐς ὁδὸν ὁρμέατο.

26. There had come also to them a few deserters from Arcadia, men in want of livelihood and desiring to be employed. These the Persians brought into the king's presence and inquired about the Hellenes, what they were doing; and one man it was who asked them this for all the rest. They told them that the Hellenes were keeping the Olympic festival and were looking on at a contest of athletics and horsemanship. He then inquired again, what was the prize proposed to them, for the sake of which they contended; and they told them of the wreath of olive which is given. Then Tigranes the son of Artabanos uttered a thought which was most noble, though thereby he incurred from the king the reproach of cowardice: for hearing that the prize was a wreath and not money, he could not endure to keep silence, but in the presence of all he spoke these words: "Ah! Mardonios, what kind of men are these against whom thou hast brought us to fight, who make their contest not for money but for honour!" Thus was it spoken by this man.

26. [1] ἧκον δέ σφι αὐτόμολοι ἄνδρες ἀπ᾽ Ἀρκαδίης ὀλίγοι τινές, βίου τε δεόμενοι καὶ ἐνεργοὶ βουλόμενοι εἶναι. ἄγοντες δὲ τούτους ἐς ὄψιν τὴν βασιλέος ἐπυνθάνοντο οἱ Πέρσαι περὶ τῶν Ἑλλήνων τί ποιέοιεν· εἷς δέ τις πρὸ πάντων ἦν ὁ εἰρωτῶν αὐτοὺς ταῦτα. [2] οἳ δέ σφι ἔλεγον ὡς Ὀλύμπια ἄγουσι καὶ θεωρέοιεν ἀγῶνα γυμνικὸν καὶ ἱππικόν. ὁ δὲ ἐπείρετο ὅ τι τὸ ἄεθλον εἴη σφι κείμενον περὶ ὅτευ ἀγωνίζονται· οἳ δ᾽ εἶπον τῆς ἐλαίης τὸν διδόμενον στέφανον. ἐνθαῦτα εἴπας γνώμην γενναιοτάτην Τιγράνης ὁ Ἀρταβάνου δειλίην ὦφλε πρὸς βασιλέος. [3] πυνθανόμενος γὰρ τὸ ἄεθλον ἐὸν στέφανον ἀλλ᾽ οὐ χρήματα, οὔτε ἠνέσχετο σιγῶν εἶπέ τε ἐς πάντας τάδε. «παπαῖ Μαρδόνιε, κοίους ἐπ᾽ ἄνδρας ἤγαγες μαχησομένους ἡμέας, οἳ οὐ περὶ χρημάτων τὸν ἀγῶνα ποιεῦνται ἀλλὰ περὶ ἀρετῆς.»

27. In the meantime, so soon as the disaster at Thermopylai had come about, the Thessalians sent a herald forthwith to the Phokians, against whom they had a grudge always, but especially because of the latest disaster which they had suffered: for when both the Thessalians themselves and their allies had invaded the Phokian land not many years before this expedition of the king, they had been defeated by the Phokians and handled by them roughly. For the Phokians had been shut up in Mount Parnassos having with them a soothsayer, Tellias the Eleian; and this Tellias contrived for them a device of the following kind:--he took six hundred men, the best of the Phokians, and whitened them over with chalk, both themselves and their armour, and then he attacked the Thessalians by night, telling the Phokians beforehand to slay every man whom they should see not coloured over with white. So not only the sentinels of the Thessalians, who saw these first, were terrified by them, supposing it to be something portentous and other than it was, but also after the sentinels the main body of their army; so that the Phokians remained in possession of four thousand bodies of slain men and shields; of which last they dedicated half at Abai and half at Delphi; and from the tithe of booty got by this battle were made the large statues which are contending for the tripod in front of the temple at Delphi, and others similar to these are dedicated as an offering at Abai.

