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Polybius · The Histories §39.6.1-39.6.5

Mummius's Tour of Greece and Moderate Conduct

Passage 1309 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

It is described how the Roman general Mummius toured the Greek cities and was highly honored both publicly and privately for his moderate conduct, and that his occasional shortcomings were due to his surrounding friends rather than himself.

§39.6.1ὅτι ὁ στρατηγὸς τῶν Ῥωμαίων μετὰ τὸ χωρισθῆναι ἐξ Ἀχαΐας τὸ συνέδριον, ἐπισκευάσας τὸν ἐν Ἰσθμῷ τόπον καὶ κοσμήσας τὸν ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ καὶ Δελφοῖς νεὼν ταῖς ἑξῆς ἡμέραις ἐπεπορεύετο τὰς πόλεις, τιμώμενος ἐν ἑκάστῃ καὶ τυγχάνων τῆς ἁρμοζούσης χάριτος.
The Roman general, after the council had departed from Achaea, having repaired the site at the Isthmus and decorated the temple at Olympia and Delphi, visited the cities in the following days, being honored in each and receiving appropriate gratitude.
§39.6.2εἰκότως δὲ τιμᾶσθαι συνέβαινεν αὐτὸν καὶ κοινῇ καὶ κατʼ ἰδίαν· §39.6.3καὶ γὰρ ἐγκρατῶς καὶ καθαρῶς ἀνεστράφη καὶ πρᾴως ἐχρήσατο τοῖς ὅλοις πράγμασι, μέγαν καιρὸν ἐν τοῖς Ἕλλησιν ἔχων καὶ μεγάλην ἐξουσίαν.
And indeed, it happened that he was deservedly honored both publicly and privately; for he conducted himself with self-control and purity, and treated all affairs with mildness, although he possessed great opportunity and immense power among the Greeks.
§39.6.4καὶ γὰρ ἐν οἷς ἐδόκει παρεωρακέναι τι τῶν καθηκόντων, ἐμοὶ μὲν οὐκ ἐφαίνετο διʼ ἑαυτὸν τοῦτο πεποιηκέναι, διὰ δὲ τοὺς παρακειμένους φίλους.
For indeed, in those matters in which he seemed to have overlooked some of his duties, it did not appear to me that he had done this because of himself, but because of the friends who were around him.
§39.6.5τοῦτο δʼ ἦν ἐκφανέστατον ἐν τοῖς τῶν Χαλκιδέων ἱππεῦσιν, οὓς ἀνεῖλεν.
And this was most evident in the case of the cavalrymen of Chalcis, whom he put to death.

Notes

  1. §39.6.1ὅτι — The introductory ὅτι is characteristic of Byzantine historical excerpts (here the *Excerpta de Sententiis*) and does not syntactically connect to a preceding main clause. In translation, it is standard practice to leave it untranslated and treat the sentence as a main clause.
  2. §39.6.1μετὰ τὸ χωρισθῆναι ἐξ Ἀχαΐας τὸ συνέδριον — The construction consists of the preposition μετὰ with the articular aorist passive infinitive τὸ χωρισθῆναι and its accusative subject τὸ συνέδριον (referring to the ten Roman commissioners). It functions temporally: "after the council had departed from Achaea."
  3. §39.6.4ἐν οἷς — The relative pronoun οἷς is neuter plural with an omitted antecedent, meaning "in those things in which" or "in matters where." It refers to the specific instances where the general (Mummius) was thought to have failed in his duties.

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §39.6.1-39.6.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:39.6.1-39.6.5

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