Herodotus · Histories §1.165.1-1.165.3

Phocaean Departure for Cyrnus and the Oath of Iron

Passage 165 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

After being refused the purchase of the Oenussae islands by the Chians, the Phocaeans head for Cyrnus. On their way, they massacre the Persian garrison in Phocaea and swear a solemn oath never to return, though more than half of them eventually break it out of homesickness.

§1.165.1οἱ δὲ Φωκαιέες, ἐπείτε σφι Χῖοι τὰς νήσους τὰς Οἰνούσσας καλεομένας οὐκ ἐβούλοντο ὠνευμένοισι πωλέειν, δειμαίνοντες μὴ αἳ μὲν ἐμπόριον γένωνται, ἡ δὲ αὐτῶν νῆσος ἀποκληισθῇ τούτου εἵνεκα, πρὸς ταῦτα οἱ Φωκαίες ἐστέλλοντο ἐς Κύρνον· ἐν γὰρ τῇ Κύρνῳ εἴκοσι ἔτεσι πρότερον τούτων ἐκ θεοπροπίου ἀνεστήσαντο πόλιν, τῇ οὔνομα ἦν Ἀλαλίη.

Since the Chians were unwilling to sell them the islands called Oenussae when they wished to buy them—fearing lest the islands should become a commercial center and their own island be shut out of trade on this account—the Phocaeans for these reasons set out for Cyrnus; for twenty years before this, they had founded a city in Cyrnus in accordance with an oracle, and its name was Alalia.

§1.165.2Ἀργανθώνιος δὲ τηνικαῦτα ἤδη τετελευτήκεε.

Now Arganthonius had already died by that time.

στελλόμενοι δὲ ἐπὶ τὴν Κύρνον, πρῶτα καταπλεύσαντες ἐς τὴν Φωκαίην κατεφόνευσαν τῶν Περσέων τὴν φυλακήν, ἣ ἐφρούρεε παραδεξαμένη παρὰ Ἁρπάγου τὴν πόλιν.

Setting out for Cyrnus, they first sailed to Phocaea and massacred the Persian garrison which was guarding the city, having received it from Harpagus.

μετὰ δέ, ὡς τοῦτο σφι ἐξέργαστο, ἐποιήσαντο ἰσχυρὰς κατάρας τῷ ὑπολειπομένῳ ἑωυτῶν τοῦ στόλου, §1.165.3πρὸς δὲ ταύτῃσι καὶ μύδρον σιδήρεον κατεπόντωσαν καὶ ὤμοσαν μὴ πρὶν ἐς Φωκαίην ἥξειν πρὶν ἢ τὸν μύδρον τοῦτον ἀναφανῆναι.

Afterwards, when this had been accomplished by them, they pronounced solemn curses upon anyone of their fleet who should be left behind, and besides these curses, they also sank a mass of iron into the sea and swore that they would never return to Phocaea until this mass of iron should appear again.

στελλομένων δὲ αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὴν Κύρνον, ὑπερημίσεας τῶν ἀστῶν ἔλαβε πόθος τε καὶ οἶκτος τῆς πόλιος καὶ τῶν ἠθέων τῆς χώρης, ψευδόρκιοι δὲ γενόμενοι ἀπέπλεον ὀπίσω ἐς τὴν Φωκαίην.

But as they were setting out for Cyrnus, more than half of the citizens were seized with a longing and pity for the city and the familiar places of their land, and breaking their oath, they sailed back to Phocaea.

οἳ δὲ αὐτῶν τὸ ὅρκιον ἐφύλασσον, ἀερθέντες ἐκ τῶν Οἰνουσσέων ἔπλεον.

Those of them, however, who kept the oath, weighed anchor and sailed from the Oenussae.

Notes

1.165.1δειμαίνοντες — The participle δειμαίνοντες (nominative plural masculine) grammatically agrees with the main subject οἱ δὲ Φωκαιέες, but contextually it explains the fear and motive of the Chians (Χῖοι), the subject of the ἐπείτε clause (fearing that the Oenussae would become a trade center and Chios would be excluded). This is an instance of anacoluthon, where the grammatical structure shifts.
1.165.3μὴ πρὶν... πρὶν ἢ... — A construction expressing a strong negative condition, meaning 'never... until...'. The negative infinitive μὴ ... ἥξειν (not to return) is complemented by πρὶν ἢ ... ἀναφανῆναι (until this mass of iron should appear), expressing an oath of permanent exile.
1.165.3ἀερθέντες — Aorist passive participle of ἀείρω (to lift up). In nautical contexts, it is an idiomatic expression meaning 'having weighed anchor' or 'having set sail'. Here it describes the Phocaeans setting sail from the Oenussae islands.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §1.165.1-1.165.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.165.1-1.165.3

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