Read Ebook: Pausanias' description of Greece Volume I. by Pausanias Active Approximately Shilleto A R Arthur Richard Translator

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Now the Argives destroyed Mycenae in jealousy. For though they took no part against the Medes, the people of Mycenae sent to Thermopylae 80 men, who shared in the glory of the famous 300. This public spirit brought about their destruction, by provoking the Argives to jealousy. But there are still some remains of the precincts and the gate, and there are some lions on it: which were they say executed by the Cyclopes, who built the wall at Tiryns for Proetus. And among the ruins at Mycenae is a fountain called Perseus', and some underground buildings belonging to Atreus and his sons, where their treasures were. And there is the tomb of Atreus, and of those whom AEgisthus slew at a banquet on their return from Ilium with Agamemnon. As to Cassandra's tomb the Lacedaemonians of Amyclae claim that they have it. And there is the tomb of Agamemnon there, and that of Eurymedon the charioteer, and the joint-tomb of Teledamus and Pelops, who were twins of Cassandra, and were butchered by AEgisthus after their parents. There is also the tomb of Electra, who married Pylades, and Orestes gave her away. And Hellanicus has recorded that Medon and Strophius were the issue of the marriage. And Clytaemnestra and AEgisthus were buried a little outside the walls, for they were thought unworthy to lie within the city, and mingle their ashes with Agamemnon and those who were murdered with him.

And as you go from Mycenae to Argos there is on the left hand a hero-chapel of Perseus near the road. He has honours here from the people in the neighbourhood, but the greatest honours are paid him at Seriphus, and he has also a temple among the Athenians, and in it an altar to Dictys and Clymene, who are called the Saviours of Perseus. And as you advance on the road to Argos a little way from this hero-chapel is the tomb of Thyestes on the right hand: and on it is a ram in stone, for Thyestes stole the golden sheep, when he seduced his brother's wife. And Atreus could not be satisfied with the law of Tit for Tat, but slaughtered the children of Thyestes and served them up to him at table. But afterwards I cannot pronounce decidedly whether AEgisthus began the injury, or whether it began with the murder of Tantalus the son of Thyestes by Agamemnon: for they say he married Clytaemnestra as her first husband having received her from Tyndareus. And I do not wish to accuse them of wickedness incarnate. But if the crime of Pelops and the ghost of Myrtilus haunted the family so ruthlessly, it reminds one of the answer of the Pythian Priestess to Glaucus the son of Epicydes the Spartan, when he purposed perjury, that punishment would come on his descendants.

As to Cresphontes and the sons of Aristodemus there is nothing pressing to narrate about them. But Temenus openly made use of Deiphontes as general for his battles instead of his sons, and made him his associate in all things, and gave him as wife his daughter Hyrnetho whom he loved more than all his children, and was suspected of intending to make her and Deiphontes his heirs in the kingdom. And for these reasons he was slain by his sons, and Cisus the eldest of them became king. But the Argives, who had from the most ancient times loved equality and home rule, reduced the kingly power so low, that Medon, the son of Cisus, and his descendants were left the royal title only. And Meltas the son of Lacedas, the 10th descendant of Medon, the people sentenced to deprivation of his kingdom altogether.

Of the temples in the city of the Argives the most notable is that of Lycian Apollo. The statue in our day was the work of an Athenian, Attalus, but originally the temple and wooden statue was the offering of Danaus. I think all statues were wooden in those days, and especially Egyptian ones. Now Danaus built a temple to Apollo the Wolf-God for the following reason. When he came to Argos, he and Gelanor the son of Sthenelas were rival competitors for the kingdom. And many ingratiating words having been spoken by both of them to the people, and Gelanor's speech seeming rather the best, the people, they say, put off the decision to the next day. And at break of day a wolf attacked a herd of cattle that were feeding near the walls, and had a fierce encounter with the bull, the leader of the herd. And it occurred to the Argives that Gelanor was like the bull, Danaus like the wolf, for just as this animal does not live with human beings so Danaus had not up to that time lived with them. And as the wolf mastered the bull, so Danaus got the kingdom. And he thinking that Apollo had sent that wolf against the herd, built a temple to Apollo the Wolf-God. In it is the throne of Danaus, and an image of Biton, the man who carried a bull on his shoulders , for, when the Argives were sacrificing to Zeus at Nemea, Biton took up a bull by sheer strength and carried it to the altar. And they light the fire close to this image, and they call it the fire of Phoroneus: for they do not admit that Prometheus gave fire to men, but they attribute the invention of fire to Phoroneus. Here also are wooden statues of Aphrodite and Hermes, the latter the work of Epeus, and the former the offering of Hypermnestra. For she, the only one of his daughters who disobeyed his cruel order, was brought to trial by Danaus, partly because he thought his own safety compromised by that of Lynceus, and partly because her not joining with her sisters in their atrocious deed augmented the disgrace of the contriver of the deed. And, being acquitted by the Argives, she erected as a votive offering in this temple a statue of Victorious Aphrodite. And there is inside the temple a statue of Ladas, who excelled all his contemporaries in fleetness of foot, and one of Hermes making a lyre out of a tortoise. And there is in front of the temple an amphitheatre with a representation of the fight between the bull and the wolf, and a maiden throwing a stone at the bull. They think this maiden represents Artemis. Danaus had all this constructed, and some pillars near, and wooden statues of Zeus and Artemis.

Here also are the tombs of Linus the son of Apollo, and of Psamathe the daughter of Crotopus, and this is that Linus they say who wrote poetry. I pass him by now as more meet to be discussed in another place, and as regards Psamathe I have already given a full account of her in what I have written about Megara. Next is a statue of Apollo the Guardian of the Streets, and the altar of Rainy Zeus, where those who conspired the return of Polynices to Thebes swore that they would die if unsuccessful in taking Thebes. As to the sepulchre of Prometheus, the Argives seem to me to give a less credible account than the Opuntians, but they stick to their account all the same.

