Humanitext Reader

Bacchylides · Epinician Odes §7.1-7.11

Praise of the Olympic Day and Lachon's Crown

Passage 8 of 16 · Greek

Summary

The poet praises the specific day of the Olympic games as the daughter of Time and Night, celebrating her bestowing the crown of victory upon Lachon.

§7.1ὦ λιπαρὰ θύγατερ Χρόνου τε κ[αὶ §7.2Νυκτός, σὲ πεντήκοντα μηνῶν ἁμέραν §7.3ἑκκαιδεκάταν ἐν Ὀλυμπ[ίᾳ ˘¯
O radiant daughter of Time and Night, you, the sixteenth day of fifty months in Olympia,...
§7.4!!!]β̣αρυβρ[!!!!!!!!!!!!!] ἕκατι §7.5!!!]ι̣τοσαιμα̣[
by the will of [heavy]-thun[dering Zeus],...
§7.6κρίνειν τα[χυτᾶτά τε] λαιψηρῶν ποδῶν §7.7Ἕλλασι καὶ γυίων ἀρισταλκὲς σθένος· §7.8ᾧ δὲ σὺ πρεσβύτατον νείμῃς γέρας §7.9νίκας ἐπʼ ἀνθρώποισιν εὔδοξος κέκλη- §7.10ται καὶ πολυζήλωτος.
to judge the [swiftness] of rapid feet and the supreme strength of limbs for the Greeks; and to whomsoever you distribute the most ancient (highest) prize of victory, he is called famous among men and much-envied.
Ἀρ[ιστομένει]ον §7.11νῦν γ]ʼ ἐκόσμη[σας στε]φάν[οισι Λάχω]να
Now indeed, you have adorned Lachon, [son] of Aristomenes, with [wreaths].

Notes

  1. §7.2σὲ πεντήκοντα μηνῶν ἁμέραν — The accusative `σὲ` (and its appositive `ἁμέραν`) functions either as the object of a missing main verb (e.g., "Zeus appointed you [as judge]") in the lacuna, or as an accusative of exclamation/address.
  2. §7.6κρίνειν — The infinitive `κρίνειν` ("to judge") expresses purpose or result, depending on the implicit main verb governing the accusative `σὲ`.
  3. §7.8ᾧ δὲ σὺ πρεσβύτατον νείμῃς γέρας — The combination of the relative pronoun `ᾧ` and the subjunctive `νείμῃς` without the particle `ἄν` forms a generalizing relative clause ("to whomsoever you distribute"), a construction common in epic and lyric poetry.

Cite this passage

Bacchylides, Epinician Odes §7.1-7.11. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0199.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:7.1-7.11

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