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Herodotus · Histories §5.84.1-5.84.2

Athenian Demand for the Statues and Aegina's Refusal

Passage 853 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

As the Epidaurians refuse to pay tribute to Athens due to the theft of the statues, the Athenians demand their return from the Aeginetans, who flatly reject the claim.

§5.84.1κλεφθέντων δὲ τῶνδε τῶν ἀγαλμάτων οἱ Ἐπιδαύριοι τοῖσι Ἀθηναίοισι τὰ συνέθεντο οὐκ ἐπετέλεον.
When these statues were stolen, the Epidaurians ceased to perform for the Athenians what they had agreed upon.
πέμψαντες δὲ οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι ἐμήνιον τοῖσι Ἐπιδαυρίοισι· οἳ δὲ ἀπέφαινον λόγῳ ὡς οὐκ ἀδικέοιεν·
The Athenians sent messengers and expressed their anger to the Epidaurians; but the latter declared in speech that they were doing no wrong.
ὅσον μὲν γὰρ χρόνον εἶχον τὰ ἀγάλματα ἐν τῇ χώρῃ, ἐπιτελέειν τὰ συνέθεντο, ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐστερῆσθαι αὐτῶν, οὐ δίκαιον εἶναι ἀποφέρειν ἔτι, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἔχοντας αὐτὰ Αἰγινήτας πρήσσεσθαι ἐκέλευον.
For they said that as long as they had the statues in their country, they performed what had been agreed, but since they had been deprived of them, it was no longer just for them to pay, but they urged the Athenians to exact it from the Aeginetans who held them.
§5.84.2πρὸς ταῦτα οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι ἐς Αἴγιναν πέμψαντες ἀπαίτεον τὰ ἀγάλματα· οἱ δὲ Αἰγινῆται ἔφασαν σφίσι τε καὶ Ἀθηναίοισι εἶναι οὐδὲν πρῆγμα.
In response to this, the Athenians sent to Aegina to demand the statues back; but the Aeginetans said that they had no business with the Athenians.

Notes

  1. 5.84.1ἐπει δὲ ἐστερῆσθαι — Infinitive in a subordinate clause in indirect discourse. Although subordinate clauses in indirect discourse usually retain the indicative or optative mood, in Herodotus, they are frequently attracted to the infinitive of the leading verb (here οὐ δίκαιον εἶναι), resulting in an infinitive in the subordinate clause (here the perfect passive infinitive ἐστερῆσθαι after ἐπεί).
  2. 5.84.1πρήσσεσθαι — The middle voice πρήσσομαι of the verb πρήσσω (Attic πράττω) means "to exact" or "to demand money." Here, it means that the Epidaurians urged the Athenians to exact the tribute from the Aeginetans.
  3. 5.84.2σφίσι τε καὶ Ἀθηναίοισι — Dative of possession. Literally "there was no matter/business for themselves (the Aeginetans) and the Athenians," meaning they had nothing to do with each other. σφίσι is an indirect reflexive pronoun referring back to the subject of the main clause, the Aeginetans.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §5.84.1-5.84.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:5.84.1-5.84.2

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