And not far from the building in the market-place of the Argives is a mound of earth. They say the head of the Gorgon Medusa lies under it. To omit fable, it has been recorded of her that she was the daughter of Phorcus, and that after the death of her father she ruled over the people that live near the Tritonian marsh, and used to go out hunting and led the Libyans in battle, and moreover resisted with her army the power of Perseus, though picked men followed him from the Peloponnese, but she was treacherously slain by night, and Perseus, marvelling at her beauty even after death, cut her head off and brought it home to display to the Greeks. But Procles the Carthaginian, the son of Eucrates, has another account more plausible than this one. The desert of Libya produces monsters scarce credible to those that hear of them, and there both wild men and wild women are born: and Procles said he had seen one of those wild men that had been taken to Rome. He conjectured therefore that Medusa was a woman who had wandered from them, and gone to the Tritonian marsh, and illtreated the inhabitants till Perseus slew her: and Athene he thought assisted Perseus in the work, because the men in the neighbourhood of the Tritonian marsh were sacred to her. And in Argos close to this monument of the Gorgon is the tomb of the Gorgon-slayer Perseus. Why she was called Gorgon is plain to the hearer at once. They say she was the first woman who ever married a second husband, for she married one OEbalus, when her husband Perieres the son of AEolus was dead, with whom she had lived from her virginity. Previously it was customary for women to remain widows if their husband died. And before this tomb is a trophy erected in stone to the Argive Laphaes, whom, according to the Argive tradition, the people rose up against and expelled when he was king, and when he fled to Sparta the Lacedaemonians endeavoured to restore him, but the Argives being victorious in the battle slew Laphaes and most of the Lacedaemonians. And not far from this trophy is the temple of Leto, and a statue of her by Praxiteles. And the figure near the goddess is the maiden they call Chloris, who they say was the daughter of Niobe, and was originally called Meliboea. And when the children of Amphion and Niobe were slain by Apollo and Artemis, she alone and Amyclas were saved alive, as they supplicated Leto. But fear turned Meliboea so pale that she remained so all the rest of her life, insomuch that her name was changed from Meliboea into Chloris . This Chloris and Amyclas the Argives say built the original temple of Leto. But I myself am of opinion, that none of the children of Niobe survived. The following line bears me out.

"Two arrows only slew the whole family."

Homer therefore describes the whole family of Amphion as cut off.

As you go thence on the road called the Hollow Way, there is on the right hand a temple of Dionysus: the statue of the god they say came from Euboea. For when the Greeks returning from Ilium were shipwrecked at Caphareus, those of the Argives who contrived to escape to shore were in evil plight from cold and hunger. But when they prayed that one of the gods would save them in their present emergency, immediately as they went forward they saw a cave of Dionysus, and a statue of the god in the cave, and some wild goats that had taken refuge from the cold were huddled together in it. These the Argives killed, and eat their flesh, and used their skins for clothing. And when the winter was over, they repaired their vessels and sailed homewards, and took with them the wooden statue from the cave, and worship it to this day. And very near the temple of Dionysus you will see the house of Adrastus, and at some distance from it the temple of Amphiaraus, and beyond that the tomb of Eriphyle. And next these is the shrine of AEsculapius, and close to it the temple of Bato, who was of the family of Amphiaraus and one of the Melampodidae, and was Amphiaraus' charioteer when he went out to battle: and when the rout from Thebes came about, the earth opened and swallowed up Amphiaraus and the chariot and Bato all together. And as you return from the Hollow Way you come to the reputed tomb of Hyrnetho. If it is a cenotaph and merely in memory of her, their account is probable enough, but if they say that the body of Hyrnetho lies there I cannot believe them, but let him believe them who knows nothing about Epidaurus. The most famous of the temples of AEsculapius at Argos has a statue still to be seen, AEsculapius seated, in white stone, and next to him a statue of Hygiea. There are also seated near them those who designed these statues, Xenophilus and Strato. That temple was originally built by Sphyrus, the son of Machaon, and the brother of the Alexanor who has honours among the Sicyonians at Titane. And the statue of Pheraean Artemis, was they say brought from Pherae in Thessaly. But I cannot agree with the Argives who say that they have at Argos the tombs of Deianira the daughter of OEneus, and of Helenus the son of Priam, and that they have the statue of Athene that was carried away from Ilium, and whose loss caused its fall. The Palladium, for that is its name, was certainly carried by AEneas to Italy. As to Deianira, we know she died at Trachis and not at Argos, and her tomb is near that of Hercules on Mount OEta. And as to Helenus the son of Priam, I have already shown that he went with Pyrrhus the son of Achilles to Epirus, and married Andromache, and was Regent for the sons of Pyrrhus, and that Cestrine in Epirus took its name from his son Cestrinus. Not that the Argive antiquarians are ignorant that all their traditions are not true, still they utter them: for it is not easy to get the mass of mankind to change their preconceived opinions. There are other things at Argos worth seeing, as the underground building, and the tomb of Crotopus, and the temple of Cretan Dionysus. For they say that Dionysus, after he had warred with Perseus and got friendly again with him, was highly honoured by the Argives in various respects, and was given as a special honour this enclosure. And afterwards it was called the temple of Cretan Dionysus, because they buried Ariadne here. And Lyceas says that when the temple was restored an earthenware cinerary urn was found that contained the ashes of Ariadne: which he said several Argives had seen. And near this temple of Dionysus is the temple of Celestial Aphrodite.

"Zeus the lord of the under world, and dread Proserpine."

And AEschylus the son of Euphorion calls him also Zeus of the sea. The sculptor therefore whoever he was represented him with three eyes to denote that the god rules in these three departments of the universe.

The road to Mantinea from Argos is not the same as the road to Tegea, but you start from the gates near the ridge. And on this road there is a temple with a double entrance, one facing west, another east. At the east end is a wooden statue of Aphrodite, at the west one of Ares. These statues are they say votive offerings of Polynices and the Argives who were associated with him in his expedition. And as you go on from thence after crossing the winter torrent called Ravine you come to OEnoe, which gets its name from OEneus, who was king in AEtolia, and expelled they say from his kingdom by the sons of Agrius, and went to Argos to Diomede. And he helped him somewhat by leading an army into Calydonia, but he couldn't he said stay there: but recommended him if he liked to accompany him to Argos. And when he went there, he treated him in all respects well, as one would expect a person to treat his grandfather, and when he died he buried him here. The place got called OEnoe by the Argives after him. And above OEnoe is the Mountain Artemisium, and a temple of Artemis on the top of the mountain. And on this mountain are the sources of the Inachus: for it has its rise here, though it flows underground for some way. There is nothing else to see here.

And another road from the gates near the Ridge goes to Lyrceia. This is the place to which Lynceus alone of all the 50 brothers is said to have escaped, and when he got there safe, he held up a lighted torch there. For it was no doubt agreed between Hypermnestra and him that he should do so as a signal, if he should escape from Danaus and get to a place of safety. And she also they say kindled another at Larissa, manifestly to show that she too was in no danger. And in memory of this the Argives every year have a torch procession. And in those days the place was called Lynceia, but afterwards, because Lyrcus an illegitimate son of Abas lived there, it got the name Lyrceia from him. There is nothing very notable among the ruins but the effigy of Lyrcus on a pillar. From Lyrceia to Argos is about 60 stades, and it is about the same distance from Lyrceia to Orneae. Homer has made no mention of Lyrceia in his catalogue, as the city was already depopulated at the time of the expedition to Ilium: but Orneae, which was still inhabited, Homer has recorded before Phlius and Sicyon, according to its geographical situation in Argolis. And it got its name from Orneus the son of Erechtheus: and this Orneus had a son Peteos, and he had a son Menestheus, who aided Agamemnon with a force from Athens to put down the dominion of Priam. From Orneus then the city got its name, and the Argives afterwards dispossessed the people of Orneae; and when they were dispossessed they were naturalized among the Argives. And there is at Orneae a temple of Artemis, and a wooden statue of the goddess in an erect posture, and another temple to all the gods in common. And beyond Orneae are Sicyonia and Phliasia.

