Humanitext Reader

Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §11.47.1-11.47.3

Assessment of Tribute by Aristides and the Delian League

Passage 48 of 723 · Greek

Summary

Aristeides proposes the establishment of the Delian League with a fair assessment of tribute, earning the surname 'the Just,' and the hegemony of the sea shifts from Sparta to Athens due to the contrast between Pausanias's wickedness and Aristeides's virtue.

§11.47.1εὐθὺς οὖν ὁ μὲν Ἀριστείδης συνεβούλευε τοῖς συμμάχοις ἅπασι κοινὴν ἄγουσι σύνοδον ἀποδεῖξαι τὴν Δῆλον κοινὸν ταμιεῖον, καὶ τὰ χρήματα πάντα τὰ συναγόμενα εἰς ταύτην κατατίθεσθαι, πρὸς δὲ τὸν ἀπὸ τῶν Περσῶν ὑποπτευόμενον πόλεμον τάξαι φόρον ταῖς πόλεσι πάσαις κατὰ δύναμιν, ὥστε γίνεσθαι τὸ πᾶν ἄθροισμα ταλάντων πεντακοσίων καὶ ἑξήκοντα. §11.47.2ταχθεὶς δὲ ἐπὶ τὴν διάταξιν τῶν φόρων, οὕτως ἀκριβῶς καὶ δικαίως τὸν διαμερισμὸν ἐποίησεν ὥστε πάσας τὰς πόλεις εὐδοκῆσαι.
Therefore Aristeides immediately advised all the allies, as they held a common assembly, to designate Delos as their common treasury, and to deposit there all the funds that were collected, and, in view of the suspected war from the Persians, to assess a tribute on all the cities according to their capacity, so that the entire sum amounted to five hundred and sixty talents. And having been appointed to the assessment of the tribute, he made the apportionment so accurately and justly that all the cities were well pleased.
διὸ καὶ δοκῶν ἕν τι τῶν ἀδυνάτων ἔργων συντετελεκέναι, μεγίστην ἐπὶ δικαιοσύνῃ δόξαν ἐκτήσατο καὶ διὰ τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς δικαιοσύνης δίκαιος ἐπωνομάσθη. §11.47.3ὑφʼ ἕνα δὲ καὶ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρὸν ἡ μὲν τοῦ Παυσανίου κακία τῆς κατὰ θάλατταν ἡγεμονίας ἐστέρησε τοὺς πολίτας, ἡ Ἀριστείδου δὲ κατὰ πᾶν ἀρετὴ τὰς Ἀθήνας τὴν οὐκ οὖσαν στρατηγίαν ἐποίησε κτήσασθαι.
Therefore, appearing to have accomplished one of the impossible tasks, he acquired the greatest reputation for justice and, because of the excellence of his justice, was surnamed the Just. At one and the same time, the wickedness of Pausanias on the one hand deprived his fellow citizens of the hegemony of the sea, while the virtue of Aristeides in every respect on the other hand caused Athens to acquire the leadership which they did not previously possess.
ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἐπράχθη κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν ἐνιαυτόν.
Now these things were transacted in the course of this year.

Notes

  1. §11.47.1κοινὴν ἄγουσι σύνοδον — The present participle ἄγουσι (dative plural masculine) modifies the indirect object τοῖς συμμάχοις ἅπασι. It can be interpreted attributively ('all the allies who were holding a common assembly') or circumstantially ('while they were holding'). It is here translated attributively for consistency across all languages.
  2. §11.47.2ταχθεὶς δὲ — The aorist passive participle ταχθείς (nominative singular masculine) functions circumstantially (temporal or causal), modifying the unexpressed subject of the main verb ἐποίησεν (Aristeides). It signifies 'once he had been appointed' or 'because he was appointed.'
  3. §11.47.3τὴν οὐκ οὖσαν — The participle phrase οὐκ οὖσαν (present participle of εἰμί in accusative singular feminine with the objective negation οὐκ), placed attributively between the article τὴν and the noun στρατηγίαν, denotes an objective fact: 'the leadership which did not previously exist (for Athens).'

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §11.47.1-11.47.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:11.47.1-11.47.3

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.