Humanitext Reader

Herodotus · Histories §8.39.1-8.39.2

Delphian Heroes Phylacus and Autonous

Passage 1341 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

Explains that the two giant hoplites who saved Delphi are local heroes, Phylacus and Autonous, and notes that the rocks that fell from Mount Parnassus remain intact in the sanctuary of Athena.

§8.39.1τούτους δὲ τοὺς δύο Δελφοὶ λέγουσι εἶναι ἐπιχωρίους ἥρωας, Φύλακόν τε καὶ Αὐτόνοον, τῶν τὰ τεμένεα ἐστὶ περὶ τὸ ἱρόν, Φυλάκου μὲν παρʼ αὐτὴν τὴν ὁδὸν κατύπερθε τοῦ ἱροῦ τῆς Προναίης, Αὐτονόου δὲ πέλας τῆς Κασταλίης ὑπὸ τῇ Ὑαμπείῃ κορυφῇ.
The Delphians say that these two are local heroes, Phylacus and Autonous, whose sanctuaries are around the temple; that of Phylacus is by the road itself, above the temple of Pronaea, and that of Autonous is near the Castalian spring, under the Hyampeia peak.
§8.39.2οἱ δὲ πεσόντες ἀπὸ τοῦ Παρνησοῦ λίθοι ἔτι καὶ ἐς ἡμέας ἦσαν σόοι, ἐν τῷ τεμένεϊ τῆς Προναίης Ἀθηναίης κείμενοι, ἐς τὸ ἐνέσκηψαν διὰ τῶν βαρβάρων φερόμενοι.
The stones which fell from Parnassus were still preserved safe even down to our day, lying in the sanctuary of Pronaea Athena, into which they crashed as they swept through the barbarians.
τούτων μέν νυν τῶν ἀνδρῶν αὕτη ἀπὸ τοῦ ἱροῦ ἀπαλλαγὴ γίνεται.
Such, then, was the departure of these men from the temple.

Notes

  1. §8.39.1τούτους δὲ τοὺς δύο — Accusative with infinitive construction dependent on the main verb λέγουσι. τούτους ... τοὺς δύο is the subject accusative of the infinitive εἶναι, while ἐπιχωρίους ἥρωας (and the appositive Φύλακόν τε καὶ Αὐτόνοον) functions as its predicate accusative.
  2. §8.39.1Φυλάκου μὲν — The genitives Φυλάκου and Αὐτονόου imply the omission of the previously mentioned noun τὰ τεμένεα (sanctuaries). Thus, it should be understood as "the sanctuary of Phylacus... and that of Autonous...".
  3. §8.39.2ἐς τό — The relative pronoun τό is neuter singular accusative, referring back to the antecedent τεμένεϊ (dative of the neuter noun τέμενος). Together with the preposition ἐς, it expresses that the stones crashed "into that sanctuary".

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §8.39.1-8.39.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.39.1-8.39.2

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.