And as you go from Argos to the district of Epidaurus there is a building on the right hand like a pyramid, with some Argolic shields worked on it as a design. Here Proetus fought with Acrisius for the supremacy, and their contest was they say drawn, and they had a peace afterwards, as neither of them could conquer the other. And they say that they engaged first with shields, and then they and the army on both sides in full armour. And those who fell on both sides, as they were fellow citizens and kinsmen, had one tomb and monument in common. And as you go on from thence and turn to the right you come to the ruins of Tiryns. And the Argives dispossessed the inhabitants of Tiryns, wishing to take them in as settlers to aggrandize Argos. And they say the hero Tiryns, from whom the city got its name, was the son of Argus the son of Zeus. And the walls of the city, which are the only ruins left, are the work of the Cyclopes made of rude stones, each stone of so gigantic a size that the smallest of them could hardly be moved by a pair of mules. And in ancient times small stones were inserted so as to dovetail in with the large stones. And as you go down to the sea, are the chambers of the daughters of Proetus. And when you return to the high road you will come to Midea on the left. They say that Electryon the father of Alcmena was king of Midea. But now nothing is left of Midea but the site. And on the direct road to Epidaurus is the village Lessa, and there is a temple of Athene in it, and a wooden statue very similar to that in the citadel at Larissa. And above Lessa is the Mountain Arachnaeum, which in old times in the days of Inachus had the name of Sapyselaton. And there are altars on it to Zeus and Hera. They sacrifice to these gods here when there is a deficiency of rain.

"Talthybius, call here as quickly as possible Machaon the mortal, the son of AEsculapius,"

as if he said the man the son of the god.

Now all kinds of dragons, and especially those which incline to tawny in colour, are considered sacred to AEsculapius, and are tame, and the Epidaurian country alone breeds them. I find similar phenomena in other countries. Thus Libya alone breeds land crocodiles no smaller than two cubits, and from India alone come parrots and other birds. For the great snakes in size as big as 30 cubits, which are produced in India and in Libya, the Epidaurians say are not dragons but another species altogether. And as you ascend the mountain called Coryphon there is an olive tree called Twisted, its having been so moulded by Hercules' hand is the origin of the name. I can hardly believe that he meant this for a boundary for the Asinaei in Argolis, for as the country on both sides lies waste one could find no clear boundary here. And on the top of the mountain Coryphon is the temple of Artemis, which Telesilla has mentioned in a poem. And as you go down to the city of the Epidaurians is a place, called Hyrnethium, full of wild olives that grow there. I shall record the Epidaurian tradition and the probable truth. Cisus and the other sons of Temenus knew that they would greatly vex Deiphontes, if they could by any means get Hyrnetho from him. Cerynes and Phalces therefore went alone to Epidaurus: for Argaeeus the youngest did not approve of their plot. And they leaving their travelling carriage near the walls sent a messenger to their sister, wishing they said to have a conversation with her. And when she complied with their invitation, the young men at once brought various charges against Deiphontes, and begged her earnestly to return to Argos, making various promises, and that they would give her in marriage to a man in every respect better than Deiphontes, to the ruler of a larger population and a more fertile country. And Hyrnetho vexed at their words gave them back as good as they brought, and said that Deiphontes was acceptable to her as a husband, and that to be Temenus' son in law was not to be despised, but they ought to be called rather Temenus' murderers than his sons. And they made no reply to her, but took hold of her, put her into the travelling carriage, and drove off. And an Epidaurian took the news to Deiphontes that Cerynes and Phalces had gone off with Hyrnetho against her will. And he came to the rescue with all speed, and the Epidaurians when they heard what the matter was came to the rescue with him. And Deiphontes when he came up with Cerynes shot at him and killed him with an arrow, but as Phalces was close to Hyrnetho he did not dare to shoot at him, lest he should miss him and kill her, but he closed with him and endeavoured to get her away. But Phalces resisting and pulling Hyrnetho too violently killed her, for she was pregnant. And he perceiving what he had done to his sister, drove the travelling carriage at full speed, hastening to be off before the Epidaurians could come up: and Deiphontes with his sons , took the dead body of Hyrnetho and conveyed it to the place which is now called Hyrnethium. And they built a chapel to her memory and paid her other honours, and with regard to the olive trees that grow in her grove, or any other trees there, it is an established custom that no one should break pieces of them off and carry them away, nor use them for any purpose, but leave them intact as sacred to Hyrnetho. And not far from the city is the sepulchre of Melissa, who was the wife of Periander the son of Cypselus, and the sepulchre of Proclees the father of Melissa. And he was king at Epidaurus, as his son in law Periander was at Corinth.

Epidaurus has the following things most worthy of record. There is a temple of AEsculapius, and statues of AEsculapius and Epione, who they say was his wife. These are in the open air, and are of Parian marble. And there are temples of Dionysus and Artemis, the latter as a Huntress. There is a temple also built to Aphrodite: and near the harbour on the cliff jutting out into the sea is they say one of Hera. And the Athene in the citadel, a wooden statue well worth seeing, they call Cissaean Athene.

