- 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-grc2:9.78.1-9.78.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
Lampon of Aegina approaches Pausanias with an impious proposal, suggesting that he impale the body of Mardonius in retaliation for Mardonius and Xerxes' defilement of Leonidas' body at Thermopylae.
ἐν δὲ Πλαταιῇσι ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ τῶν Αἰγινητέων ἦν Λάμπων Πυθέω, Αἰγινητέων ἐὼν τὰ πρῶτα·1 ὃς ἀνοσιώτατον ἔχων λόγον ἵετο πρὸς Παυσανίην, ἀπικόμενος δὲ σπουδῇ ἔλεγε τάδε.
In the camp at Plataea was Lampon, son of Pytheas, who was among the leading men of the Aeginetans. Having a most impious proposal, he hastened to Pausanias, and upon his arrival, spoke to him in haste as follows:
ὦ παῖ Κλεομβρότου, ἔργον ἔργασταί τοι ὑπερφυὲς μέγαθός τε καὶ κάλλος, καί τοι θεὸς παρέδωκε ῥυσάμενον2 τὴν Ἑλλάδα κλέος καταθέσθαι μέγιστον Ἑλλήνων τῶν ἡμεῖς ἴδμεν. σὺ δὲ καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ τὰ ἐπὶ τούτοισι ποίησον, ὅκως λόγος τε σὲ ἔχῃ ἔτι μέζων καί τις ὕστερον φυλάσσηται τῶν βαρβάρων μὴ ὑπάρχειν3 ἔργα ἀτάσθαλα ποιέων ἐς τοὺς Ἕλληνας.
”O son of Cleombrotus, a deed of supernatural magnitude and beauty has been performed by you, and God has granted you, by rescuing Greece, to lay up the greatest glory of any Greek whom we know. Now do you also perform what remains after this, so that your fame may be even greater, and that in future any of the barbarians may beware of being the first to commit outrageous deeds against the Greeks.
Λεωνίδεω γὰρ ἀποθανόντος ἐν Θερμοπύλῃσι Μαρδόνιός τε καὶ Ξέρξης ἀποταμόντες τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀνεσταύρωσαν· τῷ4 σὺ τὴν ὁμοίην ἀποδιδοὺς ἔπαινον ἕξεις πρῶτα μὲν ὑπὸ πάντων Σπαρτιητέων, αὖτις δὲ καὶ πρὸς τῶν ἄλλων Ἑλλήνων· Μαρδόνιον γὰρ ἀνασκολοπίσας τετιμωρήσεαι ἐς πάτρων τὸν σὸν Λεωνίδην.
For when Leonidas died at Thermopylae, Mardonius and Xerxes cut off his head and impaled it. By rendering the like to him, you will have praise first from all the Spartans, and afterwards also from the other Greeks; for by impaling Mardonius, you will avenge your uncle Leonidas.”
- 9.78.1Αἰγινητέων ἐὼν τὰ πρῶτα
The neuter plural accusative τὰ πρῶτα ('the first things') is used adverbially or as a predicate accusative, meaning 'being among the leading or most prominent men' of the Aeginetans.
- 9.78.2ῥυσάμενον
Although the dative pronoun τοι is present in the main clause, the masculine singular accusative participle ῥυσάμενον agrees with the unexpressed accusative subject (σέ) of the infinitive καταθέσθαι, which is the standard construction for infinitives.
- 9.78.2μὴ ὑπάρχειν
A negative infinitive clause dependent on the verb of guarding/fearing φυλάσσηται ('beware lest they...'). The verb ὑπάρχω here carries the sense of 'to make a beginning of' or 'to be the first to commit' an action.
- 9.78.3τῷ
A dative demonstrative pronoun referring to Mardonius (who was mentioned in the previous clause and is the immediate target of retribution, Xerxes having retreated). It functions as the indirect object of the participle ἀποδιδοὺς, meaning 'by rendering the like to him'.