§4.56.1καθόλου δὲ διὰ τὴν τῶν τραγῳδῶν τερατείαν ποικίλη τις καὶ διάφορος ἱστορία περὶ Μηδείας ἐξενήνεκται, καί τινες χαρίζεσθαι βουλόμενοι τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις φασὶν αὐτὴν ἀναλαβοῦσαν τὸν ἐξ Αἰγέως Μῆδον εἰς Κόλχους διασωθῆναι·
In general, because of the sensationalism of the tragic poets, a varied and conflicting history concerning Medea has been published; and some, wishing to curry favor with the Athenians, say that she, taking along Medus, her son by Aegeus, escaped safely to Colchis.
κατὰ δὲ τοῦτον τὸν χρόνον Αἰήτην ἐκ τῆς βασιλείας ὑπὸ τἀδελφοῦ Πέρσου βιαίως ἐκπεπτωκότα τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀνακτήσασθαι, Μήδου τοῦ Μηδείας ἀνελόντος τὸν Πέρσην·
At this time, Aeetes, having been violently expelled from his kingdom by his brother Perses, recovered his rule, since Medus, the son of Medea, had slain Perses.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα δυνάμεως ἐγκρατῆ γενόμενον τὸν Μῆδον πολλὴν ἐπελθεῖν τῆς ὑπὲρ τὸν Πόντον Ἀσίας, καὶ κατασχεῖν τὴν ἀπʼ ἐκείνου Μηδίαν προσαγορευθεῖσαν.
After this, Medus, having made himself master of power, invaded much of the region of Asia beyond the Pontus and secured the territory which was named Media after him.
§4.56.2ἀλλὰ γὰρ τὸ πάσας τὰς ἀποφάσεις τῶν περὶ τῆς Μηδείας μυθολογησάντων ἀναγράφειν οὐκ ἀναγκαῖον ἅμα καὶ μακρὸν εἶναι κρίνοντες τὰ καταλειπόμενα τῆς περὶ τῶν Ἀργοναυτῶν ἱστορίας προσθήσομεν.
But indeed, judging that it is both unnecessary and tedious to write down all the pronouncements of those who have mythologized about Medea, we shall add the remaining parts of the history concerning the Argonauts.
§4.56.3οὐκ ὀλίγοι γὰρ τῶν τε ἀρχαίων συγγραφέων καὶ τῶν μεταγενεστέρων, ὧν ἐστι καὶ Τίμαιος, φασὶ τοὺς Ἀργοναύτας μετὰ τὴν τοῦ δέρους ἁρπαγὴν πυθομένους ὑπʼ Αἰήτου προκατειλῆφθαι ναυσὶ τὸ στόμα τοῦ Πόντου, πρᾶξιν ἐπιτελέσασθαι παράδοξον καὶ μνήμης ἀξίαν.
For not a few of both the ancient historians and the later ones, among whom is Timaeus, say that the Argonauts, after the seizure of the fleece, having learned that the mouth of the Pontus had been occupied beforehand by Aeetes with ships, performed an astonishing and memorable deed.
ἀναπλεύσαντας γὰρ αὐτοὺς διὰ τοῦ Τανάιδος ποταμοῦ ἐπὶ τὰς πηγάς, καὶ κατὰ τόπον τινὰ τὴν ναῦν διελκύσαντας, καθʼ ἑτέρου πάλιν ποταμοῦ τὴν ῥύσιν ἔχοντος εἰς τὸν ὠκεανὸν καταπλεῦσαι πρὸς τὴν θάλατταν, ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν ἄρκτων ἐπὶ τὴν δύσιν κομισθῆναι τὴν γῆν ἔχοντας ἐξ εὐωνύμων, καὶ πλησίον γινομένους Γαδείρων εἰς τὴν καθʼ ἡμᾶς θάλατταν εἰσπλεῦσαι.
For they say that, having sailed up through the Tanais River to its sources, and having dragged their ship over the land at a certain place, they sailed down along another river which had its flow into the Ocean, and thus reached the sea; and then they were carried from the north to the west, keeping the land on their left, and when they came near Gadeira they sailed into our sea.
§4.56.4ἀποδείξεις δὲ τούτων φέρουσι, δεικνύντες τοὺς παρὰ τὸν ὠκεανὸν κατοικοῦντας Κελτοὺς σεβομένους μάλιστα τῶν θεῶν τοὺς Διοσκόρους· παραδόσιμον γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἔχειν ἐκ παλαιῶν χρόνων τὴν τούτων τῶν θεῶν παρουσίαν ἐκ τοῦ ὠκεανοῦ γεγενημένην.
And they offer proofs of these things, pointing out that the Celts who dwell along the Ocean worship the Dioscori most of all the gods; for they have a tradition handed down from ancient times that the presence of these gods came from the Ocean.