The AEginetans inhabit the island opposite Epidauria. And they say there were no inhabitants there originally, but Zeus having taken AEgina the daughter of Asopus there to that desert island, it was called AEgina after her instead of its old name OEnone, and when AEacus was grown up he asked of Zeus for settlers, and then they say that Zeus produced men from the soil. And they can tell of no king reigning there but AEacus, for we know of none of the sons of AEacus continuing there, for Peleus and Telamon had to flee for the murder of Phocus, and the sons of Phocus again dwelt near Parnassus in what is now called Phocis. And the name Phocis was given to the district when Phocus of the family of Ornytion first came to it. In the days of this Phocus the country near Tithorea and Parnassus was called Phocis: but in the days of AEacus the name Phocis included everybody from Minyae near Orchomenus to Scarphea in Locris. And Peleus' sons were kings in Epirus, and of Telamon's sons the family of Ajax was rather obscure , except Miltiades, who led the Athenians at Marathon, and his son Cimon, both of whom were exceedingly illustrious. And the descendants of Teucer were kings of Cyprus down to Evagoras. And according to the poet Asius Phocus' sons were Panopeus and Crisus: and the son of Panopeus was Epeus, who according to Homer was the contriver of the wooden horse, and the grandson of Crisus was Pylades, the son of Strophius, the son of Crisus by Anaxibia the daughter of Agamemnon. Such is the pedigree of the so-called AEacidae, but they branched off from the beginning into other directions. And in after time a part of the Argives that had occupied Epidaurus with Deiphontes crossed over to AEgina, and, mixing among the old settlers at AEgina, introduced into the island the Doric language and manners. And the AEginetans became a great power, so that they were even a greater naval power than the Athenians, and in the Persian War furnished the greatest number of vessels next to the Athenians, but their prosperity did not last, for they were turned out of AEgina by the Athenians, and went and dwelt at Thyrea in Argolis, which the Lacedaemonians gave them. They recovered AEgina indeed, when the Athenian triremes were captured at the Hellespont, but never regained their former wealth and power. Of all the Greek islands AEgina is the most difficult of access. For there are rocks under the sea all round it, and sunken reefs. And they say that AEacus contrived this on purpose from fear of pirates, and that he might not be exposed to enemies. And near the chief harbour is a temple of Aphrodite, and in the most conspicuous part of the city what is called the Hall of AEacus, a square court of white stone: at the entrance of which are statues of the envoys who were sent by the Greeks to AEacus. All give the same account of this as the AEginetans. A drought for some time afflicted Greece, and there was no rain either beyond the Isthmus or in the Peloponnese, until they sent messengers to Delphi, to enquire the cause, and at the same time to beg to be rid of the evil. The Pythian Priestess told them to propitiate Zeus, and that, if he was to listen to them, AEacus must be the suppliant. Accordingly they sent envoys from every city to beg AEacus to do so. And he offered sacrifices and prayers to Pan-Hellenian Zeus and caused rain to come on the earth: and the AEginetans made these effigies of all the envoys that had come to him. And within the precincts are some olive trees planted a long time ago, and an altar not much higher than the ground, which it is secretly whispered is a memorial of AEacus. And near the Hall of AEacus is the tomb of Phocus, a mound of earth with a base in the shape of a circle, and on it is a rough stone: and when Telamon and Peleus invited Phocus to the contest of the pentathlum, and it was Peleus' turn to throw the stone, which served them for a quoit, he purposely threw it at Phocus and hit him. And in this they gratified their mother, for they were the sons of Endeis the daughter of Sciron, and Phocus was the son of her sister Thetis, if the Greeks speak the truth. And Pylades appears to me for this reason, and not merely in friendship to Orestes, to have contrived the death of Neoptolemus. But when Phocus was struck by the quoit and fell down dead, then the sons of Endeis got on board ship and fled. And Telamon later on sent a messenger, and endeavoured to clear himself of having contrived the death of Phocus. But AEacus would not let him land on the island, but bade him if he liked pile up a mole in the sea and make his defence there. Accordingly he sailed to the harbour called Secret, and by night produced a mole, which remains to this day. And being pronounced guilty of the death of Phocus he sailed back again to Salamis. And not far from this harbour Secret is a theatre well worth seeing, in size and workmanship very similar to the one at Epidaurus. And behind it is built one side of a stadium, upholding the theatre and serving as a prop for it.

And near one another are temples of Apollo, and Artemis, and Dionysus. The wooden statue of Apollo is naked and of native art, but Artemis and Dionysus are draped, and Dionysus is represented with a beard. But the temple of AEsculapius is on the other side and not here, and the statue of stone, seated. And of all the gods the people of AEgina honour Hecate most, and celebrate her rites annually, saying that Orpheus the Thracian introduced those rites. And within the precincts is a temple, containing a wooden statue of Hecate by Myron, with only one head and one body. Alcamenes as it seems to me was the first who made the statue of Hecate with three heads and three bodies which the Athenians call Hecate Epipurgidia: it stands near the temple of Wingless Victory. And in AEgina as you go to the mountain of Pan-Hellenian Zeus is the temple of Aphaea, about whom Pindar wrote an ode for the AEginetans. And the Cretans say, , that Eubulus was the son of that Carmanor who purged Apollo of the murder of Python, and that Britomartis was the daughter of Zeus by Carme the daughter of Eubulus: and that she rejoiced in races and hunting, and was a very great friend of Artemis. And fleeing from Minos, who was enamoured of her, she threw herself into some nets set for catching fish. Artemis made her a goddess, and she is worshipped not only by the Cretans but also by the AEginetans, who say that Britomartis was seen in their island. And she is called Aphaea in AEgina, but Dictynna in Crete. And the mountain Pan-Hellenium has nothing of note but the temple of Zeus, which they say AEacus erected. As to what concerns Auxesia and Lamia, how there was no rain at Epidaurus, and how after receiving olive trees from Athens they made wooden statues according to the bidding of the oracle, and how the Epidaurians did not pay to the Athenians their charge for the AEginetans having these statues, and how the Athenians who crossed over to AEgina to exact payment perished, all this has been told accurately and circumstantially by Herodotus. I do not therefore care to write again what has been so well told before, but this much I may say that I have seen the statues and sacrificed to them as they are accustomed to sacrifice at Eleusis.

Let so much suffice for AEgina, and AEacus and his exploits. And next to Epidauria come the people of Troezen, who are proud of their country if any people are. And they say that Orus was a native of their country. To me however the name Orus seems decidedly Egyptian and not at all Greek. However they say he was their king, and that the country was called Oraea after him, and Althepus the son of Poseidon by Leis the daughter of Orus, succeeding to Orus, called the country Althepia. When he was king they say that Athene and Poseidon had a dispute about the country, and resolved to hold it in common, for so Zeus ordered them to do. And so they worship Athene under the names Polias and Sthenias, and Poseidon under the name of king. And so their ancient coins have on them a trident and the head of Athene. And next to Althepus Saron was king, who they say built the temple to Saronian Artemis near the sea where it was muddy on the surface, insomuch that it was called the Phoebaean marsh. And it chanced that Saron, who was very fond of hunting, was pursuing a stag and followed it to the sea as it fled. And it swam further and further from the land, and Saron continued to follow it up, till in his impetuosity he got out to open sea, and, as he was by now tired, and the waves were too much for him, he was drowned. And his dead body was cast on shore on the Phoebaean marsh, and they buried him in the grove of Artemis, and they call the sea here after him the Saronian marsh instead of the Phoebaean. The names of the kings that followed him they do not know till Hyperes and Anthas, who they say were the sons of Poseidon by Alcyone the daughter of Atlas, and built the cities in that country called Hyperea and Anthea. And Aetius the son of Anthas, succeeding his father and uncle in the kingdom, called one of these two cities Poseidonias. And when Troezen and Pittheus joined Aetius, there were three kings instead of one, and the sons of Pelops were the stronger. And this proves it. After the death of Troezen Pittheus joined together Hyperea and Anthea, and combined the inhabitants into one city, which he called Troezen from the name of his brother. And many years afterwards the descendants of Aetius, the son of Anthas, were sent on a colony from Troezen, and colonized Halicarnassus in Caria, and Myndus. And the sons of Troezen, Anaphlystus and Sphettus, migrated to Attica, and gave their names to two townships. And as regards Theseus the son of Pittheus' daughter I do not write to people who know all the history. But I must narrate thus much. When the Heraclidae returned to the Peloponnese the people of Troezen received as colonists the Dorians from Argos, having been formerly subject to the Argives. And Homer in his catalogue says that they were under the rule of Diomede. Diomede at least and Euryalus the son of Mecisteus, who were Regents for Cyanippus the son of AEgialeus, led the Argives to Troy. But Sthenelus, as I have shown before, was of more illustrious birth, being of the family of the Anaxagoridae, and the kingdom of the Argives was more his by right. Such are all the historical details about Troezen, except a list of the cities which are said to have been colonized from Troezen. I will now describe the contents of the temples and other notable things in Troezen.

