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Herodotus · Histories §3.48.1-3.48.4

Corinthian Grievance and the Rescue of Corcyraean Boys

Passage 452 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

The text explains the background of the Corinthian participation in the expedition against Samos, recounting an incident where the Samians rescued Corcyraean boys sent by Periander to Sardis by giving them asylum and food.

§3.48.1συνεπελάβοντο δὲ τοῦ στρατεύματος τοῦ ἐπὶ Σάμον ὥστε γενέσθαι καὶ Κορίνθιοι προθύμως· ὕβρισμα γὰρ καὶ ἐς τούτους εἶχε ἐκ τῶν Σαμίων γενόμενον γενεῇ πρότερον τοῦ στρατεύματος τούτου, κατὰ δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν χρόνον τοῦ κρητῆρος τῇ ἁρπαγῇ γεγονός.
The Corinthians also eagerly took part in the expedition against Samos so that it might come about; for they too had suffered an insult from the Samians a generation before this expedition, which occurred at the same time as the robbery of the bowl.
§3.48.2Κερκυραίων γὰρ παῖδας τριηκοσίους ἀνδρῶν τῶν πρώτων Περίανδρος ὁ Κυψέλου ἐς Σάρδις ἀπέπεμψε παρὰ Ἀλυάττεα ἐπʼ ἐκτομῇ·
For Periander, the son of Cypselus, had sent three hundred boys of the leading men of the Corcyraeans to Sardis to Alyattes for castration.
προσσχόντων δὲ ἐς τὴν Σάμον τῶν ἀγόντων τοὺς παῖδας Κορινθίων, πυθόμενοι οἱ Σάμιοι τὸν λόγον, ἐπʼ οἷσι ἀγοίατο ἐς Σάρδις, πρῶτα μὲν τοὺς παῖδας ἐδίδαξαν ἱροῦ ἅψασθαι Ἀρτέμιδος·
When the Corinthians who were conducting the boys touched at Samos, the Samians, having learned the reason for which they were being led to Sardis, first instructed the boys to lay hold of the temple of Artemis.
§3.48.3μετὰ δὲ οὐ περιορῶντες ἀπέλκειν τοὺς ἱκέτας ἐκ τοῦ ἱροῦ, σιτίων δὲ τοὺς παῖδας ἐργόντων Κορινθίων, ἐποιήσαντο οἱ Σάμιοι ὁρτήν, τῇ καὶ νῦν ἔτι χρέωνται κατὰ ταὐτά.
Afterward, as they did not allow the suppliants to be dragged away from the temple, and since the Corinthians were keeping the boys from food, the Samians instituted a festival which they still celebrate in the same manner.
νυκτὸς γὰρ ἐπιγενομένης, ὅσον χρόνον ἱκέτευον οἱ παῖδες, ἵστασαν χοροὺς παρθένων τε καὶ ἠιθέων, ἱστάντες δὲ τοὺς χοροὺς τρωκτὰ σησάμου τε καὶ μέλιτος ἐποιήσαντο νόμον φέρεσθαι, ἵνα ἁρπάζοντες οἱ τῶν Κερκυραίων παῖδες ἔχοιεν τροφήν.
For when night came on, as long as the boys remained suppliants, they set up dances of maidens and young men, and in setting up these dances they made it a custom to carry sweetmeats of sesame and honey, so that the Corcyraean boys might snatch them and have food.
§3.48.4ἐς τοῦτο δὲ τόδε ἐγίνετο, ἐς ὃ οἱ Κορίνθιοι τῶν παίδων οἱ φύλακοι οἴχοντο ἀπολιπόντες· τοὺς δὲ παῖδας ἀπήγαγον ἐς Κέρκυραν οἱ Σάμιοι.
This continued to happen until the Corinthians who were guarding the boys gave up and departed; then the Samians brought the boys back to Corcyra.

Notes

  1. §3.48.1ὥστε γενέσθαι — The conjunction ὥστε with the infinitive γενέσθαι, expressing either the purpose of their eager participation ("so that it might come about") or the result ("with the result that it took place").
  2. §3.48.1ὕβρισμα γὰρ καὶ ἐς τούτους εἶχε ἐκ τῶν Σαμίων γενόμενον — The verb εἶχε (imperfect of ἔχω) is used here intransitively with the prepositional phrase ἐς τούτους, meaning "had reached them" or "related to them." The subject is ὕβρισμα (insult), with which the participle γενόμενον agrees.
  3. §3.48.2ἀγοίατο — The third-person plural passive optative present in the Ionic dialect, corresponding to the Attic ἄγοιντο. It is used as an optative of oblique mood in an indirect question (introduced by ἐπʼ οἷσι) dependent on a historical main verb (represented by the participle πυθόμενοι).
  4. §3.48.3οὐ περιορῶντες ἀπέλκειν — The verb περιοράω (to overlook, permit) combined with the negative οὐ and the infinitive ἀπέλκειν (to drag away) means "not permitting them to be dragged away" or "not standing by and seeing them dragged away."
  5. §3.48.4οἴχοντο ἀπολιπόντες — The verb οἴχομαι used with a participle (here ἀπολιπόντες) emphasizes that the action of the participle is completed and the subjects have departed ("went away and left them" or "had abandoned and gone").

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §3.48.1-3.48.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:3.48.1-3.48.4

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