§9.40.1τὸ δὲ μαντεῖον οἱ Βοιωτοὶ τοῦτο οὐ πεπυσμένοι πρότερον ἐπʼ αἰτίᾳ τοιᾷδε ἔγνωσαν.
But the Boeotians, not having known of this oracle before, learned of it for the following reason.
θεωροὺς ἀφʼ ἑκάστης πόλεως ἄνδρας ἀποστέλλουσιν ἐς Δελφούς· οὐ γὰρ δή σφισιν ἔτος δεύτερον ὗεν ὁ θεός.
They sent envoys from each city to Delphi; for indeed the god did not rain for them for a second year.
τούτοις αἰτοῦσιν ἐπανόρθωμα τοῦ αὐχμοῦ προσέταξεν ἡ Πυθία παρὰ Τροφώνιον ἐς Λεβάδειαν ἐλθοῦσιν εὕρασθαι παρὰ ἐκείνου τὸ ἴαμα.
To these men, as they asked for a remedy for the drought, the Pythia commanded that they should go to Trophonius at Lebadeia and find from him the cure.
§9.40.2ὡς δὲ ἐς τὴν Λεβάδειαν ἐλθόντες οὐκ ἐδύναντο εὑρεῖν τὸ μαντεῖον, ἐνταῦθα τῶν ἐξ Ἀκραιφνίου πόλεως Σάων—οὗτος δὲ ἦν καὶ ἡλικίᾳ τῶν θεωρῶν πρεσβύτατος—εἶδεν ἑσμὸν μελισσῶν, καὶ παρέστη οἱ, ὅποι ποτʼ ἂν ἀποτράπωνται, καὶ αὐτὸς ἕπεσθαι.
And when they had come to Lebadeia and were unable to find the oracle, then Saon, one of those from the city of Acraephnium—and he was also the oldest in age of the envoys—saw a swarm of bees, and it occurred to him to follow them himself, wherever they might turn.
αὐτίκα δὴ τὰς μελίσσας ἐς τοῦτο ἐσπετομένας ὁρᾷ τῆς γῆς, καὶ συνεσῆλθέ σφισιν ἐς τὸ μαντεῖον.
Immediately indeed he saw the bees flying into this spot of the earth, and he entered with them into the oracle.
τοῦτον τὸν Σάωνα καὶ τὴν ἱερουργίαν τὴν καθεστηκυῖαν, καὶ ὁπόσα περὶ τὸ χρηστήριον δρῶσιν ἄλλα, διδαχθῆναι παρὰ τοῦ Τροφωνίου φασίν.
They say that this Saon was taught both the established sacred rite and all the other things they perform concerning the oracle by Trophonius himself.
§9.40.3Δαιδάλου δὲ τῶν ἔργων δύο μὲν ταῦτά ἐστιν ἐν Βοιωτοῖς, Ἡρακλῆς τε ἐν Θήβαις καὶ παρὰ Λεβαδεῦσιν ὁ Τροφώνιος, τοσαῦτα δὲ ἕτερα ξόανα ἐν Κρήτῃ, Βριτόμαρτις ἐν Ὀλοῦντι καὶ Ἀθηνᾶ παρὰ Κνωσσίοις·
Of the works of Daedalus, these two are in Boeotia: the Heracles in Thebes and the Trophonius among the Lebadeans; and as many other wooden images are in Crete: the Britomartis in Olus and the Athena among the Cnussians.
παρὰ τούτοις δὲ καὶ ὁ τῆς Ἀριάδνης χορός, οὗ καὶ Ὅμηρος ἐν Ἰλιάδι μνήμην ἐποιήσατο, ἐπειργασμένος ἐστὶν ἐπὶ λευκοῦ λίθου.
And among these latter there is also the dance-floor of Ariadne, of which Homer also made mention in the Iliad, carved upon white stone.
καὶ Δηλίοις Ἀφροδίτης ἐστὶν οὐ μέγα ξόανον, λελυμασμένον τὴν δεξιὰν χεῖρα ὑπὸ τοῦ χρόνου· κάτεισι δὲ ἀντὶ ποδῶν ἐς τετράγωνον σχῆμα.
And the Delians have a small wooden image of Aphrodite, damaged in its right hand by time; and instead of feet it tapers down into a square shape.
§9.40.4πείθομαι τοῦτο Ἀριάδνην λαβεῖν παρὰ Δαιδάλου, καὶ ἡνίκα ἠκολούθησε τῷ Θησεῖ, τὸ ἄγαλμα ἐπεκομίζετο οἴκοθεν· ἀφαιρεθέντα δὲ αὐτῆς τὸν Θησέα οὕτω φασὶν οἱ Δήλιοι τὸ ξόανον τῆς θεοῦ ἀναθεῖναι τῷ Ἀπόλλωνι τῷ Δηλίῳ, ἵνα μὴ οἴκαδε ἐπαγόμενος ἐς ἀνάμνησίν τε Ἀριάδνης ἐφέλκηται καὶ ἀεὶ νέας ἐπὶ τῷ ἔρωτι εὑρίσκηται τὰς συμφοράς.
I believe that Ariadne received this from Daedalus, and when she followed Theseus, she carried the image from home; and when she was taken from him, the Delians say that Theseus thus dedicated the wooden image of the goddess to the Delian Apollo, so that he might not, by bringing it home, be drawn into the remembrance of Ariadne and always find new misfortunes upon his love.
πέρα δὲ οὐκ οἶδα ὑπόλοιπα ὄντα τῶν Δαιδάλου· τοῖς γὰρ ἀνατεθεῖσιν ὑπὸ Ἀργείων ἐς τὸ Ἡραῖον καὶ ἐς Γέλαν τὴν ἐν Σικελίᾳ κομισθεῖσιν ἐξ Ὀμφάκης, ἀφανισθῆναί σφισιν ὁ χρόνος καθέστηκεν αἴτιος.
Beyond these, I do not know of any works of Daedalus remaining; for as to those dedicated by the Argives in the Heraeum, and those carried to Gela in Sicily from Omphace, time has become the cause of their disappearance.
§9.40.5Λεβαδέων δὲ ἔχονται Χαιρωνεῖς.
Adjacent to the Lebadeans are the Chaeroneans.
ἐκαλεῖτο δὲ ἡ πόλις καὶ τούτοις Ἄρνη τὸ ἀρχαῖον· θυγατέρα δὲ εἶναι λέγουσιν Αἰόλου τὴν Ἄρνην, ἀπὸ δὲ ταύτης κληθῆναι καὶ ἑτέραν ἐν Θεσσαλίᾳ πόλιν·
And their city also was called Arne of old; and they say that Arne was a daughter of Aeolus, and that from her another city in Thessaly was also named.
τὸ δὲ νῦν τοῖς Χαιρωνεῦσιν ὄνομα γεγονέναι ἀπὸ Χαίρωνος, ὃν Ἀπόλλωνός φασιν εἶναι, μητέρα δὲ αὐτοῦ Θηρὼ τὴν Φύλαντος εἶναι.
But they say that the present name for the Chaeroneans came from Chaeron, whom they say was a son of Apollo, and that his mother was Thero, daughter of Phylas.
μαρτυρεῖ δὲ καὶ ὁ τὰ ἔπη τὰς μεγάλας Ἠοίας ποιήσας·
And the poet who composed the epic poem, the Great Eoiae, also bears witness to this: