§250ἔτους τερπομένους, ἅτε καὶ τοὺς μουσικωτάτους τῶν θεῶν ἑαυτοῦ πολίτας τε καὶ ἐνοίκους ἔχων Ἀπόλλω τε καὶ Ἄρτεμιν, οὓς ὁ πάντων πατὴρ Ζεὺς ὡς ἐν καλλίστῳ τούτῳ τῆς οἰκουμένης ἔφυσεν, ἵνʼ εἶεν τέλειοι τὴν μουσικὴν, καὶ τὴν Λητὼ διὰ τριῶν ἑτέρων νήσων ἤγαγεν εἰς μέσην ἐν μέσῳ τῷ Αἰγαίῳ τὴν Δῆλον, Ἀθηνᾶν ἡγεμόνα ποιησάμενος αὐτῇ τῆς ὁδοῦ.
enjoying themselves in the season of the year, especially since it has Apollo and Artemis, the most musical of the gods, as its own citizens and inhabitants, whom Zeus the father of all begat in this most beautiful part of the inhabited world, so that they might be perfect in music, and he led Leto through three other islands into Delos, which is in the very middle of the middle of the Aegean, having made Athena the guide of her journey.
δῆλον δὲ καὶ παντὶ τοῦ πελάγους τὸ φύσει μουσικὸν, ὅ γε εὐθὺς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἀνῆκεν ὥσπερ ἄλλον τινὰ χορὸν τὸν τῶν νήσων, αἳ διειληφυῖαι τὸ πέλαγος πολλαὶ πρὸς ἀλλήλας κεκλιμέναι παντὸς κύκλου διθυραμβικοῦ θέαμα ἱερώτερον ναύταις τε καὶ ἐπιβάταις φαίνονται, κινδύνων τε παραψυχὴ καὶ κατὰ νοῦν ἰόντος πλοῦ ψυχαγωγία θαυμαστή.
And the naturally musical character of the sea is clear to everyone, in that from the very beginning it sent up, as if it were another choir, that of the islands, which, dividing the sea, being many and inclined toward one another, appear to sailors and passengers as a sight more sacred than any dithyrambic circle, a consolation for dangers and a wonderful delight for a voyage going according to one's mind.
πᾶσαι γὰρ ἀλλήλων ἔξω τε καὶ μέσαι εἰσὶν, ὥσπερ ὅταν θέρους ὥρᾳ καὶ πρὶν ζέφυρον κατιέναι πλοῖα κατʼ ἰχθύων θήραν σαλεύῃ πολλὰ, καὶ παρελθόντι εἴσω τά τε ἐκ πρύμνης καὶ τὰ ἐκ πρῴρας καὶ τοῖχος ἑκάτερος πάντα ὁμοίως εἰς νῆσον τελευτᾷ, ὥστε ἀπορῆσαι τὴν πρώτην ὅπη καὶ χρὴ διεξελθεῖν.
For they are all both outside and in the middle of one another, just as in the summer season, even before the west wind comes down, many boats toss about for the catching of fish, and for one who has entered inside, the things from the stern, the things from the prow, and each of the two sides all alike end in an island, so that at first one is at a loss as to where one must pass through.
ὅπερ δὲ τὰ ἐπιβοηθοῦντα σκάφη, τοῦτο αὗται ποιοῦσιν αἱ νῆσοι τοῖς χειμαζομένοις, ἀπαντῶσιν οἷον χεῖρα ὀρέγουσαι καὶ καλοῦσαι παρʼ αὑτάς.
And what succoring vessels do, these islands do for those who are storm-tossed, meeting them as if stretching out a hand and calling them to themselves.
τοιαῦτα τοῦ Αἰγαίου τὰ φιλοτεχνήματα, ἀναμίξαντος ὁμοῦ τῷ πελάγει τὴν γῆν, ὥσπερ αἱ στικταί τε ἔλαφοι καὶ τῶν παρδαλέων δοραὶ τὰς χρόας καὶ τοὺς κύκλους ἀναμὶξ ἔχουσιν, οἷσπερ περιλάμπεται μὲν αἴγλῃ πᾶσα ἡ ταύτῃ θάλαττα, ἀπολείπονται δὲ λειμῶνες ἐν ἠπείροις ἀνθῶν κατάπλεῳ, καὶ ὅ τις ἄλλο ἐπινοήσειε ταύτης τῆς ὥρας καὶ τούτων τῶν ποικιλμάτων· εἰκότως.
Such are the artistic devices of the Aegean, mixing the land together with the sea, just as dapples on deer and the skins of leopards have colors and circles mixed together, by which all the sea in this region is illuminated with brilliance, while meadows on continents full of flowers, and whatever else one might think of in this season and of these varieties, are left behind; naturally.
τὰ μὲν γὰρ κατʼ ἤπειρον πάντα καὶ ἐνταῦθα ἐστὶν ἐν ταῖς ἐν μέσῳ χώραις, τὸ δὲ τούτου κάλλος ἐκείναις οὐ πρόσεστιν.
For all the things on the continent are also present here in the regions in the middle, but the beauty of this is not present in those.
ὥσπερ δὲ οὐρανὸς τοῖς ἄστροις κεκόσμηται, οὕτω καὶ τὸ τοῦ Αἰγαίου πέλαγος ταῖς νήσοις κεκόσμηται· ὥσθʼ ὅτῳ καὶ μὴ δεῖ πλοῦ, τούτου γʼ ἂν ἕνεκα αὐτοῦ πλεύσειεν εἰκότως, τοῦ διʼ Αἰγαίου §251κομισθῆναι· οὕτω καὶ πελαγῶν καὶ τῶν ἐν τῇ γῇ πάντων οὗτος ὡραιότατος.
