§6.26.1θέατρον δὲ ἀρχαῖον, μεταξὺ τῆς ἀγορᾶς καὶ τοῦ Μηνίου τὸ θέατρόν τε καὶ ἱερόν ἐστι Διονύσου·
The theatre is ancient, and between the marketplace and the Menius is the theatre and a sanctuary of Dionysus.
τέχνη τὸ ἄγαλμα Πραξιτέλους, θεῶν δὲ ἐν τοῖς μάλιστα Διόνυσον σέβουσιν Ἠλεῖοι καὶ τὸν θεόν σφισιν ἐπιφοιτᾶν ἐς τῶν Θυίων τὴν ἑορτὴν λέγουσιν.
The image is the work of Praxiteles; and among the gods, the Eleans worship Dionysus most of all, and they say that the god visits them at the festival of the Thyia.
ἀπέχει μέν γε τῆς πόλεως ὅσον τε ὀκτὼ στάδια ἔνθα τὴν ἑορτὴν ἄγουσι Θυῖα ὀνομάζοντες·
The place where they hold the festival, which they name Thyia, is about eight stades distant from the city.
λέβητας δὲ ἀριθμὸν τρεῖς ἐς οἴκημα ἐσκομίσαντες οἱ ἱερεῖς κατατίθενται κενούς, παρόντων καὶ τῶν ἀστῶν καὶ ξένων, εἰ τύχοιεν ἐπιδημοῦντες· σφραγῖδας δὲ αὐτοί τε οἱ ἱερεῖς καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὅσοις ἂν κατὰ γνώμην ᾖ ταῖς θύραις τοῦ οἰκήματος ἐπιβάλλουσιν, ἐς δὲ τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν τά τε §6.26.2σημεῖα ἐπιγνῶναι πάρεστί σφισι καὶ ἐσελθόντες ἐς τὸ οἴκημα εὑρίσκουσιν οἴνου πεπλησμένους τοὺς λέβητας.
The priests bring three cauldrons, empty, into the building and set them down in the presence of the citizens and any foreigners who happen to be in the town; and the priests themselves and any of the others who wish put seals on the doors of the building, and on the next day they are able to recognize the seals, and on entering the building they find the cauldrons filled with wine.
ταῦτα Ἠλείων τε οἱ δοκιμώτατοι ἄνδρες, σὺν αὐτοῖς δὲ καὶ ξένοι κατώμνυντο ἔχειν κατὰ τὰ εἰρημένα, ἐπεὶ αὐτός γε οὐκ ἐς καιρὸν ἀφικόμην τῆς ἑορτῆς·
This was sworn to as being as stated by the most reputable men of the Eleans, and with them by foreigners also, since I myself did not arrive at the time of the festival.
λέγουσι δὲ καὶ Ἄνδριοι παρὰ ἔτος σφίσιν ἐς τοῦ Διονύσου τὴν ἑορτὴν ῥεῖν οἶνον αὐτόματον ἐκ τοῦ ἱεροῦ.
The Andrians also say that every other year, at the festival of Dionysus, wine flows of its own accord from the sanctuary.
εἰ πιστεύειν χρὴ ταῦτα Ἕλλησιν, ἀποδέχοιτο ἄν τις τῷ λόγῳ γε τῷ αὐτῷ καὶ ὅσα Αἰθίοπες οἱ ὑπὲρ Συήνης ἐς τοῦ ἡλίου τὴν τράπεζαν λέγουσιν.
If one must believe the Greeks in these matters, one might by the same reasoning accept also what the Ethiopians above Syene say about the Table of the Sun.
§6.26.3ἐν ἀκροπόλει δὲ τῇ Ἠλείων ἐστὶν ἱερὸν Ἀθηνᾶς· ἐλέφαντος δὲ τὸ ἄγαλμα καὶ χρυσοῦ.
On the acropolis of the Eleans is a sanctuary of Athena; her image is of ivory and gold.
εἶναι μὲν δὴ Φειδίου φασὶν αὐτήν, πεποίηται δὲ ἀλεκτρυὼν ἐπὶ τῷ κράνει, ὅτι οὗτοι προχειρότατα ἔχουσιν ἐς μάχας οἱ ἀλεκτρυόνες· δύναιτο δʼ ἂν καὶ Ἀθηνᾶς τῆς Ἐργάνης ἱερὸς ὁ ὄρνις νομίζεσθαι.
They say it is the work of Pheidias, and a cock has been made upon her helmet, because cocks are most ready to fight; but the bird might also be considered sacred to Athena Ergane (the Worker).
§6.26.4Κυλλήνη δὲ σταδίους μὲν εἴκοσιν Ἤλιδος καὶ ἑκατὸν ἀφέστηκε, κεῖται δὲ τετραμμένη τε πρὸς Σικελίαν καὶ ὅρμον παρεχομένη ναυσὶν ἐπιτήδειον·
Cyllene is distant one hundred and twenty stades from Elis; it lies facing towards Sicily and provides a suitable harbor for ships.
ἐπίνειον δὲ οὖσα Ἠλείων ἀπὸ ἀνδρὸς Ἀρκάδος τὸ ὄνομα εἴληφε.
Being the port of the Eleans, it received its name from an Arcadian man.
Κυλλήνης δὲ ἐν μὲν Ἠλείων καταλόγῳ λόγον οὐδένα Ὅμηρος ἐποιήσατο, ἐν δὲ ἔπεσι τοῖς ὕστερον δεδήλωκεν ὡς πόλισμα οὖσαν καὶ τὴν Κυλλήνην ἐπίσταται· §6.26.5"
Πουλυδάμας δʼ Ὦτον Κυλλήνιον ἐξενάριξεν,
Φυλείδεω ἕταρον, μεγαθύμων ἀρχὸν Ἐπειῶν.
In the catalogue of the Eleans, Homer made no mention of Cyllene, but in his later verses he has shown that he knows Cyllene as being a town: "And Polydamas slew Otus of Cyllene, the comrade of Phyleus' son, leader of the great-hearted Epeians.
"
θεῶν δὲ ἱερὰ ἐν Κυλλήνῃ Ἀσκληπιοῦ, τὸ δὲ Ἀφροδίτης ἐστί· τοῦ Ἑρμοῦ δὲ τὸ ἄγαλμα, ὃν οἱ ταύτῃ περισσῶς σέβουσιν, ὀρθόν ἐστιν αἰδοῖον ἐπὶ τοῦ βάθρου.
"The sanctuaries of the gods in Cyllene are one of Asclepius and another of Aphrodite; and the image of Hermes, whom the people here worship exceedingly, is an erect phallus upon the pedestal.
§6.26.6ἡ δὲ Ἠλεία χώρα τά τε ἄλλα ἐστὶν ἐς καρποὺς καὶ τὴν βύσσον οὐχ ἥκιστα ἐκτρέφειν ἀγαθή.
The Elean country is fertile in other crops, and not least is it good for growing fine linen.
τὴν μὲν δὴ κανναβίδα καὶ λίνον καὶ τὴν βύσσον σπείρουσιν ὅσοις ἡ γῆ τρέφειν ἐστὶν ἐπιτήδειος·
Hemp, flax, and fine linen are sown by those whose land is suitable for growing them.
οἱ μίτοι δέ, ἀφʼ ὧν τὰς ἐσθῆτας ποιοῦσιν οἱ Σῆρες, ἀπὸ οὐδενὸς φλοιοῦ, τρόπον δὲ ἕτερον γίνονται τοιόνδε.
The threads from which the Seres make their garments are not from any bark, but are produced in another manner of this kind.
ἔστιν ἐν τῇ γῇ ζωύφιόν σφισιν, ὃν σῆρα καλοῦσιν Ἕλληνες, ὑπὸ δὲ αὐτῶν Σηρῶν ἄλλο πού τι καὶ οὐ σὴρ ὀνομάζεται· §6.26.7μέγεθος μέν ἐστιν αὐτοῦ διπλάσιον ἢ κανθάρων ὁ μέγιστος, τὰ δὲ ἄλλα εἴκασται τοῖς ἀράχναις, οἳ ὑπὸ τοῖς δένδρεσιν ὑφαίνουσι, καὶ δὴ καὶ πόδας ἀριθμὸν ὀκτὼ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἔχει τοῖς ἀράχναις.
There is in their country a small creature which the Greeks call ser, but by the Seres themselves it is named something else and not ser; its size is twice that of the largest beetle, but in other respects it resembles the spiders which weave under the trees, and indeed it has eight feet just like spiders.
