- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- 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:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.47.1-1.47.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
Describes how Hannibal the Rhodian repeatedly breached the Roman naval blockade using his precise geographical knowledge, and how the Romans, to prevent this, attempted to block the harbor, captured a fast Carthaginian ship, and finally used it to capture him.
καταπληττόμενος1 τῷ παραβόλῳ. μέγιστα δὲ συνεβάλλετο πρὸς τὴν τόλμαν αὐτοῦ τὸ διὰ τῶν προβραχέων ἐκ τῆς ἐμπειρίας ἀκριβῶς σεσημειῶσθαι τὸν εἴσπλουν·2
striking them with terror by his audacity. But what contributed most to his daring was that he had accurately marked out the entrance through the shallows from his experience;
ὑπεράρας γὰρ καὶ φαινόμενος ἔπειτʼ ἂν ἀπὸ τῶν κατὰ τὴν Ἰταλίαν μερῶν ἐλάμβανε3 τὸν ἐπὶ τῆς θαλάττης πύργον κατὰ πρῶρραν οὕτως ὥστε τοῖς πρὸς τὴν Λιβύην τετραμμένοις πύργοις τῆς πόλεως ἐπιπροσθεῖν ἅπασι· διʼ οὗ τρόπου μόνως ἐστὶ δυνατὸν ἐξ οὐρίας τοῦ κατὰ τὸν εἴσπλουν στόματος εὐστοχεῖν.
for having stood out to sea and appearing then from the direction of Italy, he would keep the tower on the sea dead ahead in such a way that it would intercept the view of all the city towers that faced toward Libya; in which way alone it is possible to hit the mouth of the entrance with a following wind.
τῇ δὲ τοῦ Ῥοδίου τόλμῃ πιστεύσαντες καὶ πλείους ἀπεθάρρησαν τῶν εἰδότων τοὺς τόπους τὸ παραπλήσιον ποιεῖν· ἐξ ὧν οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι δυσχρηστούμενοι τῷ συμβαίνοντι χωννύειν τὸ στόμα τοῦ λιμένος ἐπεχείρησαν.
Confiding in the daring of the Rhodian, many others of those who knew the localities also took courage to do the same; wherefore the Romans, being embarrassed by what was happening, attempted to block up the mouth of the harbor.
κατὰ μὲν οὖν τὸ πλεῖστον μέρος τῆς ἐπιβολῆς οὐδὲν ἤνυον διὰ τὸ βάθος τῆς θαλάττης καὶ διὰ τὸ μηθὲν δύνασθαι τῶν ἐμβαλλομένων στῆναι μηδὲ συμμεῖναι τὸ παράπαν, ἀλλʼ ὑπό τε τοῦ κλύδωνος καὶ τῆς τοῦ ῥοῦ βίας τὸ ῥιπτούμενον εὐθέως ἐν τῇ καταφορᾷ παρωθεῖσθαι καὶ διασκορπίζεσθαι,4 κατὰ δέ τινα τόπον ἔχοντα βράχεα συνέστη χῶμα μετὰ πολλῆς ταλαιπωρίας, ἐφʼ ᾧ τετρήρης ἐκτρέχουσα νυκτὸς ἐκάθισε καὶ τοῖς πολεμίοις ὑποχείριος ἐγένετο, διαφέρουσα τῇ κατασκευῇ τῆς ναυπηγίας.
In the greater part of the undertaking, therefore, they achieved nothing because of the depth of the sea, and because nothing of what was thrown in could stand or hold together at all, but what was thrown was immediately, in its descent, pushed aside and scattered by the waves and the violence of the current; but at a certain spot where there were shallows, a mole was constructed with great toil, upon which a quadrireme, running out at night, ran aground and fell into the hands of the enemy, being of superior shipbuilding construction.
ἧς οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι κρατήσαντες καὶ πληρώματι καταρτίσαντες ἐπιλέκτῳ πάντας τοὺς εἰσπλέοντας, μάλιστα δὲ τὸν Ῥόδιον, ἐπετήρουν.
