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Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §5.16.1-5.16.3

Geography of Pityoussa and the Colony of Eresos

Passage 338 of 406 · Greek

Summary

Shifting the focus from Sardo to the island of Pityoussa, the author describes its location, size, and products, before detailing the history and current state of the Carthaginian colony of Eresos situated there.

§5.16.1ἡμεῖς δʼ ἀρκούντως εἰρηκότες περὶ τῆς Σαρδόνος διέξιμεν περὶ τῶν ἑξῆς κειμένων νήσων.
Since we have spoken sufficiently about Sardo, we shall proceed to describe the islands that lie next.
μετὰ γὰρ τὰς προειρημένας νῆσός ἐστιν ὀνομαζομένη μὲν Πιτυοῦσσα, τὴν δὲ προσηγορίαν ἔχουσα ἀπὸ τοῦ πλήθους τῶν κατʼ αὐτὴν φυομένων πιτύων.
For after the aforementioned islands, there is one called Pityoussa, which takes its name from the abundance of the pine trees growing on it.
πελαγία δʼ οὖσα διέστηκεν ἀπὸ μὲν Ἡρακλέους στηλῶν πλοῦν ἡμερῶν τριῶν καὶ τῶν ἴσων νυκτῶν, ἀπὸ δὲ Λιβύης ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτός, ἀπὸ δʼ Ἰβηρίας μιᾶς ἡμέρας· κατὰ δὲ τὸ μέγεθος παραπλήσιός ἐστι Κορκύρᾳ.
Being in the open sea, it is distant from the Pillars of Heracles a voyage of three days and as many nights, from Libya a day and a night, and from Iberia one day; and in size it is very similar to Corcyra.
§5.16.2κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἀρετὴν οὖσα μετρία τὴν μὲν ἀμπελόφυτον χώραν ὀλίγην ἔχει, τὰς δʼ ἐλαίας ἐμπεφυτευμένας ἐν τοῖς κοτίνοις.
While it is moderate in fertility, it has little land planted with vines, and has olives grafted onto wild olive trees.
τῶν δὲ φυομένων ἐν αὐτῇ καλλιστεύειν φασὶ τὴν μαλακότητα τῶν ἐρίων.
They say that of the products growing on it, the softness of the wool is the most excellent.
διειλημμένη δὲ πεδίοις ἀξιολόγοις καὶ γεωλόφοις πόλιν ἔχει τὴν ὀνομαζομένην Ἔρεσον, ἄποικον Καρχηδονίων.
Divided by notable plains and hills, it has a city called Eresos, a colony of the Carthaginians.
§5.16.3ἔχει δὲ καὶ λιμένας ἀξιολόγους καὶ τειχῶν κατασκευὰς εὐμεγέθεις καὶ οἰκιῶν πλῆθος εὖ κατασκευασμένων.
And it has also notable harbors, very large constructions of walls, and a multitude of well-built houses.
κατοικοῦσι δʼ αὐτὴν βάρβαροι παντοδαποί, πλεῖστοι δὲ Φοίνικες.
Barbarians of all kinds inhabit it, but the majority are Phoenicians.
ὁ δʼ ἀποικισμὸς αὐτῆς γέγονεν ὕστερον ἔτεσιν ἑκατὸν ἑξήκοντα τῆς κατὰ τὴν Καρχηδόνα κτίσεως.
And its colonization took place one hundred and sixty years after the founding of Carthage.

Notes

  1. 5.16.1διέξιμεν — First-person plural future active indicative of the compound verb διέρχομαι, which is identical in form to the present indicative. Here, it functions as a future tense expressing the author's intention ('we shall proceed to describe').
  2. 5.16.1πλοῦν — An accusative of extent of space (distance) used with the intransitive verb διέστηκεν ('is distant').
  3. 5.16.2ἐμπεφυτευμένας ἐν τοῖς κοτίνοις — The verb ἐμφυτεύω can mean 'to graft,' referring here to the ancient agricultural practice where cultivated olive trees are grafted onto wild olive (κότινος) rootstocks.
  4. 5.16.3ὕστερον ἔτεσιν ἑκατὸν ἑξήκοντα τῆς κατὰ τὴν Καρχηδόνα κτίσεως — ἔτεσιν is a dative of degree of difference ('by 160 years'), while τῆς ... κτίσεως is a genitive of comparison governed by the adverb ὕστερον ('later'), which functions comparative-like.

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §5.16.1-5.16.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc5:5.16.1-5.16.3

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