Humanitext Reader

Strabo · Geography §1.4.5-1.4.6

Eratosthenes' Length of the World and Multiple Inhabited Zones

Passage 44 of 577 · Greek

Summary

Strabo criticizes Eratosthenes' excessive estimation of the length of the inhabited world to compensate for his error in its width, reviews his distance calculations, and argues that multiple inhabited worlds can exist in the same temperate zone.

§1.4.5διαμαρτὼν δὲ τοῦ πλάτους ἠνάγκασται καὶ τοῦ μήκους ἀστοχεῖν.
But having erred in the breadth, he has been compelled to miss the mark in the length as well.
ὅτι μὲν γὰρ πλέον ἢ διπλάσιον τὸ γνώριμον μῆκός ἐστι τοῦ γνωρίμου πλάτους, ὁμολογοῦσι καὶ οἱ ὕστερον καὶ τῶν παλαιῶν οἱ χαριέστατοι· λέγω δὲ τὸ ἀπὸ τῶν ἄκρων τῆς Ἰνδικῆς ἐπὶ τὰ ἄκρα τῆς Ἰβηρίας, τοῦ ἀπʼ Αἰθιόπων ἕως τοῦ κατὰ Ἰέρνην κύκλου.
For that the known length is more than double the known breadth is agreed upon both by later writers and by the most accomplished of the ancients; I mean that from the extremities of India to the extremities of Iberia, and that from the Ethiopians to the parallel through Ierne.
ὁρίσας δὲ τὸ λεχθὲν πλάτος, τὸ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐσχάτων Αἰθιόπων μέχρι τοῦ διὰ Θούλης ἐκτείνει πλέον ἢ δεῖ τὸ μῆκος, ἵνα ποιήσῃ πλέον ἢ διπλάσιον τοῦ λεχθέντος πλάτους.
But having defined the aforementioned breadth, from the ultimate Ethiopians to the parallel through Thule, he extends the length more than is necessary, in order that he may make it more than double the aforementioned breadth.
φησὶ δʼ οὖν τὸ μὲν τῆς Ἰνδικῆς μέχρι τοῦ Ἰνδοῦ ποταμοῦ τὸ στενώτατον σταδίων μυρίων ἑξακισχιλίων (τὸ γὰρ ἐπὶ τὰ ἀκρωτήρια τεῖνον τρισχιλίοις εἶναι μεῖζον), τὸ δὲ ἔνθεν ἐπὶ Κασπίους πύλας μυρίων τετρακισχιλίων, εἶτʼ ἐπὶ τὸν Εὐφράτην μυρίων, ἐπὶ δὲ τὸν Νεῖλον ἀπὸ τοῦ Εὐφράτου πεντακισχιλίων, ἄλλους δὲ χιλίους καὶ τριακοσίους μέχρι Κανωβικοῦ στόματος, εἶτα μέχρι τῆς Καρχηδόνος μυρίους τρισχιλίους πεντακοσίους, εἶτα μέχρι στηλῶν ὀκτακισχιλίους τοὐλάχιστον· ὑπεραίρειν δὴ τῶν ἑπτὰ μυριάδων ὀκτακοσίους.
At any rate, he says that the distance from the extremity of India to the Indus River at the narrowest part is 16,000 stadia (for the part extending to the promontories is 3,000 larger), thence to the Caspian Gates 14,000, then to the Euphrates 10,000, and to the Nile from the Euphrates 5,000, and another 1,300 to the Canopic mouth, then to Carthage 13,500, then to the Pillars at least 8,000; so that it exceeds 70,000 by 800.
δεῖν δὲ ἔτι προσθεῖναι τὸ ἐκτὸς Ἡρακλείων στηλῶν κύρτωμα τῆς Εὐρώπης, ἀντικείμενον μὲν τοῖς Ἴβηρσι προπεπτωκὸς δὲ πρὸς τὴν ἑσπέραν, οὐκ ἔλαττον σταδίων τρισχιλίων, καὶ τὰ ἀκρωτήρια τά τε ἄλλα καὶ τὸ τῶν Ὠστιμίων, ὃ καλεῖται Κάβαιον, καὶ τὰς κατὰ τοῦτο νήσους, ὧν τὴν ἐσχάτην Οὐξισάμην φησὶ Πυθέας ἀπέχειν ἡμερῶν τριῶν πλοῦν.
And he says that we must further add the curvature of Europe outside the Pillars of Heracles, which lies opposite to the Iberians and projects toward the west, not less than 3,000 stadia, and the other promontories, especially that of the Ostimioi, which is called Kabaion, and the islands near this, of which the farthest, Uxisame, Pytheas says is distant a three days' sail.
ταῦτα δʼ εἰπὼν τὰ τελευταῖα οὐδὲν πρὸς τὸ μῆκος συντείνοντα προσέθηκε τὰ περὶ τῶν ἀκρωτηρίων καὶ τῶν Ὠστιμίων καὶ τῆς Οὐξισάμης καὶ ὧν φησι νήσων· ταῦτα γὰρ πάντα προσάρκτιά ἐστι καὶ Κελτικά, οὐκ Ἰβηρικά, μᾶλλον δὲ Πυθέου πλάσματα.
