The Spoils of the Metaurus and the Joy in Rome — Polybius, The Histories Book 11 (11.3.1–11.3.7), Greek & English

§11.3.1

ἐπονειδίστους ποιῶσι τὰς αὑτῶν περιπετείας·¹ Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ τῇ μάχῃ κατορθώσαντες παραυτίκα μὲν τὸν χάρακα διήρπαζον τῶν ὑπεναντίων, καὶ πολλοὺς μὲν τῶν Κελτῶν ἐν ταῖς στιβάσι κοιμωμένους διὰ τὴν μέθην κατέκοπτον ἱερείων τρόπον·

ignominious reverses for themselves. But the Romans, having succeeded in the battle, immediately pillaged the camp of their adversaries, and slaughtered many of the Celts as they slept on their straw mattresses because of drunkenness, like sacrificial beasts.

§11.3.2

συνῆγον δὲ καὶ τὴν λοιπὴν τῶν αἰχμαλώτων λείαν, ἀφʼ ἧς εἰς τὸ δημόσιον ἀνήχθη πλείω τῶν τριακοσίων ταλάντων.

And they also collected the rest of the booty, including the prisoners, from which more than three hundred talents were brought into the public treasury.

§11.3.3

ἀπέθανον δὲ τῶν μὲν Καρχηδονίων κατὰ τὴν μάχην σὺν τοῖς Κελτοῖς οὐκ ἐλάττους μυρίων, τῶν δὲ Ῥωμαίων περὶ δισχιλίους. ἑάλωσαν δὲ καὶ ζωγρίᾳ τινὲς τῶν ἐνδόξων Καρχηδονίων, οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ κατεφθάρησαν.

And there died on the side of the Carthaginians, together with the Celts, not fewer than ten thousand in the battle, and on the side of the Romans about two thousand. Some of the illustrious Carthaginians were also taken alive, while the rest perished.

§11.3.4

τῆς δὲ φήμης ἀφικομένης εἰς τὴν Ῥώμην τὴν μὲν ἀρχὴν ἠπίστουν τῷ λίαν βούλεσθαι τοῦτο γενόμενον ἰδεῖν·²

But when the rumor reached Rome, at first they did not believe it, because of their exceeding desire to see this happen.

§11.3.5

ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ πλείους ἧκον, οὐ μόνον τὸ γεγονός, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ κατὰ μέρος διασαφοῦντες, τότε δὴ χαρᾶς ὑπερβαλλούσης ἦν ἡ πόλις πλήρης, καὶ πᾶν μὲν τέμενος ἐκοσμεῖτο, πᾶς δὲ ναὸς ἔγεμε πελάνων καὶ θυμάτων, καθόλου δʼ εἰς τοιαύτην εὐελπιστίαν παρεγένοντο καὶ θάρσος ὥστε πάντας τὸν Ἀννίβαν, ὃν μάλιστα πρότερον ἐφοβήθησαν, τότε μηδʼ ἐν Ἰταλίᾳ νομίζειν παρεῖναι.

But when more messengers arrived, clarifying not only the event but also the details, then indeed the city was full of exceeding joy, and every sacred precinct was adorned, and every temple was filled with sacrificial cakes and victims. And in general, they arrived at such good hope and confidence that everyone thought that Hannibal, whom they had previously feared most, was not even present in Italy.

§11.3.7

ὁ δὲ³ φαντασίαν μὲν ἔχειν ἔφη τοὺς εἰρημένους λόγους, τὴν δʼ ἀλήθειαν οὐ τοιαύτην εἶναι, τὸ δʼ ἐναντίον. —

But he said that the statements mentioned had an air of probability, but that the truth was not such, but the contrary.—

Syntax notes3 items

11.3.1ἐπονειδίστους ποιῶσι τὰς αὑτῶν περιπετείας
A double accusative construction with the subjunctive verb ποιῶσι (from the purpose clause introduced by ἵνα in §11.2.11), taking τὰς αὑτῶν περιπετείας as direct object and ἐπονειδίστους as predicate adjective. It continues the subject 'those engaged in public affairs' from the preceding chunk.
11.3.4τῷ λίαν βούλεσθαι τοῦτο γενόμενον ἰδεῖν
A dative of cause with an articular infinitive (τῷ λίαν βούλεσθαι), which in turn governs the object clause 'to see this accomplished' (ἰδεῖν τοῦτο γενόμενον). The participle γενόμενον functions as a predicative participle with the infinitive ἰδεῖν. It translates to 'because of their exceeding desire to see this happen.'
11.3.7ὁ δὲ
Nominative singular demonstrative pronoun used as a personal pronoun ('but he'). Due to the fragmentary nature of the text, it is open to interpretation whether this refers to Hannibal or to the author Polybius himself referring to himself in the third person to make a meta-commentary on the historical accounts. A neutral translation ('but he') is adopted to preserve this ambiguity.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25)urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:11.3.1-11.3.7