In the market-place is a temple, and statues, of Artemis the Saviour. And it is said that Theseus built it and called her Saviour, when he returned from Crete after having killed Asterion the son of Minos. This seems to me to have been the most notable of all his exploits, not so much because Asterion excelled in bravery all who were killed by Theseus, but because he escaped the hidden snares of the labyrinth, and all this makes it clear that Theseus and his companions were saved by providence. In this temple are altars of the gods said to rule in the lower world: and they say that Semele was brought here from Hades by Dionysus, and that Hercules brought Cerberus here from Hades. But I do not think that Semele died at all, as she was the wife of Zeus: and as to Cerberus I shall elsewhere tell what I think.

And behind the temple there is a monument of Pittheus, and three seats are on it of white stone: and Pittheus and two others with him are said to be giving sentence on these seats. And at no great distance is a temple of the Muses, built they say by Ardalus, the son of Hephaestus: who they think discovered the use of the flute, and so they call the Muses Ardalian after him. Here they say Pittheus taught the art of language, and I have myself read a book written by Pittheus, that was given me by an Epidaurian. And not far from, the temple of the Muses is an ancient altar, erected as they say also by Ardalus. And they sacrifice on it to the Muses and Sleep, saying that Sleep is the god most friendly to the Muses. And near the theatre is a temple of Lycean Artemis, which Hippolytus built. Why the goddess was so called I could not find from the antiquarians, but it seems to me it was either because Hippolytus drove out the wolves that ravaged Troezen and the neighbourhood, or that it was a title of Artemis among the Amazons, of whom his mother was one. Or there may be some other explanation which I do not know. And the stone in front of the temple called the holy stone was they say the stone on which formerly the 9 men of Troezen cleared Orestes of the murder of his mother. And not far from the temple of Lycean Artemis are altars at no great distance from one another.

The first of them is one of Dionysus, called Saviour in accordance with some oracle, and the second is called Themidon, Pittheus dedicated it they say. And they very likely built an altar to the Sun the Liberator when they escaped the slavery of Xerxes and the Persians. And they say Pittheus built the temple of Thearian Apollo, which is the oldest of all I know. There is indeed an old temple of Athene among the Phocians in Ionia, which Harpagus the Persian burnt, old also is the temple of Pythian Apollo among the Samians, but far later are both than this one at Troezen. And the statue of the god is still to be seen, the votive offering of Auliscus, and the design of Hermon of Troezen, who also made wooden statues of the Dioscuri. And there are also in the porch in the market-place stone statues of the women and children whom the Athenians committed to the charge of the people of Troezen, when they resolved to leave Athens, and not to encounter the attack of the Mede with a land force. And they are said to have put here statues not of all those women, for they are not many here, but only of those who were especially remarkable for merit. And there is a building in front of the temple of Apollo, called the tent of Orestes. For before he was cleared of his mother's blood, none of the people of Troezen would receive him in their houses: but they put him here and gradually cleared him and fed him here, till the expiatory rites were completed. And to this day the descendants of those that cleared him feast here on appointed days. And the expiations having been buried not far from this tent, they say a laurel sprang up from them, which is still to be seen in front of the tent. And they say that Orestes among other purgations used water from Hippocrene. For the people of Troezen have a well called Hippocrene, and the tradition about it is the same as the Boeotian tradition. For they too say that water sprang up from the ground when Pegasus touched the ground with his hoof, and that Bellerophon came to Troezen to ask for AEthra as his wife from Pittheus, but it so chanced that before the marriage came off he fled from Corinth.

And there is here a statue of Hermes called Polygius, and they say Hercules offered his club to it, and the club was of wild olive, and, sprouted in the earth and grew, and is now a tree, for Hercules they say discovered the wild olive in the Saronian marsh and cut a club of it. There is also a temple of Zeus Soter, built they say by King Aetius the son of Anthas. And they call their river Chrysorrhoe , for when there was a drought in the land and no rain for nine years, and all other water they say dried up, this Chrysorrhoe continued to flow as usual.

And Hippolytus the son of Theseus has precincts and a temple in them and ancient statue. Diomede they say erected all these, and was the first to sacrifice to Hippolytus: and the people of Troezen have a priest of Hippolytus who serves for life, and they have yearly sacrifices, and the following custom. Every maiden cuts off a lock of her hair before marriage, and takes it and offers it at this temple. And they don't represent Hippolytus as having died through being torn in pieces by his horses, nor do they point out his tomb if they know it: but they try to make out that Hippolytus is called in heaven the Charioteer, and has this honour from the gods. And within his precincts is the temple of Apollo Epibaterius, the votive offering of Diomede when he escaped the storm which fell on the Greeks as they were returning from Ilium: they say also that Diomede first established the Pythian games in honour of Apollo. And as to Lamia and Auxesia the people of Troezen do not give the same account as the Epidaurians and AEginetans, but say that they were virgins who came from Crete, and in a general commotion in the city were stoned by one of the rival factions, and they have a festival to them called Stonethrowing. And in another part of the precincts is what is called Hippolytus' race-course, and overlooking it a temple of Peeping Aphrodite: where, when Hippolytus was training, Phaedra would gaze at him in her love. Here too grows the myrtle with the leaves pricked, as I described before: for when Phaedra was in despair and found no relief for her love-pains, she wreaked her agony on the leaves of the myrtle. And Phaedra's tomb is here, not very far from the monument of Hippolytus, or that myrtle tree. And there is a statue of AEsculapius by Timotheus, but the people of Troezen say it is not AEsculapius but Hippolytus. I saw also the house of Hippolytus, and in front of it is what is called the Well of Hercules, the water which Hercules discovered. And in the citadel there is a temple of Athene Sthenias, the wooden statue of the goddess is by Callon of AEgina; who was the pupil of Tectaeus and Angelion, who designed the statue of Apollo at Delos; and they were pupils of Dipoenus and Scyllis. And as you go down from thence you come to the temple of Pan the Deliverer, for he shewed dreams to the chief people of the Troezenians which brought about deliverance from the plague, which pressed so hard on the Athenians. And in the environs of Troezen you will see a temple of Isis, and above it one of Aphrodite of the Height: the temple the Halicarnassians built for Troezen their mother city; but the statue of Isis was a votive offering of the people of Troezen.

