Whilst he was despatching this man with his arrows, they shouted, Hie
Paian;[432] whence has been transmitted the custom of singing the Pæan
before the onset of a battle; that after the death of the Python the
Delphians burnt even his tent, as they still continue to burn a tent in
memorial of these events.
Paian;[432] whence has been transmitted the custom of singing the Pæan
before the onset of a battle; that after the death of the Python the
Delphians burnt even his tent, as they still continue to burn a tent in
memorial of these events.
Strabo
The Amphictyonic council usually assembled at Onchestus, in the
territory of Haliartus, near the lake Copaïs, and the Teneric plain. It
is situated on a height, devoid of trees, where is a temple of Neptune
also without trees. For the poets, for the sake of ornament, called all
sacred places groves, although they were without trees. Such is the
language of Pindar, when speaking of Apollo:
“He traversed in his onward way the earth and sea; he stood
upon the heights of the lofty mountains; he shook the caves in
their deep recesses, and overthrew the foundations of the
sacred groves” or temples.
As Alcæus is mistaken in the altering the name of the river Cuarius, so
he makes a great error in placing Onchestus at the extremities of
Helicon, whereas it is situated very far from this mountain.
34. The Teneric plain has its name from Tenerus. According to mythology,
he was the son of Apollo and Melia, and declared the answers of the
oracle at the mountain Ptoum,[391] which, the same poet says, had three
peaks:
“At one time he occupied the caves of the three-headed Ptoum;”
and he calls Tenerus
“the prophet, dwelling in the temple, and having the same name
as the soil on which it stands. ”
The Ptoum is situated above the Teneric plain, and the lake Copaïs, near
Acræphium.
Both [CAS. 413] the oracle and the mountain belonged to the Thebans.
Acræphium[392] itself is situated upon a height. This, it is said, is
the place called Arnē by the poet, having the same name as the
Thessalian Arnē.
35. Some say that Arnē and Mideia were swallowed up by the lake.
Zenodotus, however, when he writes the verse thus,
“they who occupied Ascra abounding with vines,”[393]
does not seem to have read Hesiod’s description of his native country,
and what has been said by Eudoxus, who relates things much more to the
disparagement of Ascra. For how could any one believe that such a place
could have been described by the poet as
“abounding with vines? ”
Neither are those persons in the right, who substitute in this passage
Tarnē for Arnē, for there is not a place of the name of Tarne to be
found in Bœotia, although there is in Lydia. Homer mentions it,
“Idomeneus then slew Phæstus, the son of Borus, the artificer,
who came from the fruitful soil of Tarnē. ”[394]
Besides Alalcomenæ and Tilphossium, which are near the lake, Chæroneia,
Lebadia, and Leuctra, are worthy of notice.
36. The poet mentions Alalcomenæ,[395] but not in the Catalogue;
“the Argive Juno and Minerva of Alalcomenæ. ”[396]
It has an ancient temple of Minerva, which is held in great veneration.
It is said that this was the place of her birth, as Argos was that of
Juno, and that Homer gave to both these goddesses designations derived
from their native places. Perhaps for this reason he has not mentioned,
in the Catalogue, the inhabitants; for having a sacred character, they
were exempted from military service. Indeed the city has never suffered
devastation by an enemy, although it is inconsiderable in size, and its
position is weak, for it is situated in a plain.
All in reverence to the goddess abstained from every act of violence;
wherefore the Thebans, at the time of the expedition of the Epigoni,
abandoning their own city, are said to have taken refuge here, and on
the strong mountain above it, the Tilphossium. [397] Below Tilphossium is
the fountain Tilphossa, and the monument of Teiresias, who died there on
the retreat.
37. Chæroneia[398] is near Orchomenus,[399] where Philip, the son of
Amyntas, after having overcome, in a great battle,[400] the Athenians,
Bœotians, and Corinthians, became the master of Greece. There are seen
the sepulchres erected at the public charge of the persons who fell in
that battle.
38. At Lebadeia[401] is the oracle of Jupiter Trophonius, having a
descent through an opening, which leads under-ground. The person himself,
who consults the oracle, descends into it. It is situated between
Helicon and Chæroneia, near Coroneia.
39. Leuctra[402] is the place where Epaminondas overcame the
Lacedæmonians in a great battle, and first weakened their power; for
after that time they were never able to regain the supremacy over the
Greeks, which they before possessed, and particularly after they were
defeated in a second battle at Mantinea. Even after these reverses they
preserved their independence until the establishment of the Roman
dominion, and were always respected by that people on account of the
excellency of their form of government. The field of battle is shown on
the road which leads from Platææ to Thespiæ.
40. The poet next mentions the Orchomenians in the Catalogue, and
distinguishes them from the Bœotian nation. He gives to Orchomenus the
epithet Minyeian from the nation of the Minyæ. They say that a colony of
the Minyeians went hence to Iolcus,[403] and from this circumstance the
Argonauts were called Minyæ. It appears that, anciently, it was a rich
[CAS. 414] and very powerful city. Homer bears witness to its wealth,
for in his enumeration of places of great opulence, he says,
“Not all that is brought to Orchomenus, or to Ægyptian Thebes. ”[404]
Of its power there is this proof, that the Thebans always paid tribute
to the Orchomenians, and to Erginus their king, who it is said was put
to death by Hercules. Eteocles, one of the kings that reigned at
Orchomenus, first displayed both wealth and power. He built a temple
dedicated to the Graces, who were thus honoured by him, either because
he had been fortunate in receiving or conferring favours, or perhaps for
both these reasons.
[For one who was inclined thus to honour these goddesses, must have been
naturally disposed to be a benefactor, and he must have possessed the
power. But for this purpose wealth is required. For he who has not much
cannot give much, nor can he who does not receive much possess much; but
when giving and receiving unite, then there is a just exchange. For a
vessel which is simultaneously emptied and filled is always full; but he
who gives and does not receive cannot succeed in either giving or
receiving, for the giver must desist from giving from failure of means.
Givers also will desist from giving to him who receives only, and
confers no benefits, so that he must fail in receiving. The same may be
said of power. For independently of the common saying,
“That money is the thing most highly valued,
And has the greatest influence in human affairs,”[405]
we may examine the subject more in detail. We say, for example, that
kings have the greatest power, (μάλιστα δύνασθαι,) whence the name,
dynasty. Their power is exerted by leading the multitude whither they
like, by persuasion or by force. Their power of persuasion chiefly
rests in doing acts of kindness; for persuasion by words is not
princely, but belongs to the orator. By princely persuasion, I mean,
when kings direct and lead men whither they please by acts of kindness.
They persuade by acts of kindness, but compel by means of arms. Both
power and possessions may be purchased by money. For he has the largest
body of forces, who is able to maintain the largest; and he who has the
largest possessions, can confer the greatest benefits. [406]]
The spot which the present lake Copaïs occupies, was formerly, it is
said, dry ground, and was cultivated in various ways by the
Orchomenians, who lived near it; and this is alleged as a proof of
wealth.
41. Some persons use the word Aspledon[407] without the first syllable,
Spledon. The name both of the city and of the territory was changed to
Eudeielos,[408] which expressed perhaps some peculiar advantage the
inhabitants derived from their western position, and especially the mild
winters. The extreme parts of the day are the coldest. Of these the
evening is colder than the morning, for as night approaches the cold is
more intense, and as night retires the cold abates. The severity of the
cold is mitigated by the heat of the sun, and the part which during the
coldest season has received most of the sun’s heat, is mildest in
winter.
It is distant from Orchomenus[409] 20 stadia. The river Melas is between
them.
42. Panopeus, a Phocian city, and Hyampolis[410] are situated above
Orchomenus. Opus, the metropolis of the Locri Epicnemidii, borders upon
these places. It is said, that Orchomenus was formerly situated on a
plain, but, as the waters overflowed, the settlers removed to the
mountain Acontium, which extends 60 stadia in length, as far as
Parapotamii in Phocis. It is said, that those people, who are called
Achæi in Pontus, are colonists from the Orchomenians, who, after the
capture of Troy, wandered thither under the conduct of Ialmenus. There
was also an Orchomenus near Carystus.
The writers on the Catalogue of Ships [in Homer], have furnished us with
these materials, and they have been followed, wherever they introduced
anything adapted to the design of this work.
CHAPTER III.
1. Next to Bœotia and Orchomenus is Phocis, lying along the side of
Bœotia to the north, and, anciently, nearly from sea [CAS. 416] to sea.
For at that time Daphnus belonged to Phocis, dividing Locris into two
parts, and situated midway between the Opuntian Gulf and the sea-coast
of the Epicnemidii. At present, however, the district belongs to the
Locri; but the town is in ruins, so that Phocis no longer extends to the
sea opposite Eubœa; but it is close to the Crisæan Gulf. For Crisa
itself belongs to Phocis, and is situated immediately upon the sea.
Cirrha, Anticyra,[411] and the places above them, in the interior near
Parnassus in continuous succession, namely, Delphi,[412] Cirphis, and
Daulis,[413] belong to Phocis, so also Parnassus itself, which is the
boundary of the western side.
In the same manner as Phocis lies along the side of Bœotia, so are both
the divisions of Locris situated with respect to Phocis, for Locris is
composed of two parts, being divided by Parnassus. The western part lies
along the side of Parnassus, occupies a portion of it, and extends to
the Crisæan Gulf; the eastern part terminates at the sea near Eubœa. The
inhabitants of the former are called Locri Hesperii, or Locri Ozolæ, and
have engraven on their public seal the star Hesperus. The rest are again
divided into two bodies: one, the Opuntii, who have their name from the
chief city, and border upon the Phocæans and Bœotians; the other, the
Epicnemidii, who have their name from the mountain Cnemis;[414] and
adjoin the Œtæi, and the Malienses. In the midst of the Hesperii, and
the other Locri, is Parnassus, lying lengthwise towards the northern
part, and extending from the neighbourhood of Delphi to the junction of
the Œtæan, and the Ætolian mountains, and to the Dorians, who are
situated between them. For as both divisions of Locris extend along the
side of Phocis, so also the region of Œta with Ætolia, and some of the
places situated in the Doric Tetrapolis, extend along the sides of the
two Locri, Parnassus and the Dorians. Immediately above these are
situated the Thessalians, the northern Ætolians, the Acarnanians, and
some of the Epirotic and Macedonian nations, as I observed before, the
above-mentioned tracts of country may be considered as a kind of
parallel bands stretching from the west to the east.
