Humanitext Reader

Herodotus · Histories §1.192.1-1.192.4

The Immense Wealth and Resources of Babylonia

Passage 192 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

After noting the first capture of Babylon, the author illustrates the immense wealth and resources of the Babylonian territory, detailing its contribution to the Persian king's maintenance and the vast private estate of the governor Tritantaechmes.

§1.192.1καὶ Βαβυλὼν μὲν οὕτω τότε πρῶτον ἀραίρητο.
And Babylon, on the one hand, was thus taken at that time for the first time.
τὴν δὲ δύναμιν τῶν Βαβυλωνίων πολλοῖσι μὲν καὶ ἄλλοισι δηλώσω ὅση τις ἐστί, ἐν δὲ δὴ καὶ τῷδε.
On the other hand, I shall declare how great is the power of the Babylonians by many other instances, and in particular by this one.
βασιλέι τῷ μεγάλῳ ἐς τροφὴν αὐτοῦ τε καὶ τῆς στρατιῆς διαραίρηται, πάρεξ τοῦ φόρου, γῆ πᾶσα ὅσης ἄρχει· δυώδεκα ὦν μηνῶν ἐόντων ἐς τὸν ἐνιαυτὸν τοὺς τέσσερας μῆνας τρέφει μιν ἡ Βαβυλωνίη χωρῇ, τοὺς δὲ ὀκτὼ τῶν μηνῶν ἡ λοιπὴ πᾶσα Ἀσίη.
For the great king, for the maintenance of himself and his army, all the land over which he rules has been apportioned, apart from the tribute; thus, there being twelve months in the year, for four months the Babylonian territory supports him, and for the remaining eight months the whole of the rest of Asia.
§1.192.2οὕτω τριτημορίη ἡ Ἀσσυρίη χώρη τῇ δυνάμι τῆς ἄλλης Ἀσίης.
Thus the Assyrian territory is equal in power to one-third of the rest of Asia.
καὶ ἡ ἀρχὴ τῆς χώρης ταύτης, τὴν οἱ Πέρσαι σατραπηίην καλέουσι, ἐστὶ ἁπασέων τῶν ἀρχέων πολλόν τι κρατίστη, ὅκου Τριτανταίχμῃ τῷ Ἀρταβάζου ἐκ βασιλέος ἔχοντι τὸν νομὸν τοῦτον ἀργυρίου μὲν προσήιε ἑκάστης ἡμέρης ἀρτάβη μεστή.
And the government of this territory, which the Persians call a satrapy, is by far the most powerful of all the governments, where Tritantaechmes, son of Artabazus, holding this district from the king, had an income of a full artabe of silver every day.
§1.192.3ἡ δὲ ἀρτάβη, μέτρον ἐὸν Περσικόν, χωρέει μεδίμνου Ἀττικοῦ πλέον χοίνιξι τρισὶ Ἀττικῇσι, ἵπποι δὲ οἱ αὐτοῦ ἦσαν ἰδίῃ, πάρεξ τῶν πολεμιστηρίων, οἱ μὲν ἀναβαίνοντες τὰς θηλέας ὀκτακόσιοι, αἱ δὲ βαινόμεναι ἑξακισχίλιαι καὶ μυρίαι· ἀνέβαινε γὰρ ἕκαστος τῶν ἐρσένων τούτων εἴκοσι ἵππους.
Now the artabe, which is a Persian measure, holds three Attic choenikes more than an Attic medimnus. And the horses which he owned privately, apart from those for war, were eight hundred stallions for covering the mares, and sixteen thousand mares covered by them; for each of these males covered twenty mares.
§1.192.4κυνῶν δὲ Ἰνδικῶν τοσοῦτο δή τι πλῆθος ἐτρέφετο ὥστε τέσσερες τῶν ἐν τῷ πεδίῳ κῶμαι μεγάλαι, τῶν ἄλλων ἐοῦσαι ἀτελέες, τοῖσι κυσὶ προσετετάχατο σιτία παρέχειν.
And such a great number of Indian dogs was kept that four large villages in the plain, being exempt from other taxes, were appointed to provide food for the dogs.
τοιαῦτα μὲν τῷ ἄρχοντι τῆς Βαβυλῶνος ὑπῆρχε ἐόντα.
Such were the resources which belonged to the governor of Babylon.

Notes

  1. 1.192.1τὴν δὲ δύναμιν τῶν Βαβυλωνίων ... ὅση τις ἐστί — An example of prolepsis (anticipation), where "the power of the Babylonians", which logically should be the subject of the subordinate indirect question clause ὅση τις ἐστί, is anticipated and placed as an accusative object in the main clause.
  2. 1.192.2Τριτανταίχμῃ ... προσήιε — The proper name Τριτανταίχμῃ and the participle ἔχοντι are in the dative case, serving as the dative of interest (or possession) modifying the verb προσήιε (imperfect of πρόσειμι, "to come in as revenue"). ἑκάστης ἡμέρης is a genitive of time ("every day").
  3. 1.192.3μεδίμνου Ἀττικοῦ πλέον χοίνιξι τρισὶ — μεδίμνου is a genitive of comparison depending on the comparative πλέον, while χοίνιξι is a dative of measure of difference ("by three choenikes more").
  4. 1.192.4προσετετάχατο — Third-person plural pluperfect passive of προστάσσω. It exhibits the Ionic dialectal ending -ατο used for the third-person plural of the perfect and pluperfect passive of consonant-stem verbs, corresponding to the Attic periphrastic form προστεταγμένοι ἦσαν.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §1.192.1-1.192.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.192.1-1.192.4

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.