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Pausanias · Description of Greece §10.16.1-10.16.8

The Iron Stand of Alyattes and the Omphalos

Passage 431 of 465 · Greek

Summary

The author details the structure of Alyattes' iron stand dedicated at Delphi, followed by descriptions of the Omphalos as the center of the earth and the diverse offerings of Elyrus, Carystus, and Lipara with their historical origins.

§10.16.1τῶν δὲ ἀναθημάτων ἃ οἱ βασιλεῖς ἀπέστειλαν οἱ Λυδῶν, οὐδὲν ἔτι ἦν αὐτῶν εἰ μὴ σιδηροῦν μόνον τὸ ὑπόθημα τοῦ Ἀλυάττου κρατῆρος.
Of the offerings which the kings of the Lydians sent, nothing was left any longer except only the iron stand of the crater of Alyattes.
τοῦτο Γλαύκου μέν ἐστιν ἔργον τοῦ Χίου, σιδήρου κόλλησιν ἀνδρὸς εὑρόντος·
This is the work of Glaucus of Chios, the man who invented the welding of iron.
ἔλασμα δὲ ἕκαστον τοῦ ὑποθήματος ἐλάσματι ἄλλῳ προσεχὲς οὐ περόναις ἐστὶν ἢ κέντροις, μόνη δὲ ἡ κόλλα συνέχει τε καὶ ἔστιν αὕτη τῷ σιδήρῳ δεσμός.
Each plate of the stand is joined to another plate not by pins or rivets, but the weld alone holds them together and is itself the binding for the iron.
§10.16.2σχῆμα δὲ τοῦ ὑποθήματος κατὰ πύργον μάλιστα ἐς μύουρον ἀνιόντα ἀπὸ εὐρυτέρου τοῦ κάτω·
The shape of the stand is very like a tower rising to a narrow top from a wider base below.
ἑκάστη δὲ πλευρὰ τοῦ ὑποθήματος οὐ διὰ πάσης πέφρακται, ἀλλά εἰσιν αἱ πλάγιαι τοῦ σιδήρου ζῶναι ὥσπερ ἐν κλίμακι οἱ ἀναβασμοί·
Each side of the stand is not blocked up all through, but there are transverse bands of iron like the rungs on a ladder.
τὰ δὲ ἐλάσματα τοῦ σιδήρου τὰ ὀρθὰ ἀνέστραπται κατὰ τὰ ἄκρα ἐς τὸ ἐκτός, καὶ ἕδρα τοῦτο ἦν τῷ κρατῆρι.
The upright plates of the iron are turned outwards at their extremities, and this was the seat for the crater.
§10.16.3τὸν δὲ ὑπὸ Δελφῶν καλούμενον Ὀμφαλὸν λίθου πεποιημένον λευκοῦ, τοῦτο εἶναι τὸ ἐν μέσῳ γῆς πάσης αὐτοί τε λέγουσιν οἱ Δελφοὶ καὶ ἐν ᾠδῇ τινι Πίνδαρος ὁμολογοῦντά σφισιν ἐποίησεν.
What is called by the Delphians the Omphalos, made of white stone, this the Delphians themselves say is in the center of the whole earth, and Pindar in one of his odes made a statement agreeing with them.
§10.16.4Λακεδαιμονίων δὲ ἀνάθημά ἐστιν ἐνταῦθα, Καλάμιδος δὲ ἔργον, Ἑρμιόνη ἡ Μενελάου θυγάτηρ, ἡ συνοικήσασα Ὀρέστῃ τῷ Ἀγαμέμνονος καὶ ἔτι πρότερον Νεοπτολέμῳ τῷ Ἀχιλλέως.
There is here an offering of the Lacedaemonians, the work of Calamis, a statue of Hermione, the daughter of Menelaus, who lived with Orestes, son of Agamemnon, and even earlier with Neoptolemus, son of Achilles.
Εὐρύδαμον δὲ στρατηγόν τε Αἰτωλῶν καὶ στρατοῦ τοῦ Γαλατῶν ἐναντία ἡγησάμενον ἀνέθεσαν οἱ Αἰτωλοί.
The Aetolians dedicated Eurydamus, who was a general of the Aetolians and led them against the army of the Galatians.
§10.16.5ἔστι δὲ ἐν τοῖς Κρητικοῖς ὄρεσι καὶ κατʼ ἐμὲ ἔτι Ἔλυρος πόλις· οὗτοι οὖν αἶγα χαλκῆν ἀπέστειλαν ἐς Δελφούς, δίδωσι δὲ νηπίοις ἡ αἲξ Φυλακίδῃ καὶ Φιλάνδρῳ γάλα·
There is in the Cretan mountains even in my time still a city Elyrus; these people sent a bronze goat to Delphi, and the goat is giving milk to the infants Phylacides and Philander.
παῖδας δὲ αὐτοὺς οἱ Ἐλύριοί φασιν Ἀπόλλωνός τε εἶναι καὶ Ἀκακαλλίδος νύμφης, συγγενέσθαι δὲ τῇ Ἀκακαλλίδι Ἀπόλλωνα ἐν πόλει Τάρρᾳ καὶ οἴκῳ Καρμάνορος.
The Elyrians say that these children were of Apollo and the nymph Acacallis, and that Apollo united with Acacallis in the city of Tarra and in the house of Carmanor.
§10.16.6Καρύστιοι δὲ οἱ Εὐβοεῖς βοῦν καὶ οὗτοι χαλκοῦν παρὰ τῷ Ἀπόλλωνι ἔστησαν ἀπὸ ἔργου τοῦ Μηδικοῦ·
The Carystians of Euboea also set up a bronze bull next to Apollo from the spoils of the Persian war.
βοῦς δὲ οἱ Καρύστιοι καὶ οἱ Πλαταιεῖς τὰ ἀναθήματα ἐποιήσαντο, ὅτι ἐμοὶ δοκεῖν ἀπωσάμενοι τὸν βάρβαρον τήν τε ἄλλην βεβαίως ἐκτήσαντο εὐδαιμονίαν καὶ ἀροῦν ἐλευθέραν τὴν γῆν.
The Carystians and the Plataeans made bulls their offerings because, as it seems to me, having repulsed the barbarian, they secured their general prosperity and were able to till a free land.
στρατηγῶν δὲ εἰκόνας καὶ Ἀπόλλωνά τε καὶ Ἄρτεμιν τὸ ἔθνος τὸ Αἰτωλικὸν ἀπέστειλαν καταστρεψάμενοι τοὺς ὁμόρους σφίσιν Ἀκαρνᾶνας.
The Aetolian nation, having subdued the Acarnanians, their neighbors, sent statues of their generals and of Apollo and Artemis.
§10.16.7παραλογώτατον δὲ ἐπυνθανόμην ὑπάρξαν Λιπαραίοις ἐς Τυρσηνούς.
I learned that a most unexpected thing befell the Liparaeans in their conflict with the Tyrrhenians.
τοὺς γὰρ δὴ Λιπαραίους ἐναντία ναυμαχῆσαι τῶν Τυρσηνῶν ναυσὶν ὡς ἐλαχίσταις ἐκέλευσεν ἡ Πυθία.
The Pythian priestess bade the Liparaeans fight a sea-battle against the Tyrrhenians with as few ships as possible.
πέντε οὖν ἀνάγονται τριήρεσιν ἐπὶ τοὺς Τυρσηνούς· οἱ δὲ—ἀπηξίουν γὰρ μὴ ἀποδεῖν Λιπαραίων τὰ ναυτικά—ἀντανάγονταί σφισιν ἴσαις ναυσί.
So they put to sea with five triremes against the Tyrrhenians; and the Tyrrhenians, disdaining to show a naval force inferior to that of the Liparaeans, sailed out to meet them with an equal number of ships.
ταύτας τε οὖν αἱροῦσιν οἱ Λιπαραῖοι καὶ ἄλλας πέντε ὑστέρας σφίσιν ἀνταναχθείσας, καὶ τρίτην νεῶν πεντάδα καὶ ὡσαύτως τετάρτην ἐχειρώσαντο.
These the Liparaeans captured, and also another five which subsequently put out against them, and they subdued a third squadron of five ships and likewise a fourth.
ἀνέθεσαν οὖν ἐς Δελφοὺς ταῖς ἁλούσαις ναυσὶν ἀριθμὸν ἴσα Ἀπόλλωνος ἀγάλματα.
They dedicated, therefore, to Delphi as many statues of Apollo as the number of the captured ships.
§10.16.8Ἐχεκρατίδης δὲ ἀνὴρ Λαρισαῖος τὸν Ἀπόλλωνα ἀνέθηκε τὸν μικρόν· καὶ ἁπάντων πρῶτον τεθῆναι τῶν ἀναθημάτων τοῦτό φασιν οἱ Δελφοί.
Echecratides, a man of Larissa, dedicated the small Apollo; and the Delphians say that this was set up first of all the offerings.

