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Polybius · The Histories §34.13.1

Distances to India and the Authority of Eratosthenes

Passage 1256 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

The text notes that the geographical distances in a straight line to India are identical in the accounts of Artemidorus and Eratosthenes, and adds that Polybius considers Eratosthenes the most trustworthy authority for those eastern regions.

§34.13.1τὰ δʼ ἐπʼ εὐθείας τούτοις μέχρι τῆς Ἰνδικῆς τὰ αὐτὰ κεῖται καὶ παρὰ τῷ Ἀρτεμιδώρῳ, ἅπερ καὶ παρὰ τῷ Ἐρατοσθένει.
And the distances in a straight line with these as far as India are laid down as the same in Artemidorus as they are indeed in Eratosthenes.
λέγει δὲ καὶ Πολύβιος περὶ τῶν ἐκεῖ μάλιστα δεῖν πιστεύειν ἐκείνῳ.
And Polybius also says that, concerning the regions there, one must believe him most of all.

Notes

  1. §34.13.1τούτοις — Dative of the demonstrative pronoun, referring back to the previously discussed routes or points from Apollonia to Byzantium. Combined with the phrase ἐπʼ εὐθείας ('in a straight line'), it designates the eastward extension of this line towards India.
  2. §34.13.1ἐκείνῳ — Dative of the demonstrative pronoun, referring back to Eratosthenes (Ἐρατοσθένει). Chronologically, Polybius lived before Artemidorus, meaning Polybius could not have referred to Artemidorus; thus, 'him' must refer to Eratosthenes as the primary geographical authority on the East.

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §34.13.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:34.13.1

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