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Pausanias · Description of Greece §9.16.1-9.16.7

Sanctuaries of Ammon and Tyche and Other Theban Monuments

Passage 382 of 465 · Greek

Summary

Pausanias describes the sanctuaries of Ammon, Tiresias, and Tyche in Thebes, explaining the origin of the ancient wooden statues of Aphrodite dedicated by Harmonia, and mentions the sanctuary of Demeter, the theater near the gates, the temple of Dionysus Lysios, and other tombs.

§9.16.1οὐ πόρρω δέ ἐστι ναὸς Ἄμμωνος, καὶ τὸ ἄγαλμα ἀνέθηκε μὲν Πίνδαρος, Καλάμιδος δέ ἐστιν ἔργον.
Not far away is a temple of Ammon, and the image was dedicated by Pindar, being the work of Calamis.
ἀπέπεμψε δὲ ὁ Πίνδαρος καὶ Λιβύης ἐς Ἀμμωνίους τῷ Ἄμμωνι ὕμνον· οὗτος καὶ ἐς ἐμὲ ἦν ὁ ὕμνος ἐν τριγώνῳ στήλῃ παρὰ τὸν βωμόν, ὃν Πτολεμαῖος ὁ Λάγου τῷ Ἄμμωνι ἀνέθηκε.
Pindar also sent a hymn to Ammon for the Ammonians of Libya; this hymn was, even to my day, on a triangular stele beside the altar which Ptolemy the son of Lagus dedicated to Ammon.
Θηβαίοις δὲ μετὰ τοῦ Ἄμμωνος τὸ ἱερὸν οἰωνοσκοπεῖόν τε Τειρεσίου καλούμενον καὶ πλησίον Τύχης ἐστὶν ἱερόν·
For the Thebans, after the sanctuary of Ammon, there is what is called the bird-observatory of Tiresias, and near it is a sanctuary of Tyche.
§9.16.2φέρει μὲν δὴ Πλοῦτον παῖδα· ὡς δὲ Θηβαῖοι λέγουσι, χεῖρας μὲν τοῦ ἀγάλματος καὶ πρόσωπον Ξενοφῶν εἰργάσατο Ἀθηναῖος, Καλλιστόνικος δὲ τὰ λοιπὰ ἐπιχώριος.
She carries the child Plutus; and as the Thebans say, the hands and face of the image were crafted by Xenophon the Athenian, and the rest by Callistonicus, a local artist.
σοφὸν μὲν δὴ καὶ τούτοις τὸ βούλευμα, ἐσθεῖναι Πλοῦτον ἐς τὰς χεῖρας ἅτε μητρὶ ἢ τροφῷ τῇ Τύχῃ, σοφὸν δὲ οὐχ ἧσσον τὸ Κηφισοδότου· καὶ γὰρ οὗτος τῆς Εἰρήνης τὸ ἄγαλμα Ἀθηναίοις Πλοῦτον ἔχουσαν πεποίηκεν.
Clever indeed was the device of these artists to place Plutus in her hands as if Tyche were his mother or nurse; and no less clever was that of Cephisodotus, for he too made the statue of Eirene for the Athenians holding Plutus.
§9.16.3Ἀφροδίτης δὲ Θηβαίοις ξόανά ἐστιν οὕτω δὴ ἀρχαῖα ὥστε καὶ ἀναθήματα Ἁρμονίας εἶναί φασιν, ἐργασθῆναι δὲ αὐτὰ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀκροστολίων, ἃ ταῖς Κάδμου ναυσὶν ἦν ξύλου πεποιημένα.
The Thebans also have wooden images of Aphrodite so very ancient that they say they are even dedications of Harmonia, and that they were made from the figureheads which were of wood on the ships of Cadmus.
καλοῦσι δὲ Οὐρανίαν, τὴν δὲ αὐτῶν Πάνδημον καὶ Ἀποστροφίαν τὴν τρίτην·
They call one Urania, another of them Pandemos, and the third Apostrophia.
ἔθετο δὲ τῇ Ἀφροδίτῃ τὰς ἐπωνυμίας ἡ Ἁρμονία, τὴν μὲν Οὐρανίαν ἐπὶ ἔρωτι καθαρῷ καὶ §9.16.4ἀπηλλαγμένῳ πόθου σωμάτων, Πάνδημον δὲ ἐπὶ ταῖς μίξεσι, τρίτα δὲ Ἀποστροφίαν, ἵνα ἐπιθυμίας τε ἀνόμου καὶ ἔργων ἀνοσίων ἀποστρέφῃ τὸ γένος τῶν ἀνθρώπων·
Harmonia gave these surnames to Aphrodite: Urania for pure love and free from desire for bodies; Pandemos for sexual unions; and thirdly, Apostrophia, so that she might turn the human race away from lawless desire and unholy deeds.
πολλὰ γὰρ τὰ μὲν ἐν βαρβάροις ἠπίστατο ἡ Ἁρμονία, τὰ δὲ καὶ παρʼ Ἕλλησιν ἤδη τετολμημένα, ὁποῖα καὶ ὕστερον ἐπὶ τῇ Ἀδώνιδος μητρὶ καὶ ἐς Φαίδραν τε τὴν Μίνω καὶ ἐς τὸν Θρᾷκα Τηρέα ᾄδεται.
For Harmonia knew of many things among the barbarians, and some even already dared among the Greeks, of the sort that were later sung of in the case of the mother of Adonis, and concerning Phaedra the daughter of Minos, and Tereus the Thracian.
§9.16.5τὸ δὲ τῆς Δήμητρος ἱερὸν τῆς Θεσμοφόρου Κάδμου καὶ τῶν ἀπογόνων οἰκίαν ποτὲ εἶναι λέγουσι· Δήμητρος δὲ ἄγαλμα ὅσον ἐς στέρνα ἐστὶν ἐν τῷ φανερῷ.
The sanctuary of Demeter Thesmophoros is said to have been once the house of Cadmus and his descendants; a statue of Demeter, as far as the chest, is in the open.
καὶ ἀσπίδες ἐνταῦθα ἀνάκεινται χαλκαῖ· Λακεδαιμονίων δέ, ὁπόσοι τῶν ἐν τέλει περὶ Λεῦκτρα ἐτελεύτησαν, φασὶν εἶναι.
Also brass shields are dedicated here; they say they belonged to those Lacedaemonians of those in authority who died at Leuctra.
§9.16.6πρὸς δὲ ταῖς καλουμέναις πύλαις Προιτίσι θέατρον ᾠκοδόμηται, καὶ ἐγγυτάτω τοῦ θεάτρου Διονύσου ναός ἐστιν ἐπίκλησιν Λυσίου·
Near the so-called Proitides gates a theater has been built, and closest to the theater is a temple of Dionysus surnamed Lysios.
Θηβαίων γὰρ αἰχμαλώτους ἄνδρας ἐχομένους ὑπὸ Θρᾳκῶν, ὡς ἀγόμενοι κατὰ τὴν Ἁλιαρτίαν ἐγίνοντο, ἔλυσεν ὁ θεὸς καὶ ἀποκτεῖναί σφισι τοὺς Θρᾷκας παρέδωκεν ὑπνωμένους.
For when some Theban men held captive by Thracians were being led along Haliartia, the god released them and delivered to them the sleeping Thracians to kill.
ἐνταῦθα οἱ Θηβαῖοι τὸ ἕτερον τῶν ἀγαλμάτων φασὶν εἶναι Σεμέλης· ἐνιαυτοῦ δὲ ἅπαξ ἑκάστου τὸ ἱερὸν ἀνοιγνύναι φασὶν ἐν ἡμέραις τακταῖς.
Here the Thebans say is the second of the statues of Semele; they say the sanctuary is opened once each year on fixed days.
§9.16.7καὶ οἰκίας τῆς Λύκου ἐρείπια καὶ Σεμέλης μνῆμά ἐστιν, Ἀλκμήνης δὲ οὐ μνῆμα· γενέσθαι δὲ αὐτὴν ὡς ἀπέθανε λίθον φασὶν ἐξ ἀνθρώπου, καὶ Μεγαρεῦσι τὰ ἐς αὐτὴν οὐχ ὁμολογοῦσι· διάφορα δὲ καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ὡς τὸ πολὺ ἀλλήλοις λέγουσιν Ἕλληνες.
There are also ruins of the house of Lycus and a monument of Semele, but there is no monument of Alcmene; they say that when she died she became a stone instead of a human being, and they do not agree with the Megarians regarding her story; and indeed Greeks tell different stories from one another on most other matters too.
Θηβαίοις δὲ ἐνταῦθα καὶ τὰ μνήματα πεποίηται τῶν Ἀμφίονος παίδων, χωρὶς μὲν τῶν ἀρσένων, ἰδίᾳ δὲ ταῖς παρθένοις.
For the Thebans here have also made the monuments of the children of Amphion, the males separately, and the maidens on their own.