But having said these last things, he added the accounts concerning the promontories, the Ostimioi, Uxisame, and the islands he mentions, which contribute nothing to the length; for all these are northern and Celtic, not Iberian, or rather, they are inventions of Pytheas.
προστίθησί τε τοῖς εἰρημένοις τοῦ μήκους διαστήμασιν ἄλλους σταδίους δισχιλίους μὲν πρὸς τῇ δύσει, δισχιλίους δὲ πρὸς τῇ ἀνατολῇ, ἵνα σώσῃ τὸ πλέον ἢ διπλάσιον τὸ μῆκος τοῦ πλάτους εἶναι.
And he adds to the aforementioned distances of the length another 2,000 stadia on the west, and 2,000 on the east, in order that he may preserve the relation that the length is more than double the breadth.
§1.4.6παραμυθούμενος δʼ ἐπὶ πλέον, ὅτι κατὰ φύσιν ἐστὶ τὸ ἀπὸ ἀνατολῆς ἐπὶ δύσιν διάστημα μεῖζον λέγειν, κατὰ φύσιν φησὶν εἶναι ἀπὸ τῆς ἕω πρὸς τὴν ἑσπέραν μακροτέραν εἶναι τὴν οἰκουμένην, καθάπερ εἰρήκαμεν· ὡς οἱ μαθηματικοί φασι, κύκλον συνάπτειν, συμβάλλουσαν αὐτὴν ἑαυτῇ, ὥστʼ εἰ μὴ τὸ μέγεθος τοῦ Ἀτλαντικοῦ πελάγους ἐκώλυε, κἂν πλεῖν ἡμᾶς ἐκ τῆς Ἰβηρίας εἰς τὴν Ἰνδικὴν διὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ παραλλήλου, τὸ λοιπὸν μέρος παρὰ τὸ λεχθὲν διάστημα ὑπὲρ τὸ τρίτον μέρος ὂν τοῦ ὅλου κύκλου· εἴπερ ὁ διʼ Ἀθηνῶν ἐλάττων ἐστὶν εἴκοσι μυριάδων, ὅπου πεποιήμεθα τὸν εἰρημένον σταδιασμὸν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰνδικῆς εἰς τὴν Ἰβηρίαν.
And, justifying himself further that it is in accordance with nature to state that the distance from east to west is greater, he says that it is in accordance with nature for the inhabited world to be longer from the east to the west, just as we have said; namely, as the mathematicians say, that it forms a continuous circle, meeting itself, so that if the size of the Atlantic Ocean did not prevent it, we might even sail from Iberia to India along the same parallel, the remaining part besides the aforementioned distance being more than a third of the whole circle, if indeed the parallel through Athens, along which we have made the aforementioned measurement of stadia from India to Iberia, is less than 200,000.
οὐδὲ ταῦτα οὖν εὖ λέγει· οὗτος γὰρ ὁ λόγος περὶ μὲν τῆς εὐκράτου καὶ καθʼ ἡμᾶς ζώνης λέγοιτʼ ἂν κατὰ τοὺς μαθηματικούς, ἧς μέρος ἡ οἰκουμένη ἐστί, περὶ δὲ τῆς οἰκουμένης καλοῦμεν γὰρ οἰκουμένην ἣν οἰκοῦμεν καὶ γνωρίζομεν·
Therefore, not even in these things does he speak well; for this argument might be said, according to the mathematicians, concerning the temperate zone in which we live, of which the inhabited world is a part, but not concerning the inhabited world itself.
ἐνδέχεται δὲ ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ εὐκράτῳ ζώνῃ καὶ δύο οἰκουμένας εἶναι ἢ καὶ πλείους, καὶ μάλιστα ἐγγὺς τοῦ διʼ Ἀθηνῶν κύκλου τοῦ διὰ τοῦ Ἀτλαντικοῦ πελάγους γραφομένου.
For we call inhabited world that which we inhabit and know; but it is possible that within the same temperate zone there are even two inhabited worlds, or more, especially near the parallel of Athens drawn through the Atlantic Ocean.
πάλιν δὲ ἐπιμένων τῇ περὶ τοῦ σφαιροειδῆ τὴν γῆν εἶναι ἀποδείξει τῆς αὐτῆς ἐπιτιμήσεως ἂν τυγχάνοι.
And again, if he insists on the proof concerning the earth being spherical, he would meet with the same censure.
ὡς δʼ αὕτως καὶ πρὸς τὸν Ὅμηρον οὐ παύεται περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν διαφερόμενος.
And in the same way, he does not cease disputing with Homer about the same things.