The whole of Parnassus is esteemed sacred, it contains caves, and other
places, which are regarded with honour and reverence. Of these the most
celebrated and the most beautiful is Corycium, a cave of the nymphs,
having the same name as that in Cilicia. Of the sides of Parnassus, the
western is occupied by the Locri Ozolæ, and by some of the Dorians, and
by the Ætoli, situated near Corax, an Ætolian mountain. The eastern side
is occupied by Phocians and by the greater part of the Dorians, who hold
the Tetrapolis, situated as it were round the side of Parnassus, but
spreading out in the largest extent towards the east. The sides of the
above-mentioned tracts and each of the bands are parallel, one side
being northern, and the other southern. The western sides, however, are
not parallel to the eastern, for the sea-coast from the Crisæan Gulf to
Actium[415] is not parallel to the coast opposite Eubœa, and extending
to Thessalonica. It is on these shores the above-mentioned nations
terminate. For the figure of these countries is to be understood from
the notion of lines drawn parallel to the base of a triangle, where the
separate parts lie parallel to one another, and have their sides in
latitude parallel, but not their sides in longitude. This is a rough
sketch of the country which remains to be examined. We shall examine
each separate part in order, beginning with Phocis.
2. The two most celebrated cities of this country are Delphi and
Elateia. Delphi is renowned for the temple of the Pythian Apollo, and
the antiquity of its oracle; since Agamemnon is said by the poet to have
consulted it; for the minstrel is introduced singing of the
“fierce contest of Ulysses, and Achilles, the son of Peleus,
how once they contended together, and Agamemnon king of men
was pleased, for so Phœbus Apollo had foretold by the oracle
in the illustrious Pytho. ”[416]
Delphi then was celebrated on this account. Elateia was famous as being
the largest of the cities in that quarter, and for its very convenient
position upon the straits; for he, who is the master of this city,
commands the entrances into Phocis and Bœotia. First, there are the
Œtæan mountains, next the mountains of the Locri, and the Phocians; they
are not every where passable for invading armies, coming from Thessaly,
but having narrow passes distinct from each other, which the adjacent
cities guard. Those, who take the cities, are masters [CAS. 418] of the
passes also. But since from its celebrity the temple at Delphi possesses
a pre-eminence, this, together with the position of the places, (for
they are the most westerly parts of Phocis,) suggest a natural
commencement of our description, and we shall begin from thence.
3. We have remarked, that Parnassus itself is situated on the western
boundaries of Phocis. The western side of this mountain is occupied by
the Locri Ozolæ; on the southern is Delphi, a rocky spot, resembling in
shape a theatre; on its summit is the oracle, and also the city, which
comprehends a circle of 16 stadia. Above it lies Lycoreia; here the
Delphians were formerly settled above the temple. At present they live
close to it around the Castalian fountain. In front of the city, on the
southern part, is Cirphis, a precipitous hill, leaving in the
intermediate space a wooded ravine, through which the river Pleistus
flows. Below Cirphis near the sea is Cirrha, an ancient city, from which
there is an ascent to Delphi of about 80 stadia. It is situated opposite
to Sicyon. Adjoining to Cirrha is the fertile Crisæan plain. Again, next
in order follows another city Crisa, from which the Crisæan Gulf has its
name; then Anticyra,[417] of the same name as the city, on the Maliac
Gulf, and near Œta. The best hellebore is said to grow in the Maliac
Anticyra,[418] but here it is prepared in a better manner; on this
account many persons resort hither for the purpose of experiencing its
purgative qualities, and of being cured of their maladies. In the
Phocian territory there is found a medicinal plant, resembling Sesamum,
(Sesamoides,) with which the Œtæan hellebore is prepared.
4. Anticyra still remains, but Cirrha and Crisa[419] are in ruins;
Cirrha was destroyed by the Crisæans; and Crisa, afterwards, by
Eurylochus the Thessalian, in the Crisæan war; for the Crisæi enriched
themselves by duties levied on merchandise brought from Sicily and
Italy, and laid grievous imposts on those who resorted to the temple,
contrary to the decrees of the Amphictyons. The same was the case with
the Amphissenses, who belong to the Locri Ozolæ. This people made an
irruption into the country, and took possession of Crisa, and restored
it. The plain, which had been consecrated by the Amphictyons, was
diligently cultivated, but strangers were more harshly treated than by
the Crisæans before them. The Amphictyons punished them and restored the
territory to the god. The temple at Delphi is now much neglected,
although formerly it was held in the greatest veneration. Proofs of the
respect which was paid to it are, the treasuries constructed at the
expense of communities and princes, where was deposited the wealth
dedicated to sacred uses, the works of the most eminent artists, the
Pythian games, and a multitude of celebrated oracles.
5. The place where the oracle is delivered, is said to be a deep hollow
cavern, the entrance to which is not very wide. From it rises up an
exhalation which inspires a divine frenzy: over the mouth is placed a
lofty tripod on which the Pythian priestess ascends to receive the
exhalation, after which she gives the prophetic response in verse or
prose. The prose is adapted to measure by poets who are in the service
of the temple. Phemonoë is said to have been the first Pythian
prophetess, and both the prophetess and the city obtained their
appellation from the word Pythesthai, to inquire, (πυθέσθαι).
The first syllable was lengthened, as in the words ἀθάνατος, ἀκάματος,
διάκονος.
[420][The establishment of cities, and the honour paid to common
temples, are due to the same feelings and causes. Men were collected
together into cities and nations, from a natural disposition to society,
and for the purpose of mutual assistance. Hence common temples were
resorted to, festivals celebrated, and meetings held of the general body
of the people. For friendship commences from and is promoted by
attending the same feasts, uniting in the same worship, and dwelling
under the same roof. The advantages derived from these meetings were
naturally estimated from the number of persons who attended them, as
also from the number of places from whence they came. ]
6. Although the highest honour was paid to this temple on account of the
oracle, (for it was the most exempt of any from deception,) yet its
reputation was owing in part to its situation in the centre of all
Greece, both within and without the isthmus. It was also supposed to be
the centre of the habitable [CAS. 420] earth, and was called the Navel
of the earth. A fable, referred to by Pindar, was invented, according to
which two eagles, (or, as others say, two crows,) set free by Jupiter,
one from the east, the other from the west, alighted together at Delphi.
In the temple is seen a sort of navel wrapped in bands, and surmounted
by figures representing the birds of the fable.
7. As the situation of Delphi is convenient, persons easily assembled
there, particularly those from the neighbourhood, of whom the
Amphictyonic body is composed. It is the business of this body to
deliberate on public affairs, and to it is more particularly intrusted
the guardianship of the temple for the common good; for large sums of
money were deposited there, and votive offerings, which required great
vigilance and religious care. The early history of this body is unknown,
but among the names which are recorded, Acrisius appears to have been
the first who regulated its constitution, to have determined what cities
were to have votes in the council, and to have assigned the number of
votes and mode of voting. To some cities he gave a single vote each, or
a vote to two cities, or to several cities conjointly. He also defined
the class of questions which might arise between the different cities,
which were to be submitted to the decision of the Amphictyonic tribunal;
and subsequently many other regulations were made, but this body, like
that of the Achæans, was finally dissolved.
At first twelve cities are said to have assembled, each of which sent a
Pylagoras. The convention was held twice a year, in spring and autumn.
But latterly a greater number of cities assembled. They called both the
vernal and the autumnal convention Pylæan, because it was held at Pylæ,
which has the name also of Thermopylæ. The Pylagoræ sacrificed to Ceres.
In the beginning, the persons in the neighbourhood only assembled, or
consulted the oracle, but afterwards people repaired thither from a
distance for this purpose, sent gifts, and constructed treasuries, as
Crœsus, and his father Alyattes, some of the Italians also, and the
Siceli (Sicilians).
8. But the wealth, being an object of cupidity, was guarded with
difficulty, although dedicated to sacred uses. At present, however,
whatever it might have been, the temple at Delphi is exceedingly poor.
Some of the offerings have been taken away for the sake of the money,
but the greater part remain there. It is true that the temple was once
very opulent, as Homer testifies;
“Nor all the wealth, which the marble threshold of Phœbus
Apollo, the Archer, (Aphetor,)[421] contains in the rocky
Pytho. ”[422]
The treasuries indicate its riches, and the plunder committed by the
Phocians, which gave rise to the Phocic or Sacred war, as it was called.
It is however supposed that a spoliation of the temple must have taken
place at some more remote period, when the wealth mentioned by Homer
disappeared; for no vestige of it whatever was preserved to later times,
when Onomarchus and Phayllus pillaged the temple, as the property [then]
removed was of a more recent date than that referred to by the poet. For
there were once deposited in the treasuries, offerings from spoils,
bearing inscriptions with the names of the donors, as of Gyges, of
Crœsus, of the Sybaritæ, of the Spinetæ on the Adriatic, and of others
also. It would be unbecoming to suppose[423] that modern and ancient
treasures were confounded together: other places pillaged by these
people confirm this view.
Some persons, however, understanding the word Aphetor to signify
treasure, and the threshold of the aphetor the repository of the
treasure under-ground, say, that this wealth was buried beneath the
temple, and that Onomarchus and his companions attempted to dig it up by
night; violent shocks of an earthquake caused them to fly out of the
temple, and desist from their excavation; thus others were impressed
with a dread of making similar attempts.
9. Of the shrines, the winged shrine[424] is to be placed among fabulous
stories. The second is said to have been the workmanship of Trophonius
and Agamedes, but the present shrine[425] was built by the Amphictyons.
A tomb of Neoptolemus is shown in the sacred enclosure. It was built
according [CAS. 421] to the injunction of an oracle. Neoptolemus was
killed by Machæreus, a Delphian, when, as the fable goes, he was seeking
redress from the god for the murder of his father, but, probably, he was
preparing to pillage the temple. Branchus, who presided over the temple
at Didyma, is said to have been a descendant of Machæreus.
