- Source
- Pausanias. Pausaniae Graeciae descriptio, Volumes 1-3. Spiro, Friedrich, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1903.
- 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:tlg0525.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.42.1-8.42.6
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-31
The text recounts the legend of the cave of "Black Demeter" on Mount Elaeum near Phigalia and its former unusual wooden statue, quoting the Pythian oracle delivered in response to a famine after the statue was destroyed.
τὸ δὲ ἕτερον τῶν ὀρῶν τὸ Ἐλάιον ἀπωτέρω μὲν Φιγαλίας ὅσον τε σταδίοις τριάκοντά ἐστι, Δήμητρος δὲ ἄντρον αὐτόθι ἱερὸν ἐπίκλησιν Μελαίνης. ὅσα μὲν δὴ οἱ ἐν Θελπούσῃ λέγουσιν ἐς μῖξιν τὴν Ποσειδῶνός τε καὶ Δήμητρος, κατὰ ταὐτά σφισιν οἱ Φιγαλεῖς νομίζουσι, τεχθῆναι δὲ ὑπὸ τῆς Δήμητρος οἱ Φιγαλεῖς φασιν οὐχ ἵππον ἀλλὰ τὴν Δέσποιναν1 ἐπονομαζομένην ὑπὸ Ἀρκάδων·
The other of the mountains, Elaeum, is about thirty stades distant from Phigalia, and there is there a holy cave of Demeter surnamed Black. As to all that the people of Thelpusa say concerning the union of Poseidon and Demeter, the Phigalians agree with them in their beliefs, but the Phigalians say that there was born of Demeter not a horse, but the one who is named Despoina by the Arcadians.
τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ τούτου λέγουσι θυμῷ τε ἅμα ἐς τὸν Ποσειδῶνα αὐτὴν καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς Περσεφόνης τῇ ἁρπαγῇ πένθει χρωμένην μέλαιναν ἐσθῆτα ἐνδῦναι καὶ ἐς τὸ σπήλαιον τοῦτο ἐλθοῦσαν ἐπὶ χρόνον ἀπεῖναι πολύν.2 ὡς δὲ ἐφθείρετο μὲν πάντα ὅσα ἡ γῆ τρέφει, τὸ δὲ ἀνθρώπων γένος καὶ ἐς πλέον ἀπώλλυτο ὑπὸ τοῦ λιμοῦ, θεῶν μὲν ἄλλων ἠπίστατο ἄρα οὐδεὶς ἔνθα ἀπεκέκρυπτο ἡ Δημήτηρ, τὸν δὲ Πᾶνα ἐπιέναι μὲν τὴν Ἀρκαδίαν καὶ ἄλλοτε αὐτὸν ἐν ἄλλῳ θηρεύειν τῶν ὀρῶν, ἀφικόμενον δὲ καὶ πρὸς τὸ Ἐλάιον κατοπτεῦσαι τὴν Δήμητρα σχήματός τε ὡς εἶχε καὶ ἐσθῆτα ἐνεδέδυτο ποίαν·3 πυθέσθαι δὴ τὸν Δία ταῦτα παρὰ τοῦ Πανὸς καὶ οὕτως ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ πεμφθῆναι τὰς Μοίρας παρὰ τὴν Δήμητρα, τὴν δὲ πεισθῆναί τε ταῖς Μοίραις καὶ ἀποθέσθαι μὲν τὴν ὀργήν, ὑφεῖναι δὲ καὶ τῆς λύπης. σφᾶς δὲ ἀντὶ τούτων φασὶν οἱ Φιγαλεῖς τό τε σπήλαιον νομίσαι τοῦτο ἱερὸν Δήμητρος καὶ ἐς αὐτὸ ἄγαλμα ἀναθεῖναι ξύλου.
And after this, they say that because of her anger against Poseidon and her grief at the rape of Persephone, she put on a black garment and, coming to this cave, remained away for a long time. While all things that the earth nurtures were wasting away, and the race of men was perishing still more from the famine, none of the other gods, indeed, knew where Demeter had hidden herself, but Pan, traversing Arcadia and hunting at various times on various mountains, came also to Elaeum and caught sight of Demeter, in what shape she was and what kind of garment she had put on. Zeus indeed learned this from Pan, and so the Fates were sent by him to Demeter; and she was persuaded by the Fates and laid aside her anger, and also abated her grief. In return for these things, the Phigalians say that they established this cave as holy to Demeter and dedicated a wooden image in it.
πεποιῆσθαι δὲ οὕτω σφίσι τὸ ἄγαλμα· καθέζεσθαι μὲν ἐπὶ πέτρᾳ, γυναικὶ δὲ ἐοικέναι τἄλλα πλὴν κεφαλήν· κεφαλὴν δὲ καὶ κόμην εἶχεν ἵππου, καὶ δρακόντων τε καὶ ἄλλων θηρίων εἰκόνες προσεπεφύκεσαν τῇ κεφαλῇ· χιτῶνα δὲ ἐνεδέδυτο καὶ ἐς ἄκρους τοὺς πόδας· δελφὶς δὲ ἐπὶ τῆς χειρὸς ἦν αὐτῇ, περιστερὰ δὲ ἡ ὄρνις ἐπὶ τῇ ἑτέρᾳ. ἐφʼ ὅτῳ μὲν δὴ τὸ ξόανον ἐποιήσαντο οὕτως, ἀνδρὶ οὐκ ἀσυνέτῳ γνώμην ἀγαθῷ δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐς μνήμην4 δῆλά ἐστι· Μέλαιναν δὲ ἐπονομάσαι φασὶν αὐτήν, ὅτι καὶ ἡ θεὸς μέλαιναν τὴν ἐσθῆτα εἶχε.