εἶναι δὲ καὶ τὴν παρὰ τὸν ὠκεανὸν χώραν οὐκ ὀλίγας ἔχουσαν προσηγορίας ἀπό τε τῶν Ἀργοναυτῶν καὶ τῶν Διοσκόρων.
Also, the territory along the Ocean has not a few names derived from both the Argonauts and the Dioscori.
§4.56.5παραπλησίως δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐντὸς Γαδείρων ἤπειρον ἔχειν ἐμφανῆ σημεῖα τῆς τούτων ἀνακομιδῆς.
In like manner, the mainland inside Gadeira also possesses visible signs of the return of these men.
περὶ μὲν γὰρ τὴν Τυρρηνίαν καταπλεύσαντας αὐτοὺς εἰς νῆσον τὴν ὀνομαζομένην Αἰθάλειαν τὸν ἐν αὐτῇ λιμένα, κάλλιστον ὄντα τῶν ἐν ἐκείνοις τοῖς τόποις, Ἀργῷον ἀπὸ τῆς νεὼς προσαγορεῦσαι, καὶ μέχρι τῶνδε τῶν χρόνων διαμένειν αὐτοῦ τὴν προσηγορίαν.
For instance, when they sailed down to the island called Aethalia in Tyrrhenia, they named the harbor in it, which was the finest in those regions, the Argoan harbor after their ship, and its name has remained down to these times.
§4.56.6παραπλησίως δὲ τοῖς εἰρημένοις κατὰ μὲν τὴν Τυρρηνίαν ἀπὸ σταδίων ὀκτακοσίων τῆς Ῥώμης ὀνομάσαι λιμένα Τελαμῶνα, κατὰ δὲ Φορμίας τῆς Ἰταλίας Αἰήτην τὸν νῦν Καιήτην προσαγορευόμενον.
In a similar manner to what has been said, they named a harbor Telamon in Tyrrhenia, eight hundred stades from Rome, and in Formiae of Italy, Aeetes, which is now called Caieta.
πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ὑπʼ ἀνέμων αὐτοὺς ἐκριφέντας εἰς τὰς Σύρτεις, καὶ μαθόντας παρὰ Τρίτωνος τοῦ τότε βασιλεύοντος τῆς Λιβύης τὴν ἰδιότητα τῆς θαλάττης, καὶ τὸν κίνδυνον ἐκφυγόντας, δωρήσασθαι χαλκοῦν τρίποδα τὸν ἀρχαίοις μὲν κεχαραγμένον γράμμασι, μέχρι δὲ τῶν νεωτέρων χρόνων διαμείναντα παρὰ τοῖς Εὐεσπερίτας.
In addition to these, having been cast by winds into the Syrtes, and having learned the nature of the sea from Triton, who was then king of Libya, and having escaped the danger, they presented a bronze tripod engraved with ancient characters, which remained among the Euesperitae until recent times.
§4.56.7οὐ παραλειπτέον δʼ ἡμῖν ἀνεξέλεγκτον τὴν ἱστορίαν τῶν ἀποφηναμένων τοὺς Ἀργοναύτας ἀνὰ τὸν Ἴστρον πλεύσαντας μέχρι τῶν πηγῶν κατενεχθῆναι διὰ τῆς ἀντιπροσώπου ῥύσεως πρὸς τὸν Ἀδριατικὸν κόλπον.
Nor must we pass over without examination the history of those who have declared that the Argonauts sailed up the Ister to its sources and were carried down through the opposing flow of water into the Adriatic gulf.
§4.56.8τούτους γὰρ ὁ χρόνος ἤλεγξεν ὑπολαβοντας τὸν ἐν τῷ Πόντῳ πλείοσι στόμασιν ἐξερευγόμενον Ἴστρον καὶ τὸν εἰς τὸν Ἀδρίαν ἐκβάλλοντα τὴν ῥύσιν ἔχειν ἀπὸ τῶν αὐτῶν τόπων.
For time has refuted those who supposed that the Ister which empties by several mouths into the Pontus and the river which discharges its flow into the Adriatic have their rise from the same regions.
Ῥωμαίων γὰρ καταπολεμησάντων τὸ τῶν Ἴστρων ἔθνος, εὑρέθη τὰς πηγὰς ἔχων ὁ ποταμὸς ἀπὸ τετταράκοντα σταδίων τῆς θαλάττης.
For when the Romans subdued the nation of the Istrians, the river was found to have its sources only forty stades from the sea.
ἀλλὰ γὰρ τοῖς συγγραφεῦσιν αἰτίαν τῆς πλάνης φασὶ γενέσθαι τὴν ὁμωνυμίαν τῶν ποταμῶν.
But indeed, they say that the cause of the error for the historians was the homonymy of the rivers.