10. There was anciently a contest held at Delphi, of players on the
cithara, who executed a pæan in honour of the god. It was instituted by
Delphians. But after the Crisæan war the Amphictyons, in the time of
Eurylochus, established contests for horses, and gymnastic sports, in
which the victor was crowned. These were called Pythian games. The
players[426] on the cithara were accompanied by players on the flute,
and by citharists,[427] who performed without singing. They performed a
strain (Melos),[428] called the Pythian mood (Nomos). [429] It consisted
of five parts; the anacrusis, the ampeira, cataceleusmus, iambics and
dactyls, and pipes. [430] Timosthenes, the commander of the fleet of the
Second Ptolemy, and who was the author of a work in ten books on
Harbours, composed a melos. His object was to celebrate in this melos
the contest of Apollo with the serpent Python. The anacrusis was
intended to express the prelude; the ampeira, the first onset of the
contest; the cataceleusmus, the contest itself; the iambics and dactyls
denoted the triumphal strain on obtaining the victory, together with
musical measures, of which the dactyl is peculiarly appropriated to
praise, and the use of the iambic to insult and reproach; the syringes
or pipes described the death, the players imitating the hissings of the
expiring monster. [431]
11. Ephorus, whom we generally follow, on account of his exactness in
these matters, (as Polybius, a writer of repute, testifies,) seems to
proceed contrary to his proposed plan, and to the promise which he made
at the beginning of his work. For after having censured those writers
who are fond of intermixing fable with history, and after having spoken
in praise of truth, he introduces, with reference to this oracle, a
grave declaration, that he considers truth preferable at all times, but
especially in treating subjects of this kind. For it is absurd, he says,
if, in other things, we constantly follow this practice, but that when
we come to speak of the oracle, which of all others is the most exempt
from deception, we should introduce tales so incredible and false. Yet
immediately afterwards he says, that it is the received opinion that
Apollo, by the aid of Themis, established this oracle with a view to
benefit the human race. He then explains these benefits, by saying, that
men were invited to pursue a more civilized mode of life, and were
taught maxims of wisdom by oracles; by injunctions to perform or to
abstain, or by positive refusal to attend to the prayers of petitioners.
Some, he says, suppose, that the god himself in a bodily form directs
these things; others, that he communicates an intimation of his will to
men [by words].
12. And lower down, when speaking of the Delphians and their origin, he
says, that certain persons, called Parnassii, an indigenous tribe,
anciently inhabited Parnassus, about which time Apollo, traversing the
country, reclaimed men from their savage state, by inducing them to
adopt a more civilized mode of life and subsistence; that, setting out
from Athens on his way to Delphi, he took the same road along which the
Athenians at present conduct the procession of the Pythias; that when he
arrived at the Panopeis, he put to death Tityus, who was master of the
district, a violent and lawless man; that the Parnassii having joined
him informed him of Python, another desperate man, surnamed the Dragon.
Whilst he was despatching this man with his arrows, they shouted, Hie
Paian;[432] whence has been transmitted the custom of singing the Pæan
before the onset of a battle; that after the death of the Python the
Delphians burnt even his tent, as they still continue to burn a tent in
memorial of these events. Now what can be more fabulous than Apollo
discharging his arrows, chastising Tityi and Pythons, his journey from
Athens to Delphi, and his travels over the whole country? If he did not
consider these as fables, why did he call the fabulous Themis a woman,
and the fabulous dragon a man, unless he intended to confound the
provinces of history and fable. His account of the Ætolians is similar
to this. After having [CAS. 423] asserted that their country was never
ravaged at any period, he says, that at one time it was inhabited by
Ætolians, who had expelled the Barbarians; that at another time, Ætolus,
together with the Epeii from Elis, inhabited it; [that Ætolus was
overthrown by the Epeii,] and these again by Alcmæon and Diomedes.
I now return to the Phocians.
13. Immediately on the sea-coast, next after Anticyra,[433] and
behind[434] it, is the small city Marathus; then a promontory,
Pharygium, which has a shelter for vessels; then the harbour at the
farthest end, called Mychus,[435] from the accident of its situation
between Helicon[436] and Ascra.
Nor is Abæ,[437] the seat of an oracle, far from these places, nor
Ambrysus,[438] nor Medeon, of the same name as a city in Bœotia.
In the inland parts, next after Delphi, towards the east is Daulis,[439]
a small town, where, it is said, Tereus, the Thracian, was prince; and
there they say is the scene of the fable of Philomela and Procne;
Thucydides lays it there; but other writers refer it to Megara. The name
of the place is derived from the thickets there, for they call thickets
Dauli. Homer calls it Daulis, but subsequent writers Daulia, and the
words
“they who occupied Cyparissus,”[440]
are understood in a double sense; some persons supposing it to have its
name from the tree of the country, but others from a village situated
below the Lycoreian territory.
14. Panopeus, the present Phanoteus, the country of Epeius, is on the
confines of the district of Lebadeia. Here the fable places the abode of
Tityus. But Homer says, that the Phæacians conducted Rhadamanthus to
Eubœa,
“in order to see Tityus, son of the earth;”[441]
they show also in the island a cave called Elarium, from Elara the
mother of Tityus, and an Heroum of Tityus, and some kind of honours are
spoken of, which are paid to him.
Near Lebadeia is Trachin, having the same name as that in Œtæa; it is a
small Phocian town. The inhabitants are called Trachinii.
15. Anemoreia[442] has its name from a physical accident, to which it is
liable. It is exposed to violent gusts of wind from a place called
Catopterius,[443] a precipitous mountain, extending from Parnassus. It
was a boundary between Delphi and the Phocians, when the Lacedæmonians
made the Delphians separate themselves from the common body of the
Phocians,[444] and permitted them to form an independent state.
Some call the place Anemoleia; it was afterwards called by others
Hyampolis,[445] (and also Hya,) whither we said the Hyantes were
banished from Bœotia. It is situated quite in the interior, near
Parapotamii, and is a different place from Hyampea on Parnassus.
Elateia[446] is the largest of the Phocian cities, but Homer was not
acquainted with it, for it is later than his times. It is conveniently
situated to repel incursions on the side of Thessaly. Demosthenes[447]
points out the advantage of its position, in speaking of the confusion
which suddenly arose, when a messenger arrived to inform the Prytaneis
of the capture of Elateia.
16. Parapotamii is a settlement on the Cephissus, in the neighbourhood
of Phanoteus, Chæroneia, and Elateia. This place, according to
Theopompus, is distant from Chæroneia about 40 stadia, and is the
boundary between the Ambryseis, Panopeis, and Daulieis. It is situated
at the entrance from Bœotia to the Phocians, upon an eminence of
moderate height, between Parnassus and the mountain [Hadylium, where
there is an open space] of 5 stadia in extent, through which runs the
Cephissus, affording on each side a narrow pass. This river has its
source at Lilæa, a Phocian city, as Homer testifies;[CAS. 424]
“they who occupied Lilæa, near the source of the Cephissus;”[448]
and empties itself into the lake Copais. But Hadylium extends 60 stadia,
as far as Hyphanteium, on which Orchomenus is situated. Hesiod also
enlarges on the river and its stream, how it takes through the whole of
Phocis an oblique and serpentine course;
“which, like a serpent, winds along Panopeus and the strong
Glechon, and through Orchomenus. ”[449]
The narrow pass near Parapotamii, or Parapotamia, (for the name is
written both ways,) was disputed in [the Phocian war,] for this is the
only entrance [into Phocis]. [450]
There is a Cephissus in Phocis, another at Athens, and another at
Salamis. There is a fourth and a fifth at Sicyon and at Scyrus; [a sixth
at Argos, having its source in the Lyrceium]. [451] At Apollonia,[452]
also, near Epidamnus,[453] there is near the Gymnasium a spring, which
is called Cephissus.
17. Daphnus[454] is at present in ruins. It was at one time a city of
Phocis, and lay close to the Eubœan Sea; it divided the Locri
Epicnemidii into two bodies, namely, the Locri on the side of
Bœotia,[455] and the Locri on the side of Phocis, which then extended
from sea to sea. A proof of this is the Schedieum, [in Daphnus,] called
the tomb of Schedius. [456] [It has been already said] that Daphnus
[divides] Locris into two parts, [in such a manner as to prevent] the
Epicnemidii and Opuntii from touching upon each other in any part. In
after-times Daphnus was included within the boundaries of the [Opuntii].
On the subject of Phocis, this may suffice.
CHAPTER IV.
1. Locris, which we are now to describe, follows next in order.
It is divided into two parts, one of which is occupied by the Locri
opposite Eubœa, and, as we have already said, formerly consisted of two
bodies, situated one on each side of Daphnus. The Locri Opuntii had
their surname from Opus,[457] the capital; the Epicnemidii from a
mountain called Cnemis. [458] The rest are the Locri Hesperii, who are
called also Locri Ozolæ. These are separated from the Locri Opuntii and
Epicnemidii by Parnassus, which lies between them, and by the Tetrapolis
of the Dorians. We shall first speak of the Opuntii.
2. Immediately after Halæ, where the Bœotian coast opposite Eubœa
terminates, is the Opuntian bay. Opus is the capital, as the inscription
intimates, which is engraved on the first of the five pillars at
Thermopylæ, near the Polyandrium:[459]
“Opoeis, the capital of the Locri, hides in its bosom those
who died in defence of Greece against the Medes. ”
It is distant from the sea about 15 stadia, and 60 from the naval
arsenal. The arsenal is Cynus,[460] a promontory, which forms the
boundary of the Opuntian bay. The latter is 40 stadia in extent. Between
Opus and Cynus is a fertile plain, opposite to Ædepsus in Eubœa, where
are the warm baths[461] of Hercules, and is separated by a strait of 160
stadia. Deucalion is said to have lived at Cynus. There also is shown
the tomb of Pyrrha; but that of Deucalion is at Athens. Cynus is distant
from Mount Cnemis about 50 stadia. The island Atalanta[462] is opposite
to Opus, having the [CAS. 425] same name as the island in front of
Attica. It is said, that some Opuntii are to be found in the Eleian
territory, whom it is not worth while to notice, except that they
pretend to trace some affinity subsisting between themselves and the
Locri Opuntii. Homer[463] says that Patroclus was from Opus, and that
having committed murder undesignedly, he fled to Peleus, but that the
father Menœtius remained in his native country; for it is to Opus that
Achilles promised Menœtius that he would bring back Patroclus on his
return from the Trojan expedition. [464] Not that Menœtius was king of
the Opuntii, but Ajax the Locrian, who, according to report, was born at
Narycus. The name of the person killed by Patroclus was Æanes; a grove,
called after him Æaneium, and a fountain, Æanis, are shown.
3. Next after Cynus is Alopē[465] and Daphnus, which last, we have said,
is in ruins. At Alopē is a harbour, distant from Cynus about 90 stadia,
and 120 from Elateia, in the interior of the country. But these belong
to the Maliac, which is continuous with the Opuntian Gulf.
4. Next to Daphnus, at the distance of about 20 stadia by sea, is
Cnemides, a strong place, opposite to which in Eubœa is Cenæum, a
promontory, looking towards the west and the Maliac Gulf, and separated
by a strait of nearly 20 stadia.
At Cnemides we are in the territory of the Locri Epicnemidii. Here are
the Lichades, as they are called, three islands, having their name from
Lichas; they lie in front of Cnemides. Other islands also are met with
in sailing along this coast, which we purposely pass over.
At the distance of 20 stadia from Cnemides is a harbour, above which at
the same distance, in the interior, is situated Thronium. [466] Then the
Boagrius, which flows beside Thronium, empties itself into the sea. It
has another name also, that of Manes. It is a winter torrent; whence its
bed may be crossed at times dry-shod, and at another it is two plethra
in width.
Then after these is Scarpheia, at a distance of 10 stadia from the sea,
and of 30 from Thronium, but at a little [less from its harbour. ][467]
Next are Nicæa and Thermopylæ.
5. It is not worth while to speak of any of the other cities. Of those
mentioned by Homer, Calliarus is no longer inhabited, it is now a
well-cultivated plain. Bessa, a sort of plain, does not now exist. It
has its name from an accidental quality, for it abounds with woods.
χώραν ἔχουσι Σκαρφιεῖς, &c. It ought to be written with a double s,
for it has its name from Bessa, a wooded valley, like Napē,[468] in
the plain of Methymna,[469] which Hellanicus, through ignorance of the
local circumstances, improperly calls Lapē; but the demus in Attica,
from which the burghers are called Besæenses, is written with a single
s.
6. Tarphē is situated upon a height, at the distance of 20 stadia from
[Thronium]. It has a territory, productive and well wooded; for this
place also has its name from its being thickly wooded. It is now called
Pharygæ. A temple of Juno Pharygæa is there, called so from the Argive
Juno at Pharygæ; and the inhabitants assert that they are of Argive
origin.
7. Homer does not mention, at least not in express words, the Locri
Hesperii, but only seems to distinguish them from the people of whom we
have spoken;
“Locri, who dwell beyond the sacred Eubœa;”[470]
as if there were other Locri. They occupied the cities Amphissa[471] and
Naupactus. [472] The latter still subsists near Antirrhium. [473] It has
its name from the ships that were built there, either because the
Heraclidæ constructed their fleet at this place, or because the Locri,
as Ephorus states, had built vessels there long before that time. At
present it belongs to the Ætolians, by a decree of Philip.
8. There also is Chalcis, mentioned by the poet[474] in the Ætolian
Catalogue. It is below Calydon. There also is the hill Taphiassus, on
which is the monument of Nessus, and of the other Centaurs. From the
putrefaction of the bodies of these people there flows, it is said, from
beneath the foot of that hill a stream of water, which exhales a fœtid
odour, and [CAS. 427] contains clots of blood. Hence also the nation
had the name of Ozolæ. [475]
Opposite Antirrhium is Molycreia,[476] a small Ætolian city.
Amphissa is situated at the extremity of the Crisæan plain. It was
razed, as we have said before, by the Amphictyons. Œanthia and Eupalium
belong to the Locri. The whole voyage along the coast of the Locri is a
little more than 200 stadia.
9. There is an Alope[477] both here among the Locri Ozolæ, as also among
the Epicnemidii, and in the Phthiotis. These are a colony of the
Epicnemidii, and the Epizephyrii a colony of the Ozolæ.
10. Ætolians are continuous with the Locri Hesperii, and the Ænianes,
who occupy Œta with the Epicnemidii, and between them Dorians. These
last are the people who inhabited the Tetrapolis, which is called the
capital of all the Dorians. They possessed the cities Erineus, Bœum,
Pindus, Cytinium. Pindus is situated above Erineus. A river of the same
name flows beside it, and empties itself into the Cephissus, not far
from Lilæa. Some writers call Pindus, Acyphas.
Ægimius, king of these Dorians, when an exile from his kingdom, was
restored, as they relate, by Hercules. He requited this favour after the
death of Hercules at Œta by adopting Hyllus, the eldest of the sons of
Hercules, and both he and his descendants succeeded him in the kingdom.
It was from this place that the Heracleidæ set out on their return to
Peloponnesus.
11. These cities were for some time of importance, although they were
small, and their territory not fruitful. They were afterwards neglected.
After what they suffered in the Phocian war and under the dominion of
the Macedonians, Ætolians, and Athamanes, it is surprising that even a
vestige of them should have remained to the time of the Romans.
It was the same with the Ænianes, who were exterminated by Ætolians and
Athamanes. The Ætolians were a very powerful people, and carried on war
together with the Acarnanians. The Athamanes were the last of the
Epeirotæ, who attained distinction when the rest were declining, and
acquired power by the assistance of their king Amynander. The Ænianes,
however, kept possession of Œta.
12. This mountain extends from Thermopylæ and the east, to the
Ambracian Gulf and the west; it may be said to cut at right angles the
mountainous tract, extending from Parnassus as far as Pindus, and to the
Barbarians who live beyond. The portion of this mountain verging towards
Thermopylæ[478] is called Œta; it is 200 stadia in length, rocky and
elevated, but the highest part is at Thermopylæ, for there it forms a
peak, and terminates with acute and abrupt rocks, continued to the sea.
It leaves a narrow passage for those who are going from Thessaly to
Locris.
13. This passage is called Pylæ, or gates, straits, and Thermopylæ,
because near the straits are hot springs, which are held in honour as
sacred to Hercules. The mountain above is called Callidromus; but some
writers call by the name of Callidromus the remaining part of the range
extending through Ætolia and Acarnania to the Ambracian Gulf.
At Thermopylæ within the straits are strongholds, as Nicæa, on the sea
of the Locri, Teichius and Heracleia above it, formerly called Trachin,
founded by the Lacedæmonians. Heracleia is distant from the ancient
Trachin about 6 stadia. Next follows Rhoduntia, strong by its position.
14. These places are rendered difficult of access by a rocky country,
and by bodies of water, forming ravines through which they pass. For
besides the Spercheius,[479] which flows past Anticyra, there is the
Dyras, which, it is said, endeavoured to extinguish the funeral pile of
Hercules, and another river, the Melas, distant about 5 stadia from
Trachin. Herodotus says,[480] that to the south of Trachin there is a
deep fissure, through which the Asopus, (which has the same name as
other rivers that we have mentioned,) empties itself into the sea
without the Pylæ, having received the river Phœnix which flows from the
south, and unites with it. The latter river bears the name of the hero,
whose tomb is shown near it. From the Asopus (Phœnix? ) to Thermopylæ are
15 stadia.
15. These places were of the greatest celebrity when they formed the
keys of the straits. There were frequent contests for the ascendency
between the inhabitants without and those within the straits. Philip
used to call Chalcis and Corinth the fetters of Greece with reference to
the opportunity which they afforded for invasions from Macedonia; and
persons in [CAS. 429] later times called both these places and
Demetrias “the fetters,” for Demetrias commanding Pelion and Ossa,
commanded also the passes at Tempe. Afterwards, however, when the whole
country was subject to one power, the passes were freely open to
all. [481]
16. It was at these straits that Leonidas and his companions, together
with a small body of persons from the neighbourhood, resisted the
numerous forces of the Persians, until the Barbarians, making a circuit
of the mountains along narrow paths, surrounded and cut them to pieces.
Their place of burial, the Polyandrium, is still to be seen there, and
the celebrated inscription sculptured on the Lacedæmonian pillar;
“Stranger, go tell Lacedæmon that we lie here in obedience to her laws. ”
17. There is also a large harbour here and a temple of Ceres, in which
the Amphictyons at the time of every Pylæan assembly offered sacrifice.
From the harbour to the Heracleian Trachin are 40 stadia by land, but by
sea to Cenæum[482] it is 70 stadia. The Spercheius empties itself
immediately without the Pylæ. To Pylæ from the Euripus are 530 stadia.
And here Locris terminates. The parts without the Pylæ towards the east,
and the Maliac Gulf, belong to the Thessalians; those towards the west,
to the Ætolians and Acarnanians. The Athamanes are extinct.
18. The Thessalians form the largest and most ancient community. One
part of them has been mentioned by Homer, and the rest by many other
writers. Homer constantly mentions the Ætolians under one name; he
places cities, and not nations dependent upon them, if we except the
Curetes, whom we must place in the division of Ætolians.
We must begin our account with the Thessalians, omitting very ancient
and fabulous stories, and what is not generally admitted, (as we have
done in other instances,) but propose to mention what appears suited to
our purpose.
CHAPTER V.
1. The sea-coast, extending from Thermopylæ to the mouths of the
Peneius,[483] and the extremities of Pelion, looking towards the east,
and the northern extremities of Eubœa, is that of Thessaly. The parts
opposite Eubœa and Thermopylæ are occupied by Malienses, and by Achæan
Phthiotæ; those towards Pelion by the Magnetes. This may be called the
eastern and maritime side of Thessaly. From either side from Pelion, and
the Peneius, towards the inland parts are Macedonians, who extend as far
as Pæonia, (Pindus? ) and the Epeirotic nations. From Thermopylæ, the
Œtæan and Ætolian mountains, which approach close to the Dorians, and
Parnassus, are parallel to the Macedonians. The side towards the
Macedonians may be called the northern side; the other, the southern.
There remains the western side, enclosed by Ætolians and Acarnanians, by
Amphilochians and Athamanes, who are Epirotæ; by the territory of the
Molotti, formerly said to be that of the Æthices, and, in short, by the
country about Pindus. Thessaly,[484] in the interior, is a plain country
for the most part, and has no mountains, except Pelion and Ossa. These
mountains rise to a considerable height, but do not encompass a large
tract of country, but terminate in the plains.
2. These are the middle parts of Thessaly, a district of very fertile
country, except that part of it which is overflowed by rivers. The
Peneius flows through the middle of the country, and receiving many
rivers, frequently overflows. Formerly, according to report, the plain
was a lake; it is enclosed on all sides inland by mountains, and the
sea-coast is more elevated than the plains. When a chasm was formed, at
the place now called Tempe, by shocks of an earthquake, and Ossa was
riven from Olympus, the Peneius flowed out through it to the sea, and
drained this tract of country. Still there remained the large lake
Nessonis, and the lake Bœbeis; which is of less extent than the
Nessonis, and nearer to the sea-coast.
3. [CAS. 430] Such then is Thessaly, which is divided into four parts,
Phthiotis, Hestiæotis, Thessaliotis, and Pelasgiotis.
Phthiotis comprises the southern parts, extending along Œta from the
Maliac and (or) Pylaïc Gulf[485] as far as Dolopia and Pindus,
increasing in breadth to Pharsalia and the Thessalian plains.
Hestiæotis comprises the western parts and those between Pindus and
Upper Macedonia; the rest is occupied by the inhabitants of the plains
below Hestiæotis, who are called Pelasgiotæ, and approach close to the
Lower Macedonians; by the [Thessalians] also, who possess the country
next in order, as far as the coast of Magnesia.