Notes

  1. 9.16.1οὗτος καὶ ἐς ἐμὲ ἦν ὁ ὕμνος ἐν τριγώνῳ στήλῃ — The prepositional phrase `ἐς ἐμέ` (up to my time) refers to the lifetime of the author Pausanias himself (2nd century AD). The particle `καὶ` acts as an intensifier, meaning 'even down to.'
  2. 9.16.2ἐσθεῖναι Πλοῦτον ἐς τὰς χεῖρας ἅτε μητρὶ ἢ τροφῷ τῇ Τύχῃ — The infinitive `ἐσθεῖναι` is an appositive infinitive explaining the content of `τὸ βούλευμα` (the device). The particle `ἅτε` denotes an objective view ('as if'), and the dative `τῇ Τύχῃ` serves as the indirect object, which syntactically agrees with the predicative nouns `μητρὶ ἢ τροφῷ`.
  3. 9.16.4ἵνα ἐπιθυμίας τε ἀνόμου καὶ ἔργων ἀνοσίων ἀποστρέφῃ τὸ γένος τῶν ἀνθρώπων — The conjunction `ἵνα` introduces a purpose clause with the subjunctive `ἀποστρέφῃ`. The verb `ἀποστρέφω` (to turn away) governs a direct object in the accusative (`τὸ γένος τῶν ἀνθρώπων`) and a genitive of separation (`ἐπιθυμίας ... καὶ ἔργων`).
  4. 9.16.5ὅσον ἐς στέρνα — Meaning 'as far as the chest.' The neuter accusative `ὅσον` is used adverbially with the prepositional phrase `ἐς στέρνα` as a restrictive expression indicating the scope of the statue (i.e., a bust).
  5. 9.16.6ὡς ἀγόμενοι κατὰ τὴν Ἁλιαρτίαν ἐγίνοντο — The conjunction `ὡς` introduces a temporal clause ('when'). The combination of the imperfect `ἐγίνοντο` and the present passive participle `ἀγόμενοι` (being led) either describes movement and state simultaneously or functions as a periphrasis.

Cite this passage

Pausanias, Description of Greece §9.16.1-9.16.7. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0525.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:9.16.1-9.16.7

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