"It is all one whether you dwell at Delos or Calaurea At sacred Pytho or the wind-swept Taenarus."

There is also at Calaurea a sacred temple to Poseidon, and the priestess is a maiden till the period for marriage. And within the precincts is the tomb of Demosthenes. Fortune seems to have shown especial malignity to Demosthenes as earlier to Homer, since Homer was not only blind but overwhelmed by such poverty that he was a strolling beggar on every soil, and Demosthenes in his old age had to taste the bitterness of exile, and came to a violent end. Much has been said about Demosthenes by others and by himself, by which it is clear that he had no share in the money which Harpalus brought from Asia, but what was said afterwards I will relate. Harpalus, after having fled from Athens and crossed over with the fleet to Crete, was murdered not long afterwards by some of his attendant slaves: but some say he was treacherously murdered by the Macedonian Pausanias. And the dispenser of the money fled to Rhodes, and was arrested by Philoxenus the Macedonian, who had also demanded the extradition of Harpalus from the Athenians. And getting this lad he cross-questioned him, until he obtained full intelligence of those who had had any money from Harpalus: and when he ascertained their names he sent letters to Athens. Although in those letters he enumerated the names of those who had had any money from Harpalus, and the precise sum which each of them had, he made no mention whatever of Demosthenes, though he was most bitterly hated by Alexander, and although Philoxenus himself was privately his enemy. Demosthenes had honours paid to him in other parts of Greece also as well as by the inhabitants of Calaurea.

In the Troezenian district there is an isthmus jutting out some way into the sea, and on it has been built a small town near the sea called Methana. And there is a temple of Isis there, and a statue in the market-place of Hermes, and another of Hercules. And at the distance of about 30 stades from this small town are some warm baths. And they say that water first appeared there when Antigonus, the son of Demetrius, was King of the Macedonians, and water did not first appear, but fire bubbled up from the ground, and when this burnt itself out then water began to flow, which bubbles up even to this day warm and very salt. And if one bathes here the water is not cold near the shore, but if you go well out to sea swimming is dangerous, for there are many kinds of sea-monsters and especially sea dogs. But the most wonderful thing at Methana I will now record. The South West Wind when the vines are growing blows upon them from the Saronic Gulf, and scorches them up. And when the wind is still sweeping down on them, two men take a cock with white feathers only, and tear it in half, and run round the vines in different directions, each with half the cock, and when they come back to the place where they started, they bury it there. This is their invention and contrivance against the South West Wind. The little islands, which lie just off the coast, 9 in number, they call the islands of Pelops, and they say when it rains rain never comes on one of them. Whether this is so I do not know, but the people about Methana say so, and I have heard of people trying to avert hail by sacrifices and incantations. Methana then is an Isthmus in the Peloponnese: and inside the Troezenian Isthmus is the neighbouring town of Hermione. And the people of Hermione say that the founder of the old city was one Hermion the son of Europs. And this Europs, who was certainly the son of Phoroneus, was said by Herophanes of Troezen to be illegitimate, on the ground that the kingdom of Argos would not have come to Argus the daughter's son of Phoroneus, had Phoroneus had a legitimate son. But, even if Europs was legitimate and died before Phoroneus, I know very well that a son of his would not have been considered equal to Niobe's son, who was reckoned to be the son of Zeus. And afterwards Dorians from Argos colonized Hermione, but amicably I think, for had there been a war it would have been mentioned by the Argives.

There is also another temple: and there are statues all round it. This temple is opposite the temple of Chthonia, and is called the temple of Clymenus, to whom they sacrifice here. I don't think Clymenus is the name of an Argive that came to Hermione, but the title of a god who according to the tradition was a king in the infernal regions. Hard by is another temple and statue of Ares. On the right of the temple of Chthonia is a porch, called by the natives Echo, as a man's slightest whisper is repeated thrice. And behind the temple of Chthonia are some places which the people of Hermione call, one Clymenus' place, and another Pluto's place, and a third the Acherusian marsh. They are all fenced in with a wall of stone: and in Clymenus' place there is a hole in the ground, through which Hercules brought up Cerberus according to the tradition of the people of Hermione. And near the gate from which the road leads straight to Mases, is a temple of Ilithyia within the walls. They propitiate the goddess Ilithyia in various ways every day with sacrifices and incense, and to her are most of the votive offerings given, but her statue no one may look at except her priestesses.

About seven stades on the high road to Mases, as you turn to the left, is the road to Halice. Halice in our days is deserted, but it was formerly inhabited, and is mentioned on the pillars of the Epidaurians, which record the cures wrought by AEsculapius. I know of nothing else worthy of record, either of the place or its population. And the road that leads to it passes between Pron and another mountain that in old times was called Thornax. But because of the legendary change of Zeus into the cuckoo they say its name was changed to Coccygium . And there are temples on the tops of both these mountains, one of Zeus on the top of Coccygium, and one of Hera on the top of Pron. That at Coccygium is at the end of the mountain, and it has neither doors nor roof, nor any statue in it, and it was said to be Apollo's temple. And near it is a road to Mases as you take the turn to the right. And Mases was a town in old times, as Homer has mentioned it in his catalogue of the Argives, and the people of Hermione use it as their port now. And from Mases there is a road on the right to the promontory called Struthus, and it is about 250 stades from this promontory along the mountain passes to what is called Philanorium and to Bolei. Bolei consists of layers of unhewn stones. And another place which they call Didymi is 20 stades from Bolei. At Didymi there is a temple of Apollo, and another of Poseidon, and another of Demeter: and their statues are erect, in white stone.

As you go from thence you come to the district of the Argives formerly called Asinaea from its chief town Asine, the ruins of which are near the sea. And when the Lacedaemonians under their king Nicander, the son of Charillus, the son of Polydectes, the son of Eunomus, the son of Prytanis, the son of Eurypon, invaded Argolis with an army, the people of Asine joined them, and ravaged with them the territory of the Argives. But when the Lacedaemonian force went home again, then the Argives and their king Eratus marched against Asine. And for some time the people of Asine defended their walls, and slew several of the most valiant of the Argives and among them Lysistratus, but when their walls were carried, then they put their wives and children on shipboard and left the town, and the Argives razed it to the ground, and added it to their territory, but they left the temple of Apollo standing, and it is now to be seen, and they buried Lysistratus near it.