The names of many cities might here be enumerated, which are celebrated
on other accounts, but particularly as being mentioned by Homer; few of
them, however, but most of all Larisa, preserve their ancient
importance.
4.
territory of Haliartus, near the lake Copaïs, and the Teneric plain. It
is situated on a height, devoid of trees, where is a temple of Neptune
also without trees. For the poets, for the sake of ornament, called all
sacred places groves, although they were without trees. Such is the
language of Pindar, when speaking of Apollo:
“He traversed in his onward way the earth and sea; he stood
upon the heights of the lofty mountains; he shook the caves in
their deep recesses, and overthrew the foundations of the
sacred groves” or temples.
As Alcæus is mistaken in the altering the name of the river Cuarius, so
he makes a great error in placing Onchestus at the extremities of
Helicon, whereas it is situated very far from this mountain.
34. The Teneric plain has its name from Tenerus. According to mythology,
he was the son of Apollo and Melia, and declared the answers of the
oracle at the mountain Ptoum,[391] which, the same poet says, had three
peaks:
“At one time he occupied the caves of the three-headed Ptoum;”
and he calls Tenerus
“the prophet, dwelling in the temple, and having the same name
as the soil on which it stands. ”
The Ptoum is situated above the Teneric plain, and the lake Copaïs, near
Acræphium.
Both [CAS. 413] the oracle and the mountain belonged to the Thebans.
Acræphium[392] itself is situated upon a height. This, it is said, is
the place called Arnē by the poet, having the same name as the
Thessalian Arnē.
35. Some say that Arnē and Mideia were swallowed up by the lake.
Zenodotus, however, when he writes the verse thus,
“they who occupied Ascra abounding with vines,”[393]
does not seem to have read Hesiod’s description of his native country,
and what has been said by Eudoxus, who relates things much more to the
disparagement of Ascra. For how could any one believe that such a place
could have been described by the poet as
“abounding with vines? ”
Neither are those persons in the right, who substitute in this passage
Tarnē for Arnē, for there is not a place of the name of Tarne to be
found in Bœotia, although there is in Lydia. Homer mentions it,
“Idomeneus then slew Phæstus, the son of Borus, the artificer,
who came from the fruitful soil of Tarnē. ”[394]
Besides Alalcomenæ and Tilphossium, which are near the lake, Chæroneia,
Lebadia, and Leuctra, are worthy of notice.
36. The poet mentions Alalcomenæ,[395] but not in the Catalogue;
“the Argive Juno and Minerva of Alalcomenæ. ”[396]
It has an ancient temple of Minerva, which is held in great veneration.
It is said that this was the place of her birth, as Argos was that of
Juno, and that Homer gave to both these goddesses designations derived
from their native places. Perhaps for this reason he has not mentioned,
in the Catalogue, the inhabitants; for having a sacred character, they
were exempted from military service. Indeed the city has never suffered
devastation by an enemy, although it is inconsiderable in size, and its
position is weak, for it is situated in a plain.
All in reverence to the goddess abstained from every act of violence;
wherefore the Thebans, at the time of the expedition of the Epigoni,
abandoning their own city, are said to have taken refuge here, and on
the strong mountain above it, the Tilphossium. [397] Below Tilphossium is
the fountain Tilphossa, and the monument of Teiresias, who died there on
the retreat.
37. Chæroneia[398] is near Orchomenus,[399] where Philip, the son of
Amyntas, after having overcome, in a great battle,[400] the Athenians,
Bœotians, and Corinthians, became the master of Greece. There are seen
the sepulchres erected at the public charge of the persons who fell in
that battle.
38. At Lebadeia[401] is the oracle of Jupiter Trophonius, having a
descent through an opening, which leads under-ground. The person himself,
who consults the oracle, descends into it. It is situated between
Helicon and Chæroneia, near Coroneia.
39. Leuctra[402] is the place where Epaminondas overcame the
Lacedæmonians in a great battle, and first weakened their power; for
after that time they were never able to regain the supremacy over the
Greeks, which they before possessed, and particularly after they were
defeated in a second battle at Mantinea. Even after these reverses they
preserved their independence until the establishment of the Roman
dominion, and were always respected by that people on account of the
excellency of their form of government. The field of battle is shown on
the road which leads from Platææ to Thespiæ.
40. The poet next mentions the Orchomenians in the Catalogue, and
distinguishes them from the Bœotian nation. He gives to Orchomenus the
epithet Minyeian from the nation of the Minyæ. They say that a colony of
the Minyeians went hence to Iolcus,[403] and from this circumstance the
Argonauts were called Minyæ. It appears that, anciently, it was a rich
[CAS. 414] and very powerful city. Homer bears witness to its wealth,
for in his enumeration of places of great opulence, he says,
“Not all that is brought to Orchomenus, or to Ægyptian Thebes. ”[404]
Of its power there is this proof, that the Thebans always paid tribute
to the Orchomenians, and to Erginus their king, who it is said was put
to death by Hercules. Eteocles, one of the kings that reigned at
Orchomenus, first displayed both wealth and power. He built a temple
dedicated to the Graces, who were thus honoured by him, either because
he had been fortunate in receiving or conferring favours, or perhaps for
both these reasons.
[For one who was inclined thus to honour these goddesses, must have been
naturally disposed to be a benefactor, and he must have possessed the
power. But for this purpose wealth is required. For he who has not much
cannot give much, nor can he who does not receive much possess much; but
when giving and receiving unite, then there is a just exchange. For a
vessel which is simultaneously emptied and filled is always full; but he
who gives and does not receive cannot succeed in either giving or
receiving, for the giver must desist from giving from failure of means.
Givers also will desist from giving to him who receives only, and
confers no benefits, so that he must fail in receiving. The same may be
said of power. For independently of the common saying,
“That money is the thing most highly valued,
And has the greatest influence in human affairs,”[405]
we may examine the subject more in detail. We say, for example, that
kings have the greatest power, (μάλιστα δύνασθαι,) whence the name,
dynasty. Their power is exerted by leading the multitude whither they
like, by persuasion or by force. Their power of persuasion chiefly
rests in doing acts of kindness; for persuasion by words is not
princely, but belongs to the orator. By princely persuasion, I mean,
when kings direct and lead men whither they please by acts of kindness.
They persuade by acts of kindness, but compel by means of arms. Both
power and possessions may be purchased by money. For he has the largest
body of forces, who is able to maintain the largest; and he who has the
largest possessions, can confer the greatest benefits. [406]]
The spot which the present lake Copaïs occupies, was formerly, it is
said, dry ground, and was cultivated in various ways by the
Orchomenians, who lived near it; and this is alleged as a proof of
wealth.
41. Some persons use the word Aspledon[407] without the first syllable,
Spledon. The name both of the city and of the territory was changed to
Eudeielos,[408] which expressed perhaps some peculiar advantage the
inhabitants derived from their western position, and especially the mild
winters. The extreme parts of the day are the coldest. Of these the
evening is colder than the morning, for as night approaches the cold is
more intense, and as night retires the cold abates. The severity of the
cold is mitigated by the heat of the sun, and the part which during the
coldest season has received most of the sun’s heat, is mildest in
winter.
It is distant from Orchomenus[409] 20 stadia. The river Melas is between
them.
42. Panopeus, a Phocian city, and Hyampolis[410] are situated above
Orchomenus. Opus, the metropolis of the Locri Epicnemidii, borders upon
these places. It is said, that Orchomenus was formerly situated on a
plain, but, as the waters overflowed, the settlers removed to the
mountain Acontium, which extends 60 stadia in length, as far as
Parapotamii in Phocis. It is said, that those people, who are called
Achæi in Pontus, are colonists from the Orchomenians, who, after the
capture of Troy, wandered thither under the conduct of Ialmenus. There
was also an Orchomenus near Carystus.
The writers on the Catalogue of Ships [in Homer], have furnished us with
these materials, and they have been followed, wherever they introduced
anything adapted to the design of this work.
CHAPTER III.
1. Next to Bœotia and Orchomenus is Phocis, lying along the side of
Bœotia to the north, and, anciently, nearly from sea [CAS. 416] to sea.
For at that time Daphnus belonged to Phocis, dividing Locris into two
parts, and situated midway between the Opuntian Gulf and the sea-coast
of the Epicnemidii. At present, however, the district belongs to the
Locri; but the town is in ruins, so that Phocis no longer extends to the
sea opposite Eubœa; but it is close to the Crisæan Gulf. For Crisa
itself belongs to Phocis, and is situated immediately upon the sea.
Cirrha, Anticyra,[411] and the places above them, in the interior near
Parnassus in continuous succession, namely, Delphi,[412] Cirphis, and
Daulis,[413] belong to Phocis, so also Parnassus itself, which is the
boundary of the western side.
In the same manner as Phocis lies along the side of Bœotia, so are both
the divisions of Locris situated with respect to Phocis, for Locris is
composed of two parts, being divided by Parnassus. The western part lies
along the side of Parnassus, occupies a portion of it, and extends to
the Crisæan Gulf; the eastern part terminates at the sea near Eubœa. The
inhabitants of the former are called Locri Hesperii, or Locri Ozolæ, and
have engraven on their public seal the star Hesperus. The rest are again
divided into two bodies: one, the Opuntii, who have their name from the
chief city, and border upon the Phocæans and Bœotians; the other, the
Epicnemidii, who have their name from the mountain Cnemis;[414] and
adjoin the Œtæi, and the Malienses. In the midst of the Hesperii, and
the other Locri, is Parnassus, lying lengthwise towards the northern
part, and extending from the neighbourhood of Delphi to the junction of
the Œtæan, and the Ætolian mountains, and to the Dorians, who are
situated between them. For as both divisions of Locris extend along the
side of Phocis, so also the region of Œta with Ætolia, and some of the
places situated in the Doric Tetrapolis, extend along the sides of the
two Locri, Parnassus and the Dorians. Immediately above these are
situated the Thessalians, the northern Ætolians, the Acarnanians, and
some of the Epirotic and Macedonian nations, as I observed before, the
above-mentioned tracts of country may be considered as a kind of
parallel bands stretching from the west to the east.
