- 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-grc2:9.90.1-9.90.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
Introducing that the battle of Mycale occurred on the same day as the battle of Plataea, the text describes how messengers from Samos secretly visited the Greek generals at Delos to request aid for their revolt against the Persians.
τῆς δὲ αὐτῆς ἡμέρης τῆς περ ἐν Πλαταιῇσι τὸ τρῶμα ἐγένετο, συνεκύρησε γενέσθαι1 καὶ ἐν Μυκάλῃ τῆς Ἰωνίης. ἐπεὶ γὰρ δὴ ἐν τῇ Δήλῳ κατέατο οἱ Ἕλληνες οἱ ἐν τῇσι νηυσὶ ἅμα Λευτυχίδῃ τῷ Λακεδαιμονίῳ ἀπικόμενοι, ἦλθόν σφι ἄγγελοι ἀπὸ Σάμου Λάμπων τε Θρασυκλέος καὶ Ἀθηναγόρης Ἀρχεστρατίδεω καὶ Ἡγησίστρατος Ἀρισταγόρεω, πεμφθέντες ὑπὸ Σαμίων λάθρῃ τῶν τε Περσέων2 καὶ τοῦ τυράννου Θεομήστορος τοῦ Ἀνδροδάμαντος, τὸν κατέστησαν Σάμου τύραννον οἱ Πέρσαι.
On the very same day on which the defeat occurred at Plataea, it happened by coincidence that a battle also took place at Mycale in Ionia. For while the Greeks on the ships, having arrived together with Leutychides the Lacedaemonian, were stationed at Delos, there came to them messengers from Samos: Lampon son of Thrasycles, Athenagoras son of Archestratides, and Hegesistratus son of Aristagoras, who had been sent by the Samians secretly from the Persians and the tyrant Theomestor, son of Androdamas, whom the Persians had established as tyrant of Samos.
ἐπελθόντων δὲ σφέων ἐπὶ τοὺς στρατηγοὺς ἔλεγε Ἡγησίστρατος πολλὰ καὶ παντοῖα, ὡς ἢν μοῦνον ἴδωνται αὐτοὺς οἱ Ἴωνες ἀποστήσονται ἀπὸ Περσέων, καὶ ὡς οἱ βάρβαροι οὐκ ὑπομενέουσι· ἢν δὲ καὶ ἂρα ὑπομείνωσι, οὐκ ἑτέρην ἄγρην τοιαύτην εὑρεῖν ἂν αὐτούς·3 θεούς τε κοινοὺς ἀνακαλέων προέτραπε αὐτοὺς ῥύσασθαι ἄνδρας Ἕλληνας ἐκ δουλοσύνης καὶ ἀπαμῦναι τὸν βάρβαρον·
When they had come before the generals, Hegesistratus spoke at length and in various ways, saying that if only the Ionians saw them, they would revolt from the Persians, and that the barbarians would not stand their ground; and even if they should indeed stand, the Greeks would never find another such prize. Calling upon the gods common to them all, he urged them to deliver Greek men from slavery and to ward off the barbarian.
εὐπετές τε αὐτοῖσι ἔφη ταῦτα γίνεσθαι· τάς τε γὰρ νέας αὐτῶν κακῶς πλέειν καὶ οὐκ ἀξιομάχους κείνοισι εἶναι. αὐτοί τε, εἴ τι ὑποπτεύουσι μὴ δόλῳ αὐτοὺς προάγοιεν,4 ἕτοιμοι εἶναι5 ἐν τῇσι νηυσὶ τῇσι ἐκείνων ἀγόμενοι ὅμηροι εἶναι.
And he said that this would be easy for them to achieve; for the enemy’s ships sailed poorly and were no match for them. Furthermore, if they suspected at all that the messengers were leading them on by treachery, they themselves were ready to be taken as hostages on board the Greeks’ ships.
- 9.90.1συνεκύρησε γενέσθαι
An impersonal construction where the verb συνεκύρησε (from συγκυρέω, 'to happen at the same time') is followed by the infinitive γενέσθαι, meaning 'it happened by coincidence that...'
- 9.90.1λάθρῃ τῶν τε Περσέων
The adverb λάθρῃ ('secretly') acts prepositionally, governing the genitive case (τῶν τε Περσέων...).
- 9.90.2οὐκ ἑτέρην ἄγρην τοιαύτην εὑρεῖν ἂν αὐτούς
An accusative and infinitive construction in indirect speech. The phrase εὑρεῖν ἂν corresponds to ἂν εὕροιεν (potential optative) in direct speech. The subject accusative αὐτούς refers to the Greeks, not the messengers themselves.
- 9.90.3μὴ δόλῳ αὐτοὺς προάγοιεν
A μὴ-clause dependent on the verb of suspecting (ὑποπτεύουσι). The optative προάγοιεν represents a shift from the indicative of direct speech (μὴ ... προάγομεν, 'lest we are leading you on') in oblique context.
- 9.90.3ἕτοιμοι εἶναι
An example of a nominative with the infinitive εἶναι (depending on ἔφη), used because the subject of the infinitive is the same as the speaker (the messengers themselves).