ταῦτα τὰ ζῷα τρέφουσιν οἱ Σῆρες οἴκους κατασκευασάμενοι χειμῶνός τε καὶ θέρους ὥρᾳ ἐπιτηδείους· τὸ δὲ ἔργον τῶν ζῴων κλῶσμα εὑρίσκεται λεπτὸν τοῖς ποσὶν αὐτῶν περιειλιγμένον.
The Seres breed these creatures, having prepared houses suitable for both winter and summer; the work of the creatures is found to be a fine thread wound around their feet.
§6.26.8τρέφουσι δὲ αὐτὰ ἐπὶ μὲν τέσσαρα ἔτη παρέχοντες τροφήν σφισιν ἔλυμον, πέμπτῳ δὲ—οὐ γὰρ πρόσω βιωσόμενα ἴσασι—κάλαμον διδόασιν ἐσθίειν χλωρόν· ἡ δέ ἐστιν ἡδίστη τροφὴ πασῶν τῷ ζῴῳ, καὶ ἐμφορηθὲν τοῦ καλάμου ῥήγνυταί τε ὑπὸ πλησμονῆς καὶ ἀποθανόντος οὕτω τὸ πολὺ τῆς ἁρπεδόνης εὑρίσκουσιν ἔνδον.
They breed them for four years, providing them with millet for food, and in the fifth year—for they know they will not live much longer—they give them green reed to eat; this is the most agreeable food of all to the creature, and when it has gorged itself on the reed, it bursts from fullness, and after it has died they find the greater part of the thread inside.
γινώσκεται δὲ ἡ Σηρία νῆσος ἐν μυχῷ θαλάσσης κειμένη τῆς Ἐρυθρᾶς.
The island of Seria is known to lie in the recess of the Red Sea.
§6.26.9ἤκουσα δὲ καὶ ὡς οὐχ ἡ Ἐρυθρά, ποταμὸς δὲ ὃν Σῆρα ὀνομάζουσιν, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ποιῶν νῆσον αὐτήν, ὥσπερ καὶ Αἰγύπτου τὸ Δέλτα ὑπὸ τοῦ Νείλου καὶ οὐχ ὑπὸ μιᾶς περιέχεσθαι θαλάσσης· τοιαύτην ἑτέραν καὶ τὴν Σηρίαν νῆσον εἶναι.
But I have also heard that it is not the Red Sea, but a river which they name Ser, that makes this island, just as the Delta of Egypt is enclosed by the Nile and not by a single sea; they say that the island of Seria is another such island.
οὗτοι μὲν δὴ τοῦ Αἰθιόπων γένους αὐτοί τέ εἰσιν οἱ Σῆρες καὶ ὅσοι τὰς προσεχεῖς αὐτῇ νέμονται νήσους, Ἄβασαν καὶ Σακαίαν· οἱ δὲ αὐτοὺς οὐκ Αἰθίοπας, Σκύθας δὲ ἀναμεμιγμένους Ἰνδοῖς φασὶν εἶναι.
The Seres themselves and those who inhabit the neighboring islands, Abasa and Sacaea, are of the Ethiopian race; but some say they are not Ethiopians, but Scythians mixed with Indians.
§6.26.10ταῦτα μὲν δὴ οὕτω λέγεται· ἀνδρὶ δὲ ἐς Ἀχαΐαν ἰόντι ἐξ Ἤλιδος ἑπτὰ καὶ πεντήκοντα στάδιοι καὶ ἑκατὸν ἐπὶ ποταμόν εἰσι Λάρισον, καὶ Ἠλείοις ὅροι πρὸς Ἀχαιοὺς τῆς χώρας ὁ ποταμός ἐστιν ἐφʼ ἡμῶν ὁ Λάρισος· τὰ δὲ ἔτι ἀρχαιότερα ἄκρα σφίσι πρὸς θαλάσσῃ ὅρος ἦν ὁ Ἄραξος.
These things indeed are so told; and for a man going from Elis to Achaea, there are one hundred and fifty-seven stades to the river Larisus, and the river Larisus is in our time the boundary of the land for the Eleans against the Achaeans; but in still older times their boundary at the sea was the cape Araxus.