The whole of Parnassus is esteemed sacred, it contains caves, and other
places, which are regarded with honour and reverence. Of these the most
celebrated and the most beautiful is Corycium, a cave of the nymphs,
having the same name as that in Cilicia. Of the sides of Parnassus, the
western is occupied by the Locri Ozolæ, and by some of the Dorians, and
by the Ætoli, situated near Corax, an Ætolian mountain. The eastern side
is occupied by Phocians and by the greater part of the Dorians, who hold
the Tetrapolis, situated as it were round the side of Parnassus, but
spreading out in the largest extent towards the east. The sides of the
above-mentioned tracts and each of the bands are parallel, one side
being northern, and the other southern. The western sides, however, are
not parallel to the eastern, for the sea-coast from the Crisæan Gulf to
Actium[415] is not parallel to the coast opposite Eubœa, and extending
to Thessalonica. It is on these shores the above-mentioned nations
terminate. For the figure of these countries is to be understood from
the notion of lines drawn parallel to the base of a triangle, where the
separate parts lie parallel to one another, and have their sides in
latitude parallel, but not their sides in longitude. This is a rough
sketch of the country which remains to be examined. We shall examine
each separate part in order, beginning with Phocis.
2. The two most celebrated cities of this country are Delphi and
Elateia. Delphi is renowned for the temple of the Pythian Apollo, and
the antiquity of its oracle; since Agamemnon is said by the poet to have
consulted it; for the minstrel is introduced singing of the
“fierce contest of Ulysses, and Achilles, the son of Peleus,
how once they contended together, and Agamemnon king of men
was pleased, for so Phœbus Apollo had foretold by the oracle
in the illustrious Pytho. ”[416]
Delphi then was celebrated on this account. Elateia was famous as being
the largest of the cities in that quarter, and for its very convenient
position upon the straits; for he, who is the master of this city,
commands the entrances into Phocis and Bœotia. First, there are the
Œtæan mountains, next the mountains of the Locri, and the Phocians; they
are not every where passable for invading armies, coming from Thessaly,
but having narrow passes distinct from each other, which the adjacent
cities guard. Those, who take the cities, are masters [CAS. 418] of the
passes also. But since from its celebrity the temple at Delphi possesses
a pre-eminence, this, together with the position of the places, (for
they are the most westerly parts of Phocis,) suggest a natural
commencement of our description, and we shall begin from thence.
3. We have remarked, that Parnassus itself is situated on the western
boundaries of Phocis. The western side of this mountain is occupied by
the Locri Ozolæ; on the southern is Delphi, a rocky spot, resembling in
shape a theatre; on its summit is the oracle, and also the city, which
comprehends a circle of 16 stadia. Above it lies Lycoreia; here the
Delphians were formerly settled above the temple. At present they live
close to it around the Castalian fountain. In front of the city, on the
southern part, is Cirphis, a precipitous hill, leaving in the
intermediate space a wooded ravine, through which the river Pleistus
flows. Below Cirphis near the sea is Cirrha, an ancient city, from which
there is an ascent to Delphi of about 80 stadia. It is situated opposite
to Sicyon. Adjoining to Cirrha is the fertile Crisæan plain. Again, next
in order follows another city Crisa, from which the Crisæan Gulf has its
name; then Anticyra,[417] of the same name as the city, on the Maliac
Gulf, and near Œta. The best hellebore is said to grow in the Maliac
Anticyra,[418] but here it is prepared in a better manner; on this
account many persons resort hither for the purpose of experiencing its
purgative qualities, and of being cured of their maladies. In the
Phocian territory there is found a medicinal plant, resembling Sesamum,
(Sesamoides,) with which the Œtæan hellebore is prepared.
4. Anticyra still remains, but Cirrha and Crisa[419] are in ruins;
Cirrha was destroyed by the Crisæans; and Crisa, afterwards, by
Eurylochus the Thessalian, in the Crisæan war; for the Crisæi enriched
themselves by duties levied on merchandise brought from Sicily and
Italy, and laid grievous imposts on those who resorted to the temple,
contrary to the decrees of the Amphictyons. The same was the case with
the Amphissenses, who belong to the Locri Ozolæ. This people made an
irruption into the country, and took possession of Crisa, and restored
it. The plain, which had been consecrated by the Amphictyons, was
diligently cultivated, but strangers were more harshly treated than by
the Crisæans before them. The Amphictyons punished them and restored the
territory to the god. The temple at Delphi is now much neglected,
although formerly it was held in the greatest veneration. Proofs of the
respect which was paid to it are, the treasuries constructed at the
expense of communities and princes, where was deposited the wealth
dedicated to sacred uses, the works of the most eminent artists, the
Pythian games, and a multitude of celebrated oracles.
5. The place where the oracle is delivered, is said to be a deep hollow
cavern, the entrance to which is not very wide. From it rises up an
exhalation which inspires a divine frenzy: over the mouth is placed a
lofty tripod on which the Pythian priestess ascends to receive the
exhalation, after which she gives the prophetic response in verse or
prose. The prose is adapted to measure by poets who are in the service
of the temple. Phemonoë is said to have been the first Pythian
prophetess, and both the prophetess and the city obtained their
appellation from the word Pythesthai, to inquire, (πυθέσθαι).
The first syllable was lengthened, as in the words ἀθάνατος, ἀκάματος,
διάκονος.
[420][The establishment of cities, and the honour paid to common
temples, are due to the same feelings and causes. Men were collected
together into cities and nations, from a natural disposition to society,
and for the purpose of mutual assistance. Hence common temples were
resorted to, festivals celebrated, and meetings held of the general body
of the people. For friendship commences from and is promoted by
attending the same feasts, uniting in the same worship, and dwelling
under the same roof. The advantages derived from these meetings were
naturally estimated from the number of persons who attended them, as
also from the number of places from whence they came. ]
6. Although the highest honour was paid to this temple on account of the
oracle, (for it was the most exempt of any from deception,) yet its
reputation was owing in part to its situation in the centre of all
Greece, both within and without the isthmus. It was also supposed to be
the centre of the habitable [CAS. 420] earth, and was called the Navel
of the earth. A fable, referred to by Pindar, was invented, according to
which two eagles, (or, as others say, two crows,) set free by Jupiter,
one from the east, the other from the west, alighted together at Delphi.
In the temple is seen a sort of navel wrapped in bands, and surmounted
by figures representing the birds of the fable.
7. As the situation of Delphi is convenient, persons easily assembled
there, particularly those from the neighbourhood, of whom the
Amphictyonic body is composed. It is the business of this body to
deliberate on public affairs, and to it is more particularly intrusted
the guardianship of the temple for the common good; for large sums of
money were deposited there, and votive offerings, which required great
vigilance and religious care. The early history of this body is unknown,
but among the names which are recorded, Acrisius appears to have been
the first who regulated its constitution, to have determined what cities
were to have votes in the council, and to have assigned the number of
votes and mode of voting. To some cities he gave a single vote each, or
a vote to two cities, or to several cities conjointly. He also defined
the class of questions which might arise between the different cities,
which were to be submitted to the decision of the Amphictyonic tribunal;
and subsequently many other regulations were made, but this body, like
that of the Achæans, was finally dissolved.
At first twelve cities are said to have assembled, each of which sent a
Pylagoras. The convention was held twice a year, in spring and autumn.
But latterly a greater number of cities assembled. They called both the
vernal and the autumnal convention Pylæan, because it was held at Pylæ,
which has the name also of Thermopylæ. The Pylagoræ sacrificed to Ceres.
In the beginning, the persons in the neighbourhood only assembled, or
consulted the oracle, but afterwards people repaired thither from a
distance for this purpose, sent gifts, and constructed treasuries, as
Crœsus, and his father Alyattes, some of the Italians also, and the
Siceli (Sicilians).
8. But the wealth, being an object of cupidity, was guarded with
difficulty, although dedicated to sacred uses. At present, however,
whatever it might have been, the temple at Delphi is exceedingly poor.
Some of the offerings have been taken away for the sake of the money,
but the greater part remain there. It is true that the temple was once
very opulent, as Homer testifies;
“Nor all the wealth, which the marble threshold of Phœbus
Apollo, the Archer, (Aphetor,)[421] contains in the rocky
Pytho. ”[422]
The treasuries indicate its riches, and the plunder committed by the
Phocians, which gave rise to the Phocic or Sacred war, as it was called.
It is however supposed that a spoliation of the temple must have taken
place at some more remote period, when the wealth mentioned by Homer
disappeared; for no vestige of it whatever was preserved to later times,
when Onomarchus and Phayllus pillaged the temple, as the property [then]
removed was of a more recent date than that referred to by the poet. For
there were once deposited in the treasuries, offerings from spoils,
bearing inscriptions with the names of the donors, as of Gyges, of
Crœsus, of the Sybaritæ, of the Spinetæ on the Adriatic, and of others
also. It would be unbecoming to suppose[423] that modern and ancient
treasures were confounded together: other places pillaged by these
people confirm this view.
Some persons, however, understanding the word Aphetor to signify
treasure, and the threshold of the aphetor the repository of the
treasure under-ground, say, that this wealth was buried beneath the
temple, and that Onomarchus and his companions attempted to dig it up by
night; violent shocks of an earthquake caused them to fly out of the
temple, and desist from their excavation; thus others were impressed
with a dread of making similar attempts.
9. Of the shrines, the winged shrine[424] is to be placed among fabulous
stories. The second is said to have been the workmanship of Trophonius
and Agamedes, but the present shrine[425] was built by the Amphictyons.
A tomb of Neoptolemus is shown in the sacred enclosure. It was built
according [CAS. 421] to the injunction of an oracle. Neoptolemus was
killed by Machæreus, a Delphian, when, as the fable goes, he was seeking
redress from the god for the murder of his father, but, probably, he was
preparing to pillage the temple. Branchus, who presided over the temple
at Didyma, is said to have been a descendant of Machæreus.
10. There was anciently a contest held at Delphi, of players on the
cithara, who executed a pæan in honour of the god. It was instituted by
Delphians. But after the Crisæan war the Amphictyons, in the time of
Eurylochus, established contests for horses, and gymnastic sports, in
which the victor was crowned. These were called Pythian games. The
players[426] on the cithara were accompanied by players on the flute,
and by citharists,[427] who performed without singing. They performed a
strain (Melos),[428] called the Pythian mood (Nomos). [429] It consisted
of five parts; the anacrusis, the ampeira, cataceleusmus, iambics and
dactyls, and pipes. [430] Timosthenes, the commander of the fleet of the
Second Ptolemy, and who was the author of a work in ten books on
Harbours, composed a melos. His object was to celebrate in this melos
the contest of Apollo with the serpent Python. The anacrusis was
intended to express the prelude; the ampeira, the first onset of the
contest; the cataceleusmus, the contest itself; the iambics and dactyls
denoted the triumphal strain on obtaining the victory, together with
musical measures, of which the dactyl is peculiarly appropriated to
praise, and the use of the iambic to insult and reproach; the syringes
or pipes described the death, the players imitating the hissings of the
expiring monster. [431]
11. Ephorus, whom we generally follow, on account of his exactness in
these matters, (as Polybius, a writer of repute, testifies,) seems to
proceed contrary to his proposed plan, and to the promise which he made
at the beginning of his work. For after having censured those writers
who are fond of intermixing fable with history, and after having spoken
in praise of truth, he introduces, with reference to this oracle, a
grave declaration, that he considers truth preferable at all times, but
especially in treating subjects of this kind. For it is absurd, he says,
if, in other things, we constantly follow this practice, but that when
we come to speak of the oracle, which of all others is the most exempt
from deception, we should introduce tales so incredible and false. Yet
immediately afterwards he says, that it is the received opinion that
Apollo, by the aid of Themis, established this oracle with a view to
benefit the human race. He then explains these benefits, by saying, that
men were invited to pursue a more civilized mode of life, and were
taught maxims of wisdom by oracles; by injunctions to perform or to
abstain, or by positive refusal to attend to the prayers of petitioners.