Notes

  1. 1.4.5ὑπεραίρειν δὴ τῶν ἑπτὰ μυριάδων ὀκτακοσίους. — The infinitive ὑπεραίρειν is part of the indirect discourse reporting Eratosthenes' text. The figure of 70,800 stadia exactly matches the sum of the individual distances he mentions from India to the Pillars (16,000 + 14,000 + 10,000 + 5,000 + 1,300 + 13,500 + 8,000 = 67,800), with the addition of the 3,000 stadia for the projection of India.
  2. 1.4.6κἂν πλεῖν ἡμᾶς ἐκ τῆς Ἰβηρίας εἰς τὴν Ἰνδικὴν διὰ τοῦ αὐτοῦ παραλλήλου — κἂν is a crasis of καὶ ἄν. Within the result clause introduced by ὥστε, the particle ἄν combined with the infinitive πλεῖν (with ἡμᾶς as its subject accusative) expresses a counterfactual or potential condition ("we might even sail"), corresponding to the unreal conditional protasis εἰ μὴ ... ἐκώλυε.
  3. 1.4.6τὸ λοιπὸν μέρος παρὰ τὸ λεχθὲν διάστημα ὑπὲρ τὸ τρίτον μέρος ὂν τοῦ ὅλου κύκλου — The preposition παρά with the accusative τὸ λεχθὲν διάστημα functions in the sense of "excepting" or "subtracting." The participle ὄν (neuter nominative singular) agrees with τὸ λοιπὸν μέρος (the remaining part), functioning as a nominative absolute to form a self-standing phrasal clause.
  4. 1.4.6πάλιν δὲ ἐπιμένων τῇ περὶ τοῦ σφαιροειδῆ τὴν γῆν εἶναι ἀποδείξει τῆς αὐτῆς ἐπιτιμήσεως ἂν τυγχάνοι. — The nominative participle ἐπιμένων functions as a conditional protasis ("if he insists on..."), cooperating with the potential optative ἂν τυγχάνοι in the main clause to form a conditional structure.

Cite this passage

Strabo, Geography §1.4.5-1.4.6. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0099.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.4.5-1.4.6

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