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Herodotus · Histories §9.25.1-9.25.3

Greek Movement to Plataea and Camp by Gargaphia

Passage 1480 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

The Greeks, encouraged by repelling the Persian cavalry, displayed Masistius' corpse to the army, and then relocated to Plataea for better water and camp conditions, drawing up their forces near the Gargaphia spring.

§9.25.1οἱ μέν νυν βάρβαροι τρόπῳ τῷ σφετέρῳ ἀποθανόντα ἐτίμων Μασίστιον· οἱ δὲ Ἕλληνες ὡς τὴν ἵππον ἐδέξαντο προσβάλλουσαν καὶ δεξάμενοι ὤσαντο, ἐθάρσησάν τε πολλῷ μᾶλλον καὶ πρῶτα μὲν ἐς ἅμαξαν ἐσθέντες τὸν νεκρὸν παρὰ τὰς τάξις ἐκόμιζον· ὁ δὲ νεκρὸς ἦν θέης ἄξιος μεγάθεος εἵνεκα καὶ κάλλεος, τῶν δὴ εἵνεκα καὶ ταῦτα ἐποίευν· ἐκλείποντες τὰς τάξις ἐφοίτων θεησόμενοι Μασίστιον.
The barbarians, then, honored the dead Masistius in their own fashion; but the Greeks, when they had sustained the attack of the cavalry and, having sustained it, had beaten them back, were much more encouraged, and first of all, placing the corpse on a wagon, they carried it along the ranks; for the corpse was worth seeing on account of its stature and beauty, and indeed for this reason they did this; leaving their ranks, they came in crowds to gaze upon Masistius.
§9.25.2μετὰ δὲ ἔδοξέ σφι ἐπικαταβῆναι ἐς Πλαταιάς· ὁ γὰρ χῶρος ἐφαίνετο πολλῷ ἐὼν ἐπιτηδεότερός σφι ἐνστρατοπεδεύεσθαι ὁ Πλαταιικὸς τοῦ Ἐρυθραίου τά τε ἄλλα καὶ εὐυδρότερος.
After this, they resolved to go down to Plataea; for the Plataean territory appeared to be much more suitable for them to encamp in than that of Erythrae, both for other reasons and especially because it was better supplied with water.
ἐς τοῦτον δὴ τὸν χῶρον καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν κρήνην τὴν Γαργαφίην τὴν ἐν τῷ χώρῳ τούτῳ ἐοῦσαν ἔδοξέ σφι χρεὸν εἶναι ἀπικέσθαι καὶ διαταχθέντας στρατοπεδεύεσθαι.
To this place, then, and to the spring Gargaphia, which was in this place, they decided that they must go, and, having drawn up in order, encamp.
§9.25.3ἀναλαβόντες δὲ τὰ ὅπλα ἤισαν διὰ τῆς ὑπωρέης τοῦ Κιθαιρῶνος παρὰ Ὑσιὰς ἐς τὴν Πλαταιίδα γῆν, ἀπικόμενοι δὲ ἐτάσσοντο κατὰ ἔθνεα πλησίον τῆς τε κρήνης τῆς Γαργαφίης καὶ τοῦ τεμένεος τοῦ Ἀνδροκράτεος τοῦ ἥρωος, διὰ ὄχθων τε οὐκ ὑψηλῶν καὶ ἀπέδου χώρου.
So taking up their arms, they went along the skirt of Cithaeron by Hysiae into the Plataean land; and when they arrived, they drew themselves up by nations near the spring Gargaphia and the sacred precinct of the hero Androcrates, over low hills and flat ground.

Notes

  1. §9.25.1ὡς τὴν ἵππον ἐδέξαντο προσβάλλουσαν καὶ δεξάμενοι ὤσαντο — The conjunction ὡς (when) governs both verbs, ἐδέξαντο and ὤσαντο. The participle δεξάμενοι repeats the root of the preceding verb ἐδέξαντο, emphasizing the completion of the action: they sustained the attack, and having fully sustained it, they then repulsed them.
  2. §9.25.2ἐφαίνετο πολλῷ ἐὼν ἐπιτηδεότερός — The verb φαίνομαι is construed here with the participle ἐών (Ionic form of ὤν) rather than an infinitive, indicating that the place was clearly or actually more suitable, rather than merely appearing to be so.
  3. §9.25.2ἔδοξέ σφι χρεὸν εἶναι ἀπικέσθαι — The accusative infinitive phrase χρεὸν εἶναι, consisting of the impersonal adjective χρεόν (more commonly χρεών, 'it is necessary') and the infinitive εἶναι, functions as the subject clause of the impersonal verb ἔδοξε ('it seemed good to them' or 'they decided').
  4. §9.25.2διαταχθέντας — An aorist passive participle in the accusative plural masculine. Although its logical subject is the dative σφι ('to them'), it is attracted into the accusative case to agree with the implied subject of the following infinitive στρατοπεδεύεσθαι.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §9.25.1-9.25.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:9.25.1-9.25.3

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