And just as the sky is adorned with stars, so also the Aegean Sea is adorned with the islands; so that even for one who has no need of a voyage, for the sake of this very thing he would naturally sail, in order to be carried through the Aegean; so also of seas and of all things on the earth, this is the most beautiful.
ὥστε καὶ σύμβολόν ἐστι τοῦ Αἰγαίου τὸ τῆς εὐμορφίας ἴδιον καὶ ἐντεῦθεν ἄρχεται ὅθεν ὡς εἰπεῖν αἱ νῆσοι εἶναι ἄρχονται τὴν ψιλὴν ὑπερβάλλοντι θάλατταν.
So that the peculiarity of beauty is indeed a symbol of the Aegean, and it begins from there, whence, so to speak, the islands begin to exist, surpassing the bare sea.
μόνον δὲ Αἰγαῖον οὐδὲ ἀτρύγετον ἔξεστιν εἰπεῖν, οὐ γὰρ γυμνὸς οὐδὲ ἄκαρπός ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ διαφερόντως μὲν εὔοινος, εὔφορος καὶ σίτου καὶ πάντων ὁπόσα ὧραι φύουσιν, εὔιχθυς δὲ καὶ εὔθηρος οἵαν μάλιστα Ὅμηρος εἶναι ἔφη τὴν τῶν εὐδαιμόνων δεῖν θάλατταν, χρείας πάσας καὶ πάσας ἡδονὰς καὶ θεάματα ἔχων, μεστὸς μὲν λιμένων, μεστὸς δὲ ἱερῶν, μεστὸς δʼ αὐλῶν καὶ παιάνων καὶ πηγῶν καὶ ποταμῶν, Διονύσου μὲν τροφεὺς ὢν, Διοσκούροις δὲ καὶ Νύμφαις ὁμοίως κεχαρισμένος· βίους εὐδαίμονας ἀπὸ παντὸς εἴδους παρεχόμενος, ἐνοίκοις τε αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐμπόροις ἐπικερδὴς καὶ σωτήριος οἷς ἂν εὐμενὴς ᾖ.
And the Aegean alone is not even permitted to be called "barren," for it is neither bare nor unfruitful, but preeminently rich in wine, fertile both in corn and in all things that the seasons produce, and rich in fish and rich in game, such as Homer especially said the sea of the blessed ought to be, having all needs and all pleasures and sights, full of harbors, full of temples, full of flutes and paeans and springs and rivers, being the fosterer of Dionysus, and equally pleasing to the Dioscuri and the Nymphs; providing happy lives of every kind, profitable and saving to its inhabitants and merchants, to whomsoever it may be favorable.
ὥσπερ δὲ καλοῦ σώματος εἰσὶν ἀρχαὶ καὶ τέλη πρέποντα, οὕτω καὶ τούτου τοῦ πελάγους κινδυνεύει μόνου καὶ ἀρχὴ καὶ τέλος εἶναι κεχαρισμένον.
And just as a beautiful body has fitting beginnings and ends, so also this sea alone is likely to have both a pleasing beginning and end.
ἄρχεται μὲν γὰρ ἀπὸ τοῦ πρώτου στοίχου τῶν νήσων τῶν πρὸς μεσημβρίαν, τελευτᾷ δὲ εἰς τὸν Ἑλλησπόντιον πορθμὸν, ὃν περιρρυεὶς τὴν ἀξιοθέατον χερρόνησον ποιεῖ.
For it begins from the first row of the islands toward the south, and ends in the Hellespontine strait, which flowing around, it makes the remarkable peninsula.
ὥστε τὸ δὴ λεγόμενον ἐκ κεφαλῆς εἰς πόδας αὐτῷ διήκει τὸ κάλλος.
So that, as the saying goes, its beauty extends from head to foot.
τοὺς δʼ ἀπόρρους αὐτοῦ καὶ κόλπους οὔτε ὅσοι τὸ πλῆθος οὔτε οἷοι τὸ κάλλος ἔστιν εἰπεῖν.
And its outlets and gulfs, it is impossible to say either how many they are in number or of what kind they are in beauty.
μάλιστα δὲ Αἰγαῖον πέλαγος δεδιότες μάλιστα καὶ ποθοῦσιν ἅπαντες δεύτερον περαιωθῆναι, ἐπεὶ καὶ ἐπʼ αἰτίαις ἡδίσταις τοῦτον ἄνθρωποι περαιοῦνται.
And all dreading the Aegean Sea most, also especially long to cross it a second time, since indeed men cross this for the sweetest reasons.
ἀγῶνες καὶ μυστήρια καὶ τὰ τῆς Ἑλλάδος καλὰ πληροῖ τοῦτον τὸν στόλον, καὶ τῶν πανταχόθεν φιλοκάλων καὶ γενναίων οὗτός ἐστι συναγωγεὺς καὶ πληρωτὴς τῶν ἡδίστων θεαμάτων τοῖς ἐπιφανεστάτοις τῶν θεῶν τὰ κάλλιστα ὑπηρετῶν.
Contests and mysteries and the beautiful things of Greece fill this fleet, and of those who love beauty and the noble from all sides, this is the gatherer and the supplier of the sweetest sights, serving the fairest things to the most illustrious of the gods.
ταῦτά σοι παρʼ ἡμῶν, ὦ φίλε σωτὴρ Αἰγαῖε, ᾔσθω τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ μουσικῇ.
These things from us, O dear savior Aegean, let them be sung by our music.
σὺ δὲ ἡσθεὶς σῶζε ἀεὶ σαυτόν τε καὶ σύμπλους.
And do you, being pleased, always save both yourself and those sailing with you.