27. [1] τούτῳ μὲν δὴ ταῦτα εἴρητο. ἐν δὲ τῷ διὰ μέσου χρόνῳ, ἐπείτε τὸ ἐν Θερμοπύλῃσι τρῶμα ἐγεγόνεε, αὐτίκα Θεσσαλοὶ πέμπουσι κήρυκα ἐς Φωκέας, ἅτε σφι ἔχοντες αἰεὶ χόλον, ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ ὑστάτου τρώματος καὶ τὸ κάρτα. [2] ἐσβαλόντες γὰρ πανστρατιῇ αὐτοί τε οἱ Θεσσαλοὶ καὶ οἱ σύμμαχοι αὐτῶν ἐς τοὺς Φωκέας, οὐ πολλοῖσι ἔτεσι πρότερον ταύτης τῆς βασιλέος στρατηλασίης, ἑσσώθησαν ὑπὸ τῶν Φωκέων καὶ περιέφθησαν τρηχέως. [3] ἐπείτε γὰρ κατειλήθησαν ἐς τὸν Παρνησὸν οἱ Φωκέες ἔχοντες μάντιν Τελλίην τὸν Ἠλεῖον, ἐνθαῦτα ὁ Τελλίης οὗτος σοφίζεται αὐτοῖσι τοιόνδε. γυψώσας ἄνδρας ἑξακοσίους τῶν φωκέων τοὺς, ἀρίστους, αὐτούς τε τούτους καὶ τὰ ὅπλα αὐτῶν, νυκτὸς ἐπεθήκατο τοῖσι Θεσσαλοῖσι, προείπας αὐτοῖσι, τὸν ἂν μὴ λευκανθίζοντα ἴδωνται, τοῦτον κτείνειν. [4] τούτους ὦν αἵ τε φυλακαὶ τῶν Θεσσαλῶν πρῶται ἰδοῦσαι ἐφοβήθησαν, δόξασαι ἄλλο τι εἶναι τέρας, καὶ μετὰ τὰς φυλακὰς αὐτὴ ἡ στρατιὴ οὕτω ὥστε τετρακισχιλίων κρατῆσαι νεκρῶν καὶ ἀσπίδων Φωκέας, τῶν τὰς μὲν ἡμισέας ἐς Ἄβας ἀνέθεσαν τὰς δὲ ἐς Δελφούς· [5] ἡ δὲ δεκάτη ἐγένετο τῶν χρημάτων ἐκ ταύτης τῆς μάχης οἱ μεγάλοι ἀνδριάντες οἱ περὶ τὸν τρίποδα συνεστεῶτες ἔμπροσθε τοῦ νηοῦ τοῦ ἐν Δελφοῖσι, καὶ ἕτεροι τοιοῦτοι ἐν Ἄβῃσι ἀνακέαται.

28. Thus had the Phokians done to the Thessalian footmen, when they were besieged by them; and they had done irreparable hurt to their cavalry also, when this had invaded their land: for in the pass which is by Hyampolis they had dug a great trench and laid down in it empty wine-jars; and then having carried earth and laid it on the top and made it like the rest of the ground, they waited for the Thessalians to invade their land. These supposing that they would make short work with the Phokians, riding in full course fell upon the wine-jars; and there the legs of their horses were utterly crippled.

28. [1] ταῦτα μέν νυν τὸν πεζὸν ἐργάσαντο τῶν Θεσσαλῶν οἱ Φωκέες πολιορκέοντας ἑωυτούς· ἐσβαλοῦσαν δὲ ἐς τὴν χώρην τὴν ἵππον αὐτῶν ἐλυμήναντο ἀνηκέστως. ἐν γὰρ τῇ ἐσβολῇ ἣ ἐστὶ κατὰ Ὑάμπολιν, ἐν ταύτῃ τάφρον μεγάλην ὀρύξαντες ἀμφορέας κενεοὺς ἐς αὐτὴν κατέθηκαν, χοῦν δὲ ἐπιφορήσαντες καὶ ὁμοιώσαντες τῷ ἄλλῳ χώρῳ ἐδέκοντο τοὺς Θεσσαλοὺς ἐσβάλλοντας. οἳ δὲ ὡς ἀναρπασόμενοι τοὺς Φωκέας φερόμενοι ἐσέπεσον ἐς τοὺς ἀμφορέας. ἐνθαῦτα οἱ ἵπποι τὰ σκέλεα διεφθάρησαν.

29. Bearing then a grudge for both of these things, the Thessalians sent a herald and addressed them thus: "Phokians, we advise you to be more disposed now to change your minds and to admit that ye are not on a level with us: for in former times among the Hellenes, so long as it pleased us to be on that side, we always had the preference over you, and now we have such great power with the Barbarian that it rests with us to cause you to be deprived of your land and to be sold into slavery also. We however, though we have all the power in our hands, do not bear malice, but let there be paid to us fifty talents of silver in return for this, and we will engage to avert the dangers which threaten to come upon your land."

29. [1] τούτων δή σφι ἀμφοτέρων ἔχοντες ἔγκοτον οἱ Θεσσαλοὶ πέμψαντες κήρυκα ἠγόρευον τάδε. «ὦ Φωκέες, ἤδη τι μᾶλλον γνωσιμαχέετε μὴ εἶναι ὅμοιοι ἡμῖν. [2] πρόσθε τε γὰρ ἐν τοῖσι Ἕλλησι, ὅσον χρόνον ἐκεῖνα ἡμῖν ἥνδανε, πλέον αἰεί κοτε ὑμέων ἐφερόμεθα· νῦν τε παρὰ τῷ βαρβάρῳ τοσοῦτο δυνάμεθα ὥστε ἐπ᾽ ἡμῖν ἐστι τῆς γῆς ἐστερῆσθαι καὶ πρὸς ἠνδραποδίσθαι ὑμέας. ἡμεῖς μέντοι τὸ πᾶν ἔχοντες οὐ μνησικακέομεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἡμῖν γενέσθω ἀντ᾽ αὐτῶν πεντήκοντα τάλαντα ἀργυρίου, καὶ ὑμῖν ὑποδεκόμεθα τὰ ἐπιόντα ἐπὶ τὴν χώρην ἀποτρέψειν. »

Next: 30