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Herodotus · Histories §5.90.1-5.90.2

Spartan Regret and the Discovery of Oracles on Athens

Passage 859 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

While the Athenians prepare for vengeance, Sparta intervenes. The Spartans, learning of the Alcmeonidae's deception of the Delphic oracle, regret expelling the Pisistratidae and discover other oracles predicting future Athenian hostility.

§5.90.1ἐς τιμωρίην δὲ παρασκευαζομένοισι αὐτοῖσι ἐκ Λακεδαιμονίων πρῆγμα ἐγειρόμενον ἐμπόδιον ἐγένετο.
But while they were preparing for vengeance, an obstacle arose for them from the side of the Lacedaemonians.
πυθόμενοι γὰρ Λακεδαιμόνιοι τὰ ἐκ τῶν Ἀλκμεωνιδέων ἐς τὴν Πυθίην μεμηχανημένα καὶ τὰ ἐκ τῆς Πυθίης ἐπὶ σφέας τε καὶ τοὺς Πεισιστρατίδας συμφορὴν ἐποιεῦντο διπλῆν, ὅτι τε ἄνδρας ξείνους σφίσι ἐόντας ἐξεληλάκεσαν ἐκ τῆς ἐκείνων, καὶ ὅτι ταῦτα ποιήσασι χάρις οὐδεμία ἐφαίνετο πρὸς Ἀθηναίων.
For the Lacedaemonians, learning of the schemes plotted by the Alcmeonidae against the Pythia, and of what had been brought about by the Pythia against themselves and the Pisistratidae, regarded it as a double misfortune: both because they had driven out men who were their guest-friends from their own country, and because, although they had done this, no gratitude was shown to them on the part of the Athenians.
§5.90.2ἔτι τε πρὸς τούτοισι ἐνῆγον σφέας οἱ χρησμοὶ λέγοντες πολλά τε καὶ ἀνάρσια ἔσεσθαι αὐτοῖσι ἐξ Ἀθηναίων, τῶν πρότερον μὲν ἦσαν ἀδαέες, τότε δὲ Κλεομένεος κομίσαντος ἐς Σπάρτην ἐξέμαθον.
And in addition to this, the oracles urged them on, saying that many hostile things would happen to them from the Athenians; of these oracles they had previously been ignorant, but they learned them thoroughly at that time when Cleomenes brought them to Sparta.
ἐκτήσατο δὲ ὁ Κλεομένης ἐκ τῆς Ἀθηναίων ἀκροπόλιος τοὺς χρησμούς, τοὺς ἔκτηντο μὲν πρότερον οἱ Πεισιστρατίδαι, ἐξελαυνόμενοι δὲ ἔλιπον ἐν τῷ ἱρῷ, καταλειφθέντας δὲ ὁ Κλεομένης ἀνέλαβε.
Cleomenes had acquired these oracles from the acropolis of the Athenians; the Pisistratidae had formerly possessed them, but when they were being driven out they left them behind in the temple, and Cleomenes took them up after they had been left there.

Notes

  1. 5.90.1ἐκ Λακεδαιμονίων πρῆγμα ἐγειρόμενον — The prepositional phrase ἐκ Λακεδαιμονίων modifies the participle ἐγειρόμενον, forming the sense "an issue arising from the Lacedaemonians' side."
  2. 5.90.1τὰ ἐκ τῆς Πυθίης ἐπὶ σφέας τε καὶ τοὺς Πεισιστρατίδας — By contrast with the preceding phrase τὰ ἐκ τῶν Ἀλκμεωνιδέων ... μεμηχανημένα, the perfect passive participle μεμηχανημένα (or a similar notion) is understood as omitted in this second clause.
  3. 5.90.1ἐκ τῆς ἐκείνων — The genitive pronoun ἐκείνων refers to the preceding ἄνδρας ξείνους (the guest-friends, i.e., the Pisistratidae). The feminine singular article τῆς implies the omission of γῆς or χώρας (land/country), meaning "from their own country."
  4. 5.90.2τῶν πρότερον μὲν ἦσαν ἀδαέες — The genitive form of the relative pronoun τῶν is governed by the adjective ἀδαής (ignorant of), which takes a genitive object. Its antecedent is the preceding οἱ χρησμοί (the oracles).

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §5.90.1-5.90.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:5.90.1-5.90.2

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