§7.6.2ἀπὸ μὲν οὖν τῆς ἄκρας τῆς τὸ πενταστάδιον ποιούσης ἐπὶ τὸν ὑπὸ τῇ Συκῇ καλούμενον λιμένα στάδιοι πέντε καὶ τριάκοντα, ἐντεῦθεν δʼ ἐπὶ τὸ Κέρας τὸ Βυζαντίων πέντε.
Thus, from the promontory which makes the strait five stadia wide to the harbor called 'Under the Fig-tree' (Syce) is thirty-five stadia, and from there to the Horn of the Byzantines is five.
ἔστι δὲ τὸ Κέρας προσεχὴς τῷ Βυζαντίων τείχει κόλπος ἀνέχων ὡς πρὸς δύσιν ἐπὶ σταδίους ἑξήκοντα, ἐοικὼς ἐλάφου κέρατι· εἰς γὰρ πλείστους σχίζεται κόλπους ὡς ἂν κλάδους τινάς, εἰς οὓς ἐμπίπτουσα ἡ πηλαμὺς ἁλίσκεται ῥᾳδίως διά τε τὸ πλῆθος αὐτῆς καὶ τὴν βίαν τοῦ συνελαύνοντος ῥοῦ καὶ τὴν στενότητα τῶν κόλπων, ὥστε καὶ χερσὶν ἁλίσκεσθαι.
The Horn is a gulf adjacent to the wall of Byzantium, extending about sixty stadia towards the west, resembling a stag's horn; for it is split into very many inlets like branches, into which the pelamyd (young tunny) rushes and is easily caught, both because of its great numbers and the force of the current that drives it in, and the narrowness of the inlets, so that it can even be caught with the hands.
γεννᾶται μὲν οὖν τὸ ζῷον ἐν τοῖς ἕλεσι τῆς Μαιώτιδος, ἰσχῦσαν δὲ μικρὸν ἐκπίπτει διὰ τοῦ στόματος ἀγεληδὸν καὶ φέρεται παρὰ τὴν Ἀσιανὴν ᾐόνα μέχρι Τραπεζοῦντος καὶ Φαρνακείας·
Now, this creature is spawned in the marshes of Maeotis, and when it has gained a little strength it rushes out through the mouth in shoals and is carried along the Asian shore as far as Trapezus and Pharnacia.
ἐνταῦθα δὲ πρῶτον συνίστασθαι συμβαίνει τὴν θήραν, οὐ πολλὴ δʼ ἐστίν· οὐ γάρ πω τὸ προσῆκον ἔχει μέγεθος·
And here the fishing first begins, though it is not abundant, for the fish has not yet attained its proper size.
εἰς δὲ Σινώπην προϊοῦσα ὡραιοτέρα πρός τε τὴν θήραν καὶ τὴν ταριχείαν ἐστίν·
But as it goes on towards Sinope, it becomes more mature both for catching and for salting.
ἐπειδὰν δὲ ἤδη συνάψῃ ταῖς Κυανέαις καὶ παραλλάξῃ ταύτας, ἐκ τῆς Χαλκηδονιακῆς ἀκτῆς λευκή τις πέτρα προπίπτουσα φοβεῖ τὸ ζῷον ὥστʼ εὐθὺς εἰς τὴν περαίαν τρέπεσθαι· παραλαβὼν δʼ ὁ ἐνταῦθα ῥοῦς, ἅμα καὶ τῶν τόπων εὐφυῶν ὄντων πρὸς τὸ τὸν ἐκεῖ ῥοῦν τῆς θαλάττης ἐπὶ τὸ Βυζάντιον καὶ τὸ πρὸς αὐτῷ Κέρας τετράφθαι, φυσικῶς συνελαύνεται δεῦρο καὶ παρέχει τοῖς Βυζαντίοις καὶ τῷ δήμῳ τῶν Ῥωμαίων πρόσοδον ἀξιόλογον.
And when it has already reached the Cyaneae and passed them, a certain white rock projecting from the Chalcedonian shore frightens the creature, so that it immediately turns to the opposite shore; then the current of that place takes it, and at the same time, since the topography is naturally suited for directing the current of the sea there towards Byzantium and the Horn adjacent to it, the fish is naturally driven here and provides a considerable revenue both to the Byzantines and to the Roman people.
Χαλκηδόνιοι δʼ ἐπὶ τῆς περαίας ἱδρυμένοι πλησίον οὐ μετέχουσι τῆς εὐπορίας ταύτης διὰ τὸ μὴ προσπελάζειν τοῖς λιμέσιν αὐτῶν τὴν πηλαμύδα· ᾗ δὴ καὶ τὸν Ἀπόλλω φασὶ τοῖς κτίσασι τὸ Βυζάντιον ὕστερον μετὰ τὴν ὑπὸ Μεγαρέων Χαλκηδόνος κτίσιν χρηστηριαζομένοις προστάξαι ποιήσασθαι τὴν ἵδρυσιν ἀπεναντίον τῶν τυφλῶν, τυφλοὺς καλέσαντα τοὺς Χαλκηδονίους, ὅτι πρότεροι πλεύσαντες τοὺς τόπους, ἀφέντες τὴν πέραν κατασχεῖν τοσοῦτον πλοῦτον ἔχουσαν, εἵλοντο τὴν λυπροτέραν.
The Chalcedonians, on the other hand, though established near by on the opposite shore, do not share in this abundance, because the pelamyd does not approach their harbors; wherefore they say that Apollo, when the founders of Byzantium consulted his oracle later, after the founding of Chalcedon by the Megarians, commanded them to make their settlement 'opposite the blind,' calling the Chalcedonians 'blind,' because although they sailed to these places earlier, they passed over the opposite shore which possessed such great wealth, and chose the poorer one.
μέχρι μὲν δὴ Βυζαντίου προήλθομεν, ἐπειδὴ πόλις ἐπιφανὴς πλησιάζουσα μάλιστα τῷ στόματι εἰς γνωριμώτερον πέρας ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἴστρου τὸν παράπλουν τελευτῶντα ἀπέφαινεν.
Now we have advanced as far as Byzantium, since this illustrious city, situated very close to the mouth, showed that our coastal voyage from the Ister came to an end at a more familiar limit.
ὑπέρκειται δὲ τοῦ Βυζαντίου τὸ τῶν Ἀστῶν ἔθνος, ἐν ᾧ πόλις Καλύβη, Φιλίππου τοῦ Ἀμύντου τοὺς πονηροτάτους ἐνταῦθα ἱδρύσαντος.
Above Byzantium lies the territory of the Astae, in which is the city of Calybe, where Philip, the son of Amyntas, settled the most wicked of his subjects.