And they say the image was made for them in this way: it sat upon a rock, and in other respects resembled a woman except for the head; and it had the head and mane of a horse, and figures of dragons and other wild beasts grew out of its head; and she was dressed in a tunic that reached to the tips of her feet; and a dolphin was on her hand, and a dove, the bird, on the other. For what reason they made the wooden image in this way is clear to a man not lacking in understanding and good in matters of memory; and they say they surnamed her Black because the goddess also had a black garment.
τοῦτο μὲν δὴ τὸ ξόανον οὔτε ὅτου ποίημα ἦν οὔτε ἡ φλὸξ τρόπον ὅντινα ἐπέλαβεν αὐτό, μνημονεύουσιν· ἀφανισθέντος δὲ τοῦ ἀρχαίου Φιγαλεῖς οὔτε ἄγαλμα ἄλλο ἀπεδίδοσαν τῇ θεῷ καὶ ὁπόσα ἐς ἑορτὰς καὶ θυσίας τὰ πολλὰ δὴ παρῶπτό σφισιν, ἐς ὃ ἡ ἀκαρπία ἐπιλαμβάνει τὴν γῆν· καὶ ἱκετεύσασιν αὐτοῖς χρᾷ τάδε ἡ Πυθία·
This wooden image, indeed, they do not remember whose work it was, nor in what manner the flame overtook it; but after the ancient one had disappeared, the Phigalians did not dedicate any other image to the goddess, and most of what concerned the festivals and sacrifices was neglected by them, until barrenness overtook the land; and when they made supplication, the Pythean priestess gave them this oracle:
" Ἀρκάδες Ἀζᾶνες βαλανηφάγοι, οἳ Φιγάλειαν νάσσασθʼ, ἱππολεχοῦς Δῃοῦς κρυπτήριον ἄντρον, ἥκετε πευσόμενοι λιμοῦ λύσιν ἀλγινόεντος, μοῦνοι δὶς νομάδες, μοῦνοι πάλιν ἀγριοδαῖται. Δῃὼ μέν σε ἔπαυσε νομῆς,5 Δῃὼ δὲ νομῆας ἐκ δησισταχύων καὶ ἀναστοφάγων πάλι θῆκε, νοσφισθεῖσα γέρα προτέρων τιμάς τε παλαιάς. καί σʼ ἀλληλοφάγον θήσει τάχα καὶ τεκνοδαίτην, εἰ μὴ πανδήμοις λοιβαῖς χόλον ἱλάσσεσθε σήραγγός τε μυχὸν θείαις κοσμήσετε τιμαῖς."
” Arcadians of Azan, acorn-eaters, who inhabit Phigalia, the secret cave of Deo who mated with a horse, you have come to inquire about the deliverance from painful famine, you who alone are twice nomads, who alone again feed on wild food. Deo indeed has stopped you from pasture, and Deo has turned your herdsmen back from binding corn-ears and eating cooked food, because she was deprived of her former gifts and ancient honors. And she will soon make you eat one another and feed on your children, unless with public libations you appease her anger and adorn the recess of the cavern with divine honors.”
- 8.42.1τεχθῆναι δὲ ὑπὸ τῆς Δήμητρος οἱ Φιγαλεῖς φασιν οὐχ ἵππον ἀλλὰ τὴν Δέσποιναν
An accusative with infinitive construction where the passive infinitive τεχθῆναι (with its subject τὴν Δέσποιναν) depends on φασιν. It contrasts the Phigalian version of the myth (that Demeter gave birth to the goddess Despoina) with the Thelpusian myth (where Demeter gave birth to the horse Areion).
- 8.42.2τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ τούτου λέγουσι θυμῷ τε ἅμα ἐς τὸν Ποσειδῶνα αὐτὴν καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς Περσεφόνης τῇ ἁρπαγῇ πένθει χρωμένην μέλαιναν ἐσθῆτα ἐνδῦναι καὶ ἐς τὸ σπήλαιον τοῦτο ἐλθοῦσαν ἐπὶ χρόνον ἀπεῖναι πολύν.
A long accusative with infinitive clause introduced by λέγουσι. The accusative pronoun αὐτήν serves as the subject, with which the participles χρωμένην and ἐλθοῦσαν agree. The infinitives ἐνδῦναι and ἀπεῖναι are connected by καί, describing the sequence of Demeter's actions.
- 8.42.3σχήματός τε ὡς εἶχε καὶ ἐσθῆτα ἐνεδέδυτο ποίαν
A construction containing indirect questions. σχήματος is a proleptic genitive (anticipating the subject of the clause ὡς εἶχε), while the second part ἐσθῆτα ... ποίαν is an indirect question using the interrogative pronoun.
- 8.42.4ἀνδρὶ οὐκ ἀσυνέτῳ γνώμην ἀγαθῷ δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐς μνήμην
The dative noun ἀνδρί (depending on δῆλά ἐστι, meaning "clear to a man") is modified by οὐκ ἀσυνέτῳ and ἀγαθῷ. Both γνώμην and τὰ ἐς μνήμην are accusatives of respect (or specification), meaning "in respect to understanding" and "in respect to memory."
- 8.42.6Δῃὼ μέν σε ἔπαυσε νομῆς
A genitive of separation. The verb ἔπαυσε (stopped, deprived) takes the accusative σε as its object, and the source of deprivation, "pasture" or "food," is expressed by the genitive νομῆς.