Now the sea at Lerna is about 40 stades from Argos. And as you go down to Lerna you first come to the river Erasinus, which flows into the Phrixus, and the Phrixus into the sea between Temenium and Lerna. And as you turn from the Erasinus about 8 stades to the left there is a temple of the Dioscuri called the Kings: and their statues are of wood just like those in the city. And as you turn to the right you cross the Erasinus, and come to the river Chimarrus. And near it is a circle of stones, and here Pluto, after the Rape of Proserpine the daughter of Demeter, descended to his supposed underground realms. Now Lerna is, as I have previously said, by the sea, and they have rites here to Demeter of Lerna. And there is a sacred grove beginning at the mountain which they call Pontinus. And this mountain Pontinus does not let the rain flow off, but absorbs it. Though the river Pontinus does indeed flow from it. And on the top of the mountain is the temple of Saitian Athene, only ruins now, and the foundations of the house of Hippomedon, who accompanied Polynices the son of OEdipus in his attempt against Thebes.

And the grove of plane-trees beginning at this mountain extends most of the way to the sea, bounded on one side by the river Pontinus, and on the other by the river Amymone, which gets its name from the daughter of Danaus. And inside the grove are statues of Demeter Prosymne and Dionysus, and the statue of Demeter is seated and not a large one. These are of stone: but in another temple there is a wooden one of Dionysus the Saviour seated; and a stone statue of Aphrodite near the sea, which they say was a votive offering of the daughters of Danaus, and Danaus himself erected the temple of Athene near the Pontinus. And they say that Philhammon was the founder of the rites at Lerna. The traditions about these mysteries are manifestly not very ancient. And what I have heard was written on a heart made of orichalcum; this Arriphon could not have got from Philhammon, for Arriphon was a native of Triconium in AEtolia, and held in most repute of all the Lycians in our time, and a clever fellow at finding out what nobody before knew, and who no doubt found this out for himself. The verses and all the prose mixed up with the verses were in Doric: but before the return of the Heraclidae to the Peloponnese the Argives used the same dialect as the Athenians. And in the days of Philhammon I do not believe that even the name of Dorians was known throughout all Greece. This proves my case.

And near the source of the Amymone grows a plane-tree, under which they say the hydra was reared. I believe that this beast was larger in size than other water-snakes, and that its poison was so venomous that Hercules dipped the points of his arrows in its gall, but I cannot help thinking it had only one head and not more. But Pisander of Camirus, that the beast might appear more formidable and so add lustre to his poem, described it as having many heads. I have seen also the well of Amphiaraus and the Alcyonian marsh, by which the Argives say Dionysus descended to Hades to fetch up Semele, for Polymnus shewed him the descent. There is indeed no end to the depth of the Alcyonian marsh, nor do I know of any man who by any device ever got to the bottom of it, since even Nero, though he got and fastened together ropes many stades long, and put a piece of lead and other apparatus for sounding at the end, never could arrive at an accurate knowledge of its depth. I have also heard that though the water of the marsh, as you would infer from looking at it, is calm and quiet, if anyone ventures to swim in it, it is sure to drag him down and suck him underneath to the bottom. The circuit of the lake is not large, only about a third of a stade, and on its banks are grass and reeds. But the nightly rites which take place near it annually I am not permitted to write for public reading.

And as you go from Lerna to Temenium--now Temenium belongs to the Argives, and gets its name from Temenus the son of Aristomachus: for he occupied and fortified the place, when he fought with the Dorians against Tisamenus and the Achaeans from this base--the river Phrixus has its outlet into the sea, and there is a temple of Poseidon at Temenium and another of Aphrodite, and there is a monument of Temenus which is honoured by the Dorians at Argos. And about 50 stades I should say from Temenium is Nauplia, deserted in our day, it was founded by Nauplius who is reputed to have been the son of Poseidon and Amymone. And there are still some remains of walls at Nauplia, and a temple of Poseidon and a harbour, and a well called Canathus: in which the Argives say Hera bathes every year and becomes a virgin again. This is a tradition in connection with the secret rites which they perform to Hera. And the traditions of the people of Nauplia about the ass, that by gnawing twigs off the vine it makes the produce more abundant, , I pass over deeming them unworthy of mention. There is also another road going from Lerna by the seaside to a place which they call Genesium: and near the sea close to Genesium there is a small temple of Poseidon. And close to this is another place called Landing-place: for according to tradition this was the first place in Argolis where Danaus and his sons landed. And as you go on from thence is a place called Anigraea, on a road narrow and difficult of access. It is on the left hand and extends to the sea, and is a good soil for trees especially olive trees. And as you go up to the mainland there is a place called Thyrea, where 300 picked men of the Argives fought with 300 picked men of the Lacedaemonians for the possession of the land. And as they were all killed except one Spartan and two Argives, the tombs of those that fell in the action were piled up here, but the Lacedaemonians afterwards got a firm footing at the place, as they fought in full force with the Argives, and enjoyed it themselves for a time, and afterwards gave it to the AEginetans who had been driven out of AEgina by the Athenians. And in my day the Argives inhabited the district of Thyrea, and they say that they recovered it justly by conquest. Next to that burial-ground you come to Athene, where those AEginetans dwelt, and another village Neris, and a third Eua, the largest of the three villages, and Polemocrates has a temple in it. He was the son of Machaon, and brother of Alexanor, and he heals the people here, and has divine honours from the inhabitants. And beyond these villages extends Mount Parnon, which is the boundary between the Lacedaemonians and Argives and people of Tegea. And some stone Hermae stand as border stones to mark the boundaries, and the place gets its name from them. And there is a river called Tanaus, the only river which flows from Mount Parnon. It flows through Argive territory into the Thyreatic gulf.

FOOTNOTES:

Iliad xvi. 490, 491, cf. also Hes. Th. 444.

Odyss., xi. 261-65.

Iliad, ii. 117.

Iliad, ii. 571.

Hymn to Demeter, 474-476.

ii. 120.

Hdt. vi. 77.

Il. xxiv. 609.

See Il. v. 127, 128.

Il. ix. 457.

Iliad, ii. 571.

Iliad, iv. 193, 194. Is Pausanias nodding here?