Notes

  1. 10.16.3τὸν δὲ ὑπὸ Δελφῶν καλούμενον Ὀμφαλὸν... τοῦτο εἶναι — The accusative phrase τὸν ... Ὀμφαλὸν at the beginning of the sentence is the logical subject of the infinitive εἶναι in the accusative and infinitive (A.C.I.) construction introduced by the main verb λέγουσιν. However, the placement of the demonstrative pronoun τοῦτο (accusative) immediately before the infinitive creates a proleptic structure.
  2. 10.16.6ἐμοὶ δοκεῖν — The infinitive δοκεῖν is used as an absolute infinitive (infinitive absolute) with the dative ἐμοί, serving as a parenthetical expression meaning 'in my opinion' or 'as it seems to me.'
  3. 10.16.7παραλογώτατον δὲ ἐπυνθανόμην ὑπάρξαν — The verb ἐπυνθανόμην (I learned) takes a participle as a supplementary participle (ὑπάρξαν) to express a reported fact, instead of a ὅτι clause. The neuter singular participle ὑπάρξαν, together with its subject παραλογώτατον, functions as the object of the main verb: 'I learned that a most unexpected thing had occurred.'

Cite this passage

Pausanias, Description of Greece §10.16.1-10.16.8. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0525.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:10.16.1-10.16.8

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