Having captured this, and having equipped it with a select crew, the Romans kept watch on all those who sailed in, and especially on the Rhodian.
ὁ δὲ κατὰ τύχην εἰσπλεύσας νυκτὸς μετὰ ταῦτα πάλιν ἀνήγετο φανερῶς. θεωρῶν δʼ ἐκ καταβολῆς αὑτῷ τὴν τετρήρη συνεξορμήσασαν,5 γνοὺς τὴν ναῦν διετράπη.
He, having sailed in by night as it happened, was afterwards sailing out again openly. Seeing from the very start the quadrireme setting out along with him, and recognizing the vessel, he turned to flee.
τὸ μὲν οὖν πρῶτον ὥρμησεν ὡς καταταχήσων· τῇ δὲ τοῦ πληρώματος παρασκευῇ καταλαμβανόμενος, τέλος ἐπιστρέψας ἠναγκάσθη συμβαλεῖν τοῖς πολεμίοις.
At first, indeed, he hastened to outstrip them by speed; but being overtaken by the efficiency of the crew, he was finally forced to turn and engage the enemy.
καταπροτερούμενος δὲ τοῖς ἐπιβατικοῖς διά τε τὸ πλῆθος καὶ διὰ τὴν ἐκλογὴν τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐγένετο τοῖς ἐχθροῖς ὑποχείριος.
And being overpowered by the marines because of their numbers and their select quality, he fell into the hands of the enemy.
οἱ δὲ Ῥωμαῖοι, κυριεύσαντες καὶ ταύτης τῆς νεὼς εὖ κατεσκευασμένης καὶ καταρτίσαντες αὐτὴν τοῖς πρὸς τὴν χρείαν, οὕτως ἐκώλυσαν τοὺς κατατολμῶντας καὶ πλέοντας εἰς τὸ Λιλύβαιον.
The Romans, having made themselves masters also of this well-constructed ship, and having equipped it with everything necessary for their service, thus prevented those who were daring to sail to Lilybaeum.
- 1.47.1καταπληττόμενος
A masculine singular nominative participle agreeing with the subject (Hannibal the Rhodian), while taking the accusative noun τοὺς δὲ Ῥωμαίους from the end of the previous section as its object. Although it is a middle-passive participle, it functions transitively here in the sense of "striking (the Romans) with terror/awe."
- 1.47.1τὸ διὰ τῶν προβραχέων ἐκ τῆς ἐμπειρίας ἀκριβῶς σεσημειῶσθαι τὸν εἴσπλουν
A nominalized infinitive phrase with the article τὸ, serving as the subject of the verb συνεβάλλετο. The semantic subject of the perfect passive infinitive σεσημειῶσθαι is Hannibal the Rhodian (understood from the context), while the accusative τὸν εἴσπλουν (the entrance) functions as its object.
- 1.47.2ἔπειτʼ ἂν ... ἐλάμβανε
The combination of the particle ἄν with the imperfect indicative ἐλάμβανε expresses an iterative or habitual action in the past ("he would take/keep...").
- 1.47.4ἀλλʼ ὑπό τε τοῦ κλύδωνος ... παρωθεῖσθαι καὶ διασκορπίζεσθαι
The clause introduced by ἀλλʼ (but/rather) contrasts with the preceding negative clause διὰ τὸ μηθὲν δύνασθαι... (because nothing was able...). The infinitives παρωθεῖσθαι and διασκορπίζεσθαι are both governed by διὰ τὸ, with τὸ ῥιπτούμενον (the thing thrown in) serving as their semantic subject.
- 1.47.7θεωρῶν δʼ ἐκ καταβολῆς αὑτῷ τὴν τετρήρη συνεξορμήσασαν
The participle συνεξορμήσασαν (having set out together) modifies τὴν τετρήρη (the quadrireme) and functions as a predicative participle after the verb of perception θεωρῶν (seeing). The dative αὑτῷ (himself) depends on the prefix συν- (together with) and denotes "at the same time as himself."