Some, he says, suppose, that the god himself in a bodily form directs
these things; others, that he communicates an intimation of his will to
men [by words].
12. And lower down, when speaking of the Delphians and their origin, he
says, that certain persons, called Parnassii, an indigenous tribe,
anciently inhabited Parnassus, about which time Apollo, traversing the
country, reclaimed men from their savage state, by inducing them to
adopt a more civilized mode of life and subsistence; that, setting out
from Athens on his way to Delphi, he took the same road along which the
Athenians at present conduct the procession of the Pythias; that when he
arrived at the Panopeis, he put to death Tityus, who was master of the
district, a violent and lawless man; that the Parnassii having joined
him informed him of Python, another desperate man, surnamed the Dragon.
Whilst he was despatching this man with his arrows, they shouted, Hie
Paian;[432] whence has been transmitted the custom of singing the Pæan
before the onset of a battle; that after the death of the Python the
Delphians burnt even his tent, as they still continue to burn a tent in
memorial of these events. Now what can be more fabulous than Apollo
discharging his arrows, chastising Tityi and Pythons, his journey from
Athens to Delphi, and his travels over the whole country? If he did not
consider these as fables, why did he call the fabulous Themis a woman,
and the fabulous dragon a man, unless he intended to confound the
provinces of history and fable. His account of the Ætolians is similar
to this. After having [CAS. 423] asserted that their country was never
ravaged at any period, he says, that at one time it was inhabited by
Ætolians, who had expelled the Barbarians; that at another time, Ætolus,
together with the Epeii from Elis, inhabited it; [that Ætolus was
overthrown by the Epeii,] and these again by Alcmæon and Diomedes.
I now return to the Phocians.
13. Immediately on the sea-coast, next after Anticyra,[433] and
behind[434] it, is the small city Marathus; then a promontory,
Pharygium, which has a shelter for vessels; then the harbour at the
farthest end, called Mychus,[435] from the accident of its situation
between Helicon[436] and Ascra.
Nor is Abæ,[437] the seat of an oracle, far from these places, nor
Ambrysus,[438] nor Medeon, of the same name as a city in Bœotia.
In the inland parts, next after Delphi, towards the east is Daulis,[439]
a small town, where, it is said, Tereus, the Thracian, was prince; and
there they say is the scene of the fable of Philomela and Procne;
Thucydides lays it there; but other writers refer it to Megara. The name
of the place is derived from the thickets there, for they call thickets
Dauli. Homer calls it Daulis, but subsequent writers Daulia, and the
words
“they who occupied Cyparissus,”[440]
are understood in a double sense; some persons supposing it to have its
name from the tree of the country, but others from a village situated
below the Lycoreian territory.
14. Panopeus, the present Phanoteus, the country of Epeius, is on the
confines of the district of Lebadeia. Here the fable places the abode of
Tityus. But Homer says, that the Phæacians conducted Rhadamanthus to
Eubœa,
“in order to see Tityus, son of the earth;”[441]
they show also in the island a cave called Elarium, from Elara the
mother of Tityus, and an Heroum of Tityus, and some kind of honours are
spoken of, which are paid to him.
Near Lebadeia is Trachin, having the same name as that in Œtæa; it is a
small Phocian town. The inhabitants are called Trachinii.
15. Anemoreia[442] has its name from a physical accident, to which it is
liable. It is exposed to violent gusts of wind from a place called
Catopterius,[443] a precipitous mountain, extending from Parnassus. It
was a boundary between Delphi and the Phocians, when the Lacedæmonians
made the Delphians separate themselves from the common body of the
Phocians,[444] and permitted them to form an independent state.
Some call the place Anemoleia; it was afterwards called by others
Hyampolis,[445] (and also Hya,) whither we said the Hyantes were
banished from Bœotia. It is situated quite in the interior, near
Parapotamii, and is a different place from Hyampea on Parnassus.
Elateia[446] is the largest of the Phocian cities, but Homer was not
acquainted with it, for it is later than his times. It is conveniently
situated to repel incursions on the side of Thessaly. Demosthenes[447]
points out the advantage of its position, in speaking of the confusion
which suddenly arose, when a messenger arrived to inform the Prytaneis
of the capture of Elateia.
16. Parapotamii is a settlement on the Cephissus, in the neighbourhood
of Phanoteus, Chæroneia, and Elateia. This place, according to
Theopompus, is distant from Chæroneia about 40 stadia, and is the
boundary between the Ambryseis, Panopeis, and Daulieis. It is situated
at the entrance from Bœotia to the Phocians, upon an eminence of
moderate height, between Parnassus and the mountain [Hadylium, where
there is an open space] of 5 stadia in extent, through which runs the
Cephissus, affording on each side a narrow pass. This river has its
source at Lilæa, a Phocian city, as Homer testifies;[CAS. 424]
“they who occupied Lilæa, near the source of the Cephissus;”[448]
and empties itself into the lake Copais. But Hadylium extends 60 stadia,
as far as Hyphanteium, on which Orchomenus is situated. Hesiod also
enlarges on the river and its stream, how it takes through the whole of
Phocis an oblique and serpentine course;
“which, like a serpent, winds along Panopeus and the strong
Glechon, and through Orchomenus. ”[449]
The narrow pass near Parapotamii, or Parapotamia, (for the name is
written both ways,) was disputed in [the Phocian war,] for this is the
only entrance [into Phocis]. [450]
There is a Cephissus in Phocis, another at Athens, and another at
Salamis. There is a fourth and a fifth at Sicyon and at Scyrus; [a sixth
at Argos, having its source in the Lyrceium]. [451] At Apollonia,[452]
also, near Epidamnus,[453] there is near the Gymnasium a spring, which
is called Cephissus.
17. Daphnus[454] is at present in ruins. It was at one time a city of
Phocis, and lay close to the Eubœan Sea; it divided the Locri
Epicnemidii into two bodies, namely, the Locri on the side of
Bœotia,[455] and the Locri on the side of Phocis, which then extended
from sea to sea. A proof of this is the Schedieum, [in Daphnus,] called
the tomb of Schedius. [456] [It has been already said] that Daphnus
[divides] Locris into two parts, [in such a manner as to prevent] the
Epicnemidii and Opuntii from touching upon each other in any part. In
after-times Daphnus was included within the boundaries of the [Opuntii].
On the subject of Phocis, this may suffice.
CHAPTER IV.
1. Locris, which we are now to describe, follows next in order.
It is divided into two parts, one of which is occupied by the Locri
opposite Eubœa, and, as we have already said, formerly consisted of two
bodies, situated one on each side of Daphnus. The Locri Opuntii had
their surname from Opus,[457] the capital; the Epicnemidii from a
mountain called Cnemis. [458] The rest are the Locri Hesperii, who are
called also Locri Ozolæ. These are separated from the Locri Opuntii and
Epicnemidii by Parnassus, which lies between them, and by the Tetrapolis
of the Dorians. We shall first speak of the Opuntii.
2. Immediately after Halæ, where the Bœotian coast opposite Eubœa
terminates, is the Opuntian bay. Opus is the capital, as the inscription
intimates, which is engraved on the first of the five pillars at
Thermopylæ, near the Polyandrium:[459]
“Opoeis, the capital of the Locri, hides in its bosom those
who died in defence of Greece against the Medes. ”
It is distant from the sea about 15 stadia, and 60 from the naval
arsenal. The arsenal is Cynus,[460] a promontory, which forms the
boundary of the Opuntian bay. The latter is 40 stadia in extent. Between
Opus and Cynus is a fertile plain, opposite to Ædepsus in Eubœa, where
are the warm baths[461] of Hercules, and is separated by a strait of 160
stadia. Deucalion is said to have lived at Cynus. There also is shown
the tomb of Pyrrha; but that of Deucalion is at Athens. Cynus is distant
from Mount Cnemis about 50 stadia. The island Atalanta[462] is opposite
to Opus, having the [CAS. 425] same name as the island in front of
Attica. It is said, that some Opuntii are to be found in the Eleian
territory, whom it is not worth while to notice, except that they
pretend to trace some affinity subsisting between themselves and the
Locri Opuntii. Homer[463] says that Patroclus was from Opus, and that
having committed murder undesignedly, he fled to Peleus, but that the
father Menœtius remained in his native country; for it is to Opus that
Achilles promised Menœtius that he would bring back Patroclus on his
return from the Trojan expedition. [464] Not that Menœtius was king of
the Opuntii, but Ajax the Locrian, who, according to report, was born at
Narycus. The name of the person killed by Patroclus was Æanes; a grove,
called after him Æaneium, and a fountain, Æanis, are shown.
3. Next after Cynus is Alopē[465] and Daphnus, which last, we have said,
is in ruins. At Alopē is a harbour, distant from Cynus about 90 stadia,
and 120 from Elateia, in the interior of the country. But these belong
to the Maliac, which is continuous with the Opuntian Gulf.
4. Next to Daphnus, at the distance of about 20 stadia by sea, is
Cnemides, a strong place, opposite to which in Eubœa is Cenæum, a
promontory, looking towards the west and the Maliac Gulf, and separated
by a strait of nearly 20 stadia.
At Cnemides we are in the territory of the Locri Epicnemidii. Here are
the Lichades, as they are called, three islands, having their name from
Lichas; they lie in front of Cnemides. Other islands also are met with
in sailing along this coast, which we purposely pass over.
At the distance of 20 stadia from Cnemides is a harbour, above which at
the same distance, in the interior, is situated Thronium. [466] Then the
Boagrius, which flows beside Thronium, empties itself into the sea. It
has another name also, that of Manes. It is a winter torrent; whence its
bed may be crossed at times dry-shod, and at another it is two plethra
in width.