And after the death of Alcamenes Polydorus his son succeeded to the kingdom, and the Lacedaemonians sent a colony into Italy to Croton, and to the Locrians at the promontory Zephyrium: and the war that was called the war with Messene was at its height when Polydorus was king. The Lacedaemonians and Messenians give different reasons for this war. Their different accounts, and the progress of the war, will be set forth by me in their turn: but thus much will I record at present that Theopompus the son of Nicander had the greatest hand in the first war with the Messenians, being the king of the other house. And after the end of the war, when Messenia was already conquered by the Lacedaemonians, and Polydorus was in good repute at Sparta, and popular with the Lacedaemonians and especially with the populace, for he exhibited no violence either in word or deed to anyone, and in legal cases tempered justice with mercy, when in short he had a brilliant fame throughout all Greece, he was murdered by Polemarchus a man of no mean family in Lacedaemon, but hotheaded, as indeed he shewed by this murder. And after his death Polydorus received many notable honours from the Lacedaemonians. Polemarchus also had a monument at Sparta, whether being judged to have been a good man previously, or that his relatives buried him privately. During the reign of Eurycrates the son of Polydorus the Messenians patiently endured the Lacedaemonian yoke, nor was any revolution attempted by the Argive people, but in the days of Anaxander the son of Eurycrates--for fate was already driving the Messenians out of all the Peloponnese--the Messenians revolted from the Lacedaemonians, and fought against them for some time, but were eventually conquered, and evacuated the Peloponnese upon conditions of war. And the remnant of them became slaves on Lacedaemonian soil, except those who inhabited the maritime towns. All the circumstances of this war and revolt of the Messenians I have no need to recount in detail in the present part of my history. And Anaxander had a son Eurycrates, and this second Eurycrates a son Leo. During their reigns the Lacedaemonians met with the greatest reverses in fighting against the people of Tegea. And in the reign of Anaxandrides the son of Leo they overcame the people of Tegea, and in the following way. A Lacedaemonian by name Lichas came to Tegea at a time when Lacedaemon and Tegea were at peace together. And on Lichas' arrival they made a search for the bones of Orestes, and the Spartans sought for them in accordance with an oracle. And Lichas discovered that they were lying in the shop of a blacksmith, and he discovered it in this way: all that he saw in the blacksmith's shop he compared with the oracle at Delphi, thus he compared the blacksmith's bellows to the winds, because they produce a strong wind, the hammer was the blow, that which resists the blow was the anvil, and that which was a source of woe to man he naturally referred to iron, for people already began to use iron in battle, for the god would have spoken of brass as a source of woe to man in the days of the heroes. And just as this oracle was given to the Lacedaemonians about the bones of Orestes, so afterwards the Athenians were similarly instructed by the oracle to bring Theseus' bones to Athens from Scyrus, for otherwise Scyrus could not be taken. And Cimon the son of Miltiades discovered the bones of Theseus, he too by ingenuity, and not long after he took Scyrus. That in the days of the heroes all arms alike were brass is borne witness to by Homer in the lines which refer to the axe of Pisander and the arrow of Meriones. And I have further confirmation of what I assert in the spear of Achilles which is stored up in the temple of Athene at Phaselis, and the sword of Memnon in the temple of AEsculapius at Nicomedia, the former has its tip and handle of brass, and, the latter is of brass throughout. This we know to be the case. And Anaxandrides the son of Leo was the only Lacedaemonian that had two wives together and two households. For his first wife, excellent in other respects, had no children, and when the ephors bade him divorce her, he would not consent to this altogether, but only so far as to take a second wife as well. And the second wife bare a son Cleomenes, and the first wife, though so long barren, after the birth of Cleomenes bare Dorieus, and Leonidas, and Cleombrotus. And after the death of Anaxandrides, the Lacedaemonians though they thought Dorieus the better man both in council and war, reluctantly rejected him, and gave the kingdom to Cleomenes according to their law of primogeniture.

Plistarchus the son of Leonidas died soon after succeeding to the kingdom, and Plistoanax the son of Pausanias, the hero of Plataea, succeeded him. And Plistoanax was succeeded by his son Pausanias. This is that Pausanias who led an army into Attica, ostensibly against Thrasybulus and the Athenians, but really to establish the dominion of the Thirty Tyrants who had been set over Athens by Lysander. And he conquered in an engagement the Athenians who guarded the Piraeus, but directly after the battle he took his army off home again, not to bring upon Sparta the most shameful disgrace of establishing the power of unholy men. And when he returned from Athens with nothing to show for his battle, his enemies brought him to trial. Now a king of the Lacedaemonians is tried by a court composed of twenty-eight Seniors, and the Ephors, and the King of the other family. Fourteen of the Seniors and Agis, the King of the other family, condemned Pausanias, the rest of the Court acquitted him. And no long time after the Lacedaemonians gathering together an army against Thebes, the reason for which war we shall relate in our account about Agesilaus, Lysander marched into Phocis, and, having mustered the Phocians in full force, lost no time in advancing into Boeotia, and making an attack upon the fortified town Haliartus, which would not revolt from Thebes. Some Thebans however and Athenians had secretly entered the town, and they making a sally and drawing up in battle array, Lysander and several of the Lacedaemonians fell. And Pausanias, who had been collecting forces from Tegea and the rest of Arcadia, came too late to take part in the fight, and when he got to Boeotia and heard of the death of Lysander and the defeat of his army, he nevertheless marched his army to Thebes, intending to renew the fight there. But when he got there he found the Thebans drawn up in battle array against him, and it was also reported that Thrasybulus was coming up with an Athenian force; accordingly, fearing to be taken between two fires, he made a treaty with the Thebans, and buried those who had fallen in the sally from Haliartus. This conduct of his did not please the Lacedaemonians, but I praise his determination for the following reason. Well knowing that reverses always found the Lacedaemonians surrounded by a swarm of enemies, what happened after Thermopylae and in the island of Sphacteria made him afraid of causing a third disaster. But as the citizens accused him of slowness in getting to Boeotia he did not care to stand a second trial, but the people of Tegea received him as a suppliant at the temple of Alean Athene. This temple was from time immemorial venerated throughout the Peloponnese, and afforded safety to all suppliants, as was shewn by the Lacedaemonians to Pausanias, and earlier still to Leotychides, and by the Argives to Chrysis, who all took sanctuary here, and were not demanded up. And after the voluntary exile of Pausanias, his sons Agesipolis and Cleombrotus being quite young, Aristodemus the next of kin was appointed Regent: and the success of the Lacedaemonians at Corinth was owing to his generalship. And when Agesipolis came of age and took over the kingdom, his first war was against the Argives. And as he was leading his army from Tegea into Argolis, the Argives sent an envoy to negotiate peace with him on the old conditions established among all Dorians. But he not only declined these proposals, but advanced with his army and ravaged Argolis. And there was an earthquake, but not even then would Agesipolis draw off his forces, though these tokens of Poseidon's displeasure frightened the Lacedaemonians especially, And Agesipolis was now encamped under the walls of Argos, and the earthquakes ceased not, and some of the soldiers died struck by lightning, and others were dismayed by the thunder. So at last he returned from Argolis sorely against his will, and led an expedition against the Olynthians, and having been successful in battle, and taken most of the other cities in Chalcidice, and hoping to take Olynthus also, he was carried off by a sudden disease and died.

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