§1414πόντου δʼ ἀνάκτωρ Ἴλιόν τʼ ἐπισκοπεῖ §1415σεμνὸς Ποσειδῶν, Πελοπίδαις ἐναντίος, §1416καὶ νῦν παρέξει τὸν Ἀγαμέμνονος γόνον §1417σοὶ καὶ πολίταις, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐν χεροῖν §1418λαβεῖν, ἀδελφήν θʼ, ἣ φόνον τὸν Αὐλίδι §1419ἀμνημόνευτον θεᾷ προδοῦσʼ ἁλίσκεται.
The ruler of the sea, who watches over Ilium, the august Poseidon, opposed to the house of Pelops, will now deliver the offspring of Agamemnon into the hands of you and your citizens, as it seems, to capture him, along with his sister, who is caught having betrayed the goddess, forgetful of the sacrifice at Aulis.
O unhappy Iphigenia, together with your brother you will die, coming back again into the hands of your masters.
§1422ὦ πάντες ἀστοὶ τῆσδε βαρβάρου χθονός, §1423οὐκ εἶα πώλοις ἐμβαλόντες ἡνίας §1424παράκτιοι δραμεῖσθε κἀκβολὰς νεὼς §1425Ἑλληνίδος δέξεσθε, σὺν δὲ τῇ θεῷ §1426σπεύδοντες ἄνδρας δυσσεβεῖς θηράσετε, §1427οἳ δʼ ὠκυπομποὺς ἕλξετʼ ἐς πόντον πλάτας;
O all you citizens of this barbarian land, will you not put bridles on your horses, run along the coast, and receive the shipwrecks of the Greek ship, and, with the help of the goddess, eagerly hunt down these impious men, while others of you drag the swift oars into the sea?
§1428ὡς ἐκ θαλάσσης ἔκ τε γῆς ἱππεύμασι §1429λαβόντες αὐτοὺς ἢ κατὰ στύφλου πέτρας §1430ῥίψωμεν, ἢ σκόλοψι πήξωμεν δέμας.
So that, capturing them from the sea and from the land with cavalry, we may either throw them down a rugged rock or impale their bodies upon stakes.
§1431ὑμᾶς δὲ τὰς τῶνδʼ ἴστορας βουλευμάτων, §1432γυναῖκες, αὖθις, ἡνίκʼ ἂν σχολὴν λάβω, §1433ποινασόμεσθα· νῦν δὲ τὴν προκειμένην §1434σπουδὴν ἔχοντες οὐ μενοῦμεν ἥσυχοι.
And as for you women, who are conscious of these designs, hereafter, when I have leisure, we shall punish you; but now, having the immediate haste before us, we shall not remain quiet.
Whither, whither do you carry this pursuit, King Thoas?
ἄκουσον τῆσδʼ Ἀθηναίας λόγους.
Hearken to the words of Athena here.
§1437παῦσαι διώκων ῥεῦμά τʼ ἐξορμῶν στρατοῦ· §1438πεπρωμένος γὰρ θεσφάτοισι Λοξίου §1439δεῦρʼ ἦλθʼ Ὀρέστης, τόν τʼ Ἐρινύων χόλον §1440φεύγων ἀδελφῆς τʼ Ἄργος ἐσπέμψων δέμας §1441ἄγαλμά θʼ ἱερὸν εἰς ἐμὴν ἄξων χθόνα, §1441bτῶν νῦν παρόντων πημάτων ἀναψυχάς.
Cease your pursuit and the setting forth of your army's stream; for Orestes came here destined by the oracle of Loxias, fleeing the wrath of the Erinyes, and to send his sister's body to Argos, and to bring the holy image to my land, as a relief from his present sufferings.
§1442πρὸς μὲν σὲ ὅδʼ ἡμῖν μῦθος· ὃν δʼ ἀποκτενεῖν §1443δοκεῖς Ὀρέστην ποντίῳ λαβὼν σάλῳ, §1444ἤδη Ποσειδῶν χάριν ἐμὴν ἀκύμονα §1445πόντου τίθησι νῶτα πορθμεύειν πλάτῃ.
My word is to you on the one hand; but as for Orestes, whom you think to kill, having caught him in the ocean surge, Poseidon is already making the surface of the sea calm for my sake, to ferry him along with the oar.
§1446μαθὼν δʼ, Ὀρέστα, τὰς ἐμὰς ἐπιστολάς — §1447κλύεις γὰρ αὐδὴν καίπερ οὐ παρὼν θεᾶς — §1448χώρει λαβὼν ἄγαλμα σύγγονόν τε σήν.
And learning my commands, Orestes— for you hear the voice of the goddess, though you are not present— go, taking the image and your sister.