Then after these is Scarpheia, at a distance of 10 stadia from the sea,
and of 30 from Thronium, but at a little [less from its harbour. ][467]
Next are Nicæa and Thermopylæ.
5. It is not worth while to speak of any of the other cities. Of those
mentioned by Homer, Calliarus is no longer inhabited, it is now a
well-cultivated plain. Bessa, a sort of plain, does not now exist. It
has its name from an accidental quality, for it abounds with woods.
χώραν ἔχουσι Σκαρφιεῖς, &c. It ought to be written with a double s,
for it has its name from Bessa, a wooded valley, like Napē,[468] in
the plain of Methymna,[469] which Hellanicus, through ignorance of the
local circumstances, improperly calls Lapē; but the demus in Attica,
from which the burghers are called Besæenses, is written with a single
s.
6. Tarphē is situated upon a height, at the distance of 20 stadia from
[Thronium]. It has a territory, productive and well wooded; for this
place also has its name from its being thickly wooded. It is now called
Pharygæ. A temple of Juno Pharygæa is there, called so from the Argive
Juno at Pharygæ; and the inhabitants assert that they are of Argive
origin.
7. Homer does not mention, at least not in express words, the Locri
Hesperii, but only seems to distinguish them from the people of whom we
have spoken;
“Locri, who dwell beyond the sacred Eubœa;”[470]
as if there were other Locri. They occupied the cities Amphissa[471] and
Naupactus. [472] The latter still subsists near Antirrhium. [473] It has
its name from the ships that were built there, either because the
Heraclidæ constructed their fleet at this place, or because the Locri,
as Ephorus states, had built vessels there long before that time. At
present it belongs to the Ætolians, by a decree of Philip.
8. There also is Chalcis, mentioned by the poet[474] in the Ætolian
Catalogue. It is below Calydon. There also is the hill Taphiassus, on
which is the monument of Nessus, and of the other Centaurs. From the
putrefaction of the bodies of these people there flows, it is said, from
beneath the foot of that hill a stream of water, which exhales a fœtid
odour, and [CAS. 427] contains clots of blood. Hence also the nation
had the name of Ozolæ. [475]
Opposite Antirrhium is Molycreia,[476] a small Ætolian city.
Amphissa is situated at the extremity of the Crisæan plain. It was
razed, as we have said before, by the Amphictyons. Œanthia and Eupalium
belong to the Locri. The whole voyage along the coast of the Locri is a
little more than 200 stadia.
9. There is an Alope[477] both here among the Locri Ozolæ, as also among
the Epicnemidii, and in the Phthiotis. These are a colony of the
Epicnemidii, and the Epizephyrii a colony of the Ozolæ.
10. Ætolians are continuous with the Locri Hesperii, and the Ænianes,
who occupy Œta with the Epicnemidii, and between them Dorians. These
last are the people who inhabited the Tetrapolis, which is called the
capital of all the Dorians. They possessed the cities Erineus, Bœum,
Pindus, Cytinium. Pindus is situated above Erineus. A river of the same
name flows beside it, and empties itself into the Cephissus, not far
from Lilæa. Some writers call Pindus, Acyphas.
Ægimius, king of these Dorians, when an exile from his kingdom, was
restored, as they relate, by Hercules. He requited this favour after the
death of Hercules at Œta by adopting Hyllus, the eldest of the sons of
Hercules, and both he and his descendants succeeded him in the kingdom.
It was from this place that the Heracleidæ set out on their return to
Peloponnesus.
11. These cities were for some time of importance, although they were
small, and their territory not fruitful. They were afterwards neglected.
After what they suffered in the Phocian war and under the dominion of
the Macedonians, Ætolians, and Athamanes, it is surprising that even a
vestige of them should have remained to the time of the Romans.
It was the same with the Ænianes, who were exterminated by Ætolians and
Athamanes. The Ætolians were a very powerful people, and carried on war
together with the Acarnanians. The Athamanes were the last of the
Epeirotæ, who attained distinction when the rest were declining, and
acquired power by the assistance of their king Amynander. The Ænianes,
however, kept possession of Œta.
12. This mountain extends from Thermopylæ and the east, to the
Ambracian Gulf and the west; it may be said to cut at right angles the
mountainous tract, extending from Parnassus as far as Pindus, and to the
Barbarians who live beyond. The portion of this mountain verging towards
Thermopylæ[478] is called Œta; it is 200 stadia in length, rocky and
elevated, but the highest part is at Thermopylæ, for there it forms a
peak, and terminates with acute and abrupt rocks, continued to the sea.
It leaves a narrow passage for those who are going from Thessaly to
Locris.
13. This passage is called Pylæ, or gates, straits, and Thermopylæ,
because near the straits are hot springs, which are held in honour as
sacred to Hercules. The mountain above is called Callidromus; but some
writers call by the name of Callidromus the remaining part of the range
extending through Ætolia and Acarnania to the Ambracian Gulf.
At Thermopylæ within the straits are strongholds, as Nicæa, on the sea
of the Locri, Teichius and Heracleia above it, formerly called Trachin,
founded by the Lacedæmonians. Heracleia is distant from the ancient
Trachin about 6 stadia. Next follows Rhoduntia, strong by its position.
14. These places are rendered difficult of access by a rocky country,
and by bodies of water, forming ravines through which they pass. For
besides the Spercheius,[479] which flows past Anticyra, there is the
Dyras, which, it is said, endeavoured to extinguish the funeral pile of
Hercules, and another river, the Melas, distant about 5 stadia from
Trachin. Herodotus says,[480] that to the south of Trachin there is a
deep fissure, through which the Asopus, (which has the same name as
other rivers that we have mentioned,) empties itself into the sea
without the Pylæ, having received the river Phœnix which flows from the
south, and unites with it. The latter river bears the name of the hero,
whose tomb is shown near it. From the Asopus (Phœnix? ) to Thermopylæ are
15 stadia.
15. These places were of the greatest celebrity when they formed the
keys of the straits. There were frequent contests for the ascendency
between the inhabitants without and those within the straits. Philip
used to call Chalcis and Corinth the fetters of Greece with reference to
the opportunity which they afforded for invasions from Macedonia; and
persons in [CAS. 429] later times called both these places and
Demetrias “the fetters,” for Demetrias commanding Pelion and Ossa,
commanded also the passes at Tempe. Afterwards, however, when the whole
country was subject to one power, the passes were freely open to
all. [481]
16. It was at these straits that Leonidas and his companions, together
with a small body of persons from the neighbourhood, resisted the
numerous forces of the Persians, until the Barbarians, making a circuit
of the mountains along narrow paths, surrounded and cut them to pieces.
Their place of burial, the Polyandrium, is still to be seen there, and
the celebrated inscription sculptured on the Lacedæmonian pillar;
“Stranger, go tell Lacedæmon that we lie here in obedience to her laws. ”
17. There is also a large harbour here and a temple of Ceres, in which
the Amphictyons at the time of every Pylæan assembly offered sacrifice.
From the harbour to the Heracleian Trachin are 40 stadia by land, but by
sea to Cenæum[482] it is 70 stadia. The Spercheius empties itself
immediately without the Pylæ. To Pylæ from the Euripus are 530 stadia.
And here Locris terminates. The parts without the Pylæ towards the east,
and the Maliac Gulf, belong to the Thessalians; those towards the west,
to the Ætolians and Acarnanians. The Athamanes are extinct.
18. The Thessalians form the largest and most ancient community. One
part of them has been mentioned by Homer, and the rest by many other
writers. Homer constantly mentions the Ætolians under one name; he
places cities, and not nations dependent upon them, if we except the
Curetes, whom we must place in the division of Ætolians.
We must begin our account with the Thessalians, omitting very ancient
and fabulous stories, and what is not generally admitted, (as we have
done in other instances,) but propose to mention what appears suited to
our purpose.
CHAPTER V.
1. The sea-coast, extending from Thermopylæ to the mouths of the
Peneius,[483] and the extremities of Pelion, looking towards the east,
and the northern extremities of Eubœa, is that of Thessaly. The parts
opposite Eubœa and Thermopylæ are occupied by Malienses, and by Achæan
Phthiotæ; those towards Pelion by the Magnetes. This may be called the
eastern and maritime side of Thessaly. From either side from Pelion, and
the Peneius, towards the inland parts are Macedonians, who extend as far
as Pæonia, (Pindus? ) and the Epeirotic nations. From Thermopylæ, the
Œtæan and Ætolian mountains, which approach close to the Dorians, and
Parnassus, are parallel to the Macedonians. The side towards the
Macedonians may be called the northern side; the other, the southern.
There remains the western side, enclosed by Ætolians and Acarnanians, by
Amphilochians and Athamanes, who are Epirotæ; by the territory of the
Molotti, formerly said to be that of the Æthices, and, in short, by the
country about Pindus. Thessaly,[484] in the interior, is a plain country
for the most part, and has no mountains, except Pelion and Ossa. These
mountains rise to a considerable height, but do not encompass a large
tract of country, but terminate in the plains.
2. These are the middle parts of Thessaly, a district of very fertile
country, except that part of it which is overflowed by rivers. The
Peneius flows through the middle of the country, and receiving many
rivers, frequently overflows. Formerly, according to report, the plain
was a lake; it is enclosed on all sides inland by mountains, and the
sea-coast is more elevated than the plains. When a chasm was formed, at
the place now called Tempe, by shocks of an earthquake, and Ossa was
riven from Olympus, the Peneius flowed out through it to the sea, and
drained this tract of country. Still there remained the large lake
Nessonis, and the lake Bœbeis; which is of less extent than the
Nessonis, and nearer to the sea-coast.
3. [CAS. 430] Such then is Thessaly, which is divided into four parts,
Phthiotis, Hestiæotis, Thessaliotis, and Pelasgiotis.
Phthiotis comprises the southern parts, extending along Œta from the
Maliac and (or) Pylaïc Gulf[485] as far as Dolopia and Pindus,
increasing in breadth to Pharsalia and the Thessalian plains.
Hestiæotis comprises the western parts and those between Pindus and
Upper Macedonia; the rest is occupied by the inhabitants of the plains
below Hestiæotis, who are called Pelasgiotæ, and approach close to the
Lower Macedonians; by the [Thessalians] also, who possess the country
next in order, as far as the coast of Magnesia.
The names of many cities might here be enumerated, which are celebrated
on other accounts, but particularly as being mentioned by Homer; few of
them, however, but most of all Larisa, preserve their ancient
importance.
4.
