- Source
- Herodotus. Godley, Alfred Denis, editor. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann, Ltd., 1920-1925 (printing).
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:9.55.1-9.55.2
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-09
When the Athenian messenger arrived, the Spartan leaders were in a heated altercation over Amompharetus' refusal to retreat. Amompharetus cast his 'vote' with a stone to remain, while Pausanias told the messenger of their situation and requested the Athenians to join them and coordinate their retreat.
ὡς δὲ ἀπίκετο ὁ κῆρυξ ἐς τοὺς Λακεδαιμονίους, ὥρα τε σφέας κατὰ χώρην τεταγμένους καὶ ἐς νείκεα ἀπιγμένους αὐτῶν1 τοὺς πρώτους. ὡς γὰρ δὴ παρηγορέοντο τὸν Ἀμομφάρετον ὅ τε Εὐρυάναξ καὶ ὁ Παυσανίης μὴ κινδυνεύειν μένοντας μούνους Λακεδαιμονίων, οὔ κως ἔπειθον, ἐς ὃ ἐς νείκεά τε συμπεσόντες ἀπίκατο2 καὶ ὁ κῆρυξ τῶν Ἀθηναίων παρίστατό σφι ἀπιγμένος.
When the messenger arrived among the Lacedaemonians, he saw them remaining stationed in their place, and the chief men among them arrived at an altercation. For indeed, while Euryanax and Pausanias were trying to persuade Amompharetus not to run risks by remaining behind alone of the Lacedaemonians, they could by no means persuade him, until they had fallen into an altercation, and the messenger of the Athenians, having arrived, stood by them.
νεικέων3 δὲ ὁ Ἀμομφάρετος λαμβάνει πέτρον ἀμφοτέρῃσι τῇσι χερσὶ καὶ τιθεὶς πρὸ ποδῶν τῶν Παυσανίεω ταύτῃ τῇ ψήφῳ ψηφίζεσθαι ἔφη μὴ φεύγειν τοὺς ξείνους, λέγων τοὺς βαρβάρους. ὁ δὲ μαινόμενον καὶ οὐ φρενήρεα καλέων ἐκεῖνον, πρὸς τε τὸν Ἀθηναῖον κήρυκα ἐπειρωτῶντα τὰ ἐντεταλμένα λέγειν ὁ Παυσανίης ἐκέλευε τὰ παρεόντα σφι πρήγματα,4 ἐχρήιζέ τε τῶν Ἀθηναίων προσχωρῆσαί τε πρὸς ἑωυτοὺς καὶ ποιέειν περὶ τῆς ἀπόδου τά περ ἂν καὶ σφεῖς.5
During the altercation, Amompharetus took up a stone with both his hands and, placing it before the feet of Pausanias, said that with this voting-pebble he was casting his vote not to flee from the strangers, meaning the barbarians. But Pausanias, calling him mad and not in his right mind, ordered the Athenian messenger, who was asking about the instructions given to him, to report their present situation, and requested the Athenians to move toward them and to do concerning their retreat whatever they themselves should also do.
- 9.55.1τοὺς πρώτους αὐτῶν
The accusative phrase serving as the object of the verb ὥρα (imperfect active 3rd singular of ὁράω). It refers to the 'first/chief men among them,' specifically the commanders like Pausanias and Euryanax, and is modified by the participle ἀπιγμένους.
- 9.55.1ἀπίκατο
The Ionic 3rd person plural pluperfect form of the verb ἀφικνέομαι (corresponding to Attic ἀφιγμένοι ἦσαν). It denotes that they 'had arrived' or 'had fallen' into an altercation.
- 9.55.2νεικέων
Genitive plural of the noun νεῖκος (altercation, strife). While it could grammatically be interpreted as the active present participle of the verb νεικέω (in Ionic contracted form), it is more naturally understood as the noun genitive, meaning 'during their altercation,' since Amompharetus was not the sole person arguing.
- 9.55.2λέγειν... ἐκέλευε τὰ παρεόντα σφι πρήγματα
The subject of the infinitive λέγειν is the messenger mentioned in the prepositional phrase πρὸς τὸν Ἀθηναῖον κήρυκα. Pausanias orders the messenger to report 'their present situation' back to the Athenians.
- 9.55.2τά περ ἂν καὶ σφεῖς
The relative phrase τά περ (neuter plural accusative) is accompanied by ἄν with a verb (likely ποιέωσι) omitted. It means 'whatever they themselves (the Spartans) should also do,' urging the Athenians to coordinate their retreat accordingly.