§1449ὅταν δʼ Ἀθήνας τὰς θεοδμήτους μόλῃς, §1450χῶρός τις ἔστιν Ἀτθίδος πρὸς ἐσχάτοις §1451ὅροισι, γείτων δειράδος Καρυστίας, §1452ἱερός, Ἁλάς νιν οὑμὸς ὀνομάζει λεώς· §1453ἐνταῦθα τεύξας ναὸν ἵδρυσαι βρέτας, §1454ἐπώνυμον γῆς Ταυρικῆς πόνων τε σῶν, §1455οὓς ἐξεμόχθεις περιπολῶν καθʼ Ἑλλάδα §1456οἴστροις Ἐρινύων.
And when you come to God-built Athens, there is a place on the furthest borders of Attica, neighboring the Carystian ridge, a holy place, which my people call Halas; there build a temple and set up the image, named after the Tauric land and your labors, which you endured wandering through Greece under the goads of the Erinyes.
Ἄρτεμιν δέ νιν βροτοὶ §1457τὸ λοιπὸν ὑμνήσουσι Ταυροπόλον θεάν.
And mortals shall hereafter hymn her as the goddess Artemis Tauropolos.
§1458νόμον τε θὲς τόνδʼ· ὅταν ἑορτάζῃ λεώς, §1459τῆς σῆς σφαγῆς ἄποινʼ ἐπισχέτω ξίφος §1460δέρῃ πρὸς ἀνδρὸς αἷμά τʼ ἐξανιέτω, §1461ὁσίας ἕκατι θεά θʼ ὅπως τιμὰς ἔχῃ.
And establish this law: whenever the people celebrate a festival, in compensation for your sacrifice, let them hold a sword to a man's throat, and let blood gush out, for the sake of holy duty, and so that the goddess may have her honors.
§1462σὲ δʼ ἀμφὶ σεμνάς, Ἰφιγένεια, κλίμακας §1463Βραυρωνίας δεῖ τῇδε κλῃδουχεῖν θεᾷ· §1464οὗ καὶ τεθάψῃ κατθανοῦσα, καὶ πέπλων §1465ἄγαλμά σοι θήσουσιν εὐπήνους ὑφάς, §1466ἃς ἂν γυναῖκες ἐν τόκοις ψυχορραγεῖς §1467λίπωσʼ ἐν οἴκοις.
And you, Iphigenia, around the holy steps of Brauron, must hold the keys for this goddess; where you shall also be buried when you die, and they shall offer fine-woven garments as an ornament for you, which women, dying in childbirth, leave in their homes.
And I command you to send these Greek women out of this land, because of their righteous mind.
§1469bἐκσῴσασα δὲ §1470καὶ πρίν σʼ Ἀρείοις ἐν πάγοις ψήφους ἴσας §1471κρίνασʼ, Ὀρέστα· καὶ νόμισμʼ ἔσται τόδε, §1472νικᾶν ἰσήρεις ὅστις ἂν ψήφους λάβῃ.
And having saved you also before on the Areopagus, Orestes, by deciding with equal votes; and this shall be the law: whoever receives equal votes shall win.
But carry your sister out of this land, offspring of Agamemnon.—And you, do not be angry, Thoas.
Queen Athena, whoever hears the words of the gods and is unbelieving, does not think rightly.
§1477ἐγὼ δʼ Ὀρέστῃ τʼ, εἰ φέρων βρέτας θεᾶς §1478βέβηκʼ, ἀδελφῇ τʼ οὐχὶ θυμοῦμαι· τί γὰρ §1479πρὸς τοὺς σθένοντας θεοὺς ἁμιλλᾶσθαι καλόν;
I am not angry at Orestes, if he has gone carrying the image of the goddess, nor at his sister; for what is the use of contending against the powerful gods?
Let them go to your land with the goddess's image, and let them set up the image with good fortune.
I will also send these women to happy Greece, as your command enjoins.
And I will stop the spear which I raise against the strangers, and the oars of the ships, since this seems good to you, O goddess.
§1486αἰνῶ· τὸ γὰρ χρεὼν σοῦ τε καὶ θεῶν κρατεῖ.
I approve; for necessity rules both you and the gods.
§1487ἴτʼ, ὦ πνοαί, ναυσθλοῦσθε τὸν Ἀγαμέμνονος §1488παῖδʼ εἰς Ἀθήνας· συμπορεύσομαι δʼ ἐγὼ §1489σῴζουσʼ ἀδελφῆς τῆς ἐμῆς σεμνὸν βρέτας.
Go, O breezes, carry the son of Agamemnon to Athens; and I will go along, guarding the holy image of my sister.
Go under the good fortune of the saved destiny, being happy.
§1492ἀλλʼ, ὦ σεμνὴ παρά τʼ ἀθανάτοις §1493καὶ παρὰ θνητοῖς, Παλλὰς Ἀθάνα, §1494δράσομεν οὕτως ὡς σὺ κελεύεις.
But, O august Pallas Athena, among both immortals and mortals, we will do as you command.
For I have received a very pleasant and unlooked-for report in my hearing.