Euripides, Rhesus, Edward P. Coleridge (Translator), 224-260

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Chorus

Lord of Thymbra and of Delos, who haunt

your temple in Lycia , Apollo, O divine head, come with all your archery, appear this night, and by your guidance save this man,
225

and aid the Dardanians, O almighty god whose hands in days of old built the walls of Troy .
230

233

Chorus

May he come to the ships! May he reach the army of Hellas and spy it out, then turn again and reach the altars of his father’s

home in Ilium !
235

May he mount the chariot drawn by Phthia ’s horses, when our master has sacked Achaea ’s camp,

those horses that the sea-god gave to Peleus, son of Aeacus.
240

242

Chorus

For he alone had heart enough for home and country to go and spy on the naval station; I admire

his spirit; how few stout hearts there are, when on the sea the sunlight dies and the city labors in the surge.
245

Phrygia yet has left a valiant few, and bold hearts in the battle’s press; it is only Mysia ’s sons who scorn us as allies.
250

254

Chorus

Which of the Achaeans will the earth-treading murderer slay

in their beds, as he pretends to be a four-footed beast on the ground? May he lay Menelaus low, slay Agamemnon and bring his head
255

to Helen’s hands, causing her to lament her evil kinsman, who has come against my city, against the land of Troy with his army of a thousand ships.
260

Rhesus. Euripides. Edward P. Coleridge (Translator). London. 1906.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Perseus

Rhesus (English) (Euripides. The Plays of Euripides, Vol. I. Coleridge, Edward P., translator. London: George Bell and Sons, 1906. (Modernized by Perseus.))

Editions (1)

Ῥῆσος Perseus (Euripides. Euripidis Fabulae, Vol. III. Murray, Gilbert, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1913. (Reprinted 1920-1978)) — 224-263 focus

Χορός

Θυμβραῖε καὶ Δάλιε καὶ Λυκίας

ναὸν ἐμβατεύων
225

Ἄπολλον, ὦ δία κεφαλά, μόλε τοξή-

ρης, ἱκοῦ ἐννύχιος

καὶ γενοῦ σωτήριος ἀνέρι πομπᾶς

ἁγεμὼν καὶ ξύλλαβε Δαρδανίδαις,
230

ὦ παγκρατές, ὦ Τροΐας

τείχη παλαιὰ δείμας.

233

Χορός

μόλοι δὲ ναυκλήρια, καὶ στρατιᾶς

Ἑλλάδος διόπτας

ἵκοιτο, καὶ κάμψειε πάλιν θυμέλας οἴ-
235

κων πατρὸς Ἰλιάδας.

Φθιάδων δʼ ἵππων ποτʼ ἐπʼ ἄντυγα βαίη,

δεσπότου πέρσαντος Ἀχαιὸν Ἄρη,

τὰς πόντιος Αἰακίδᾳ
240

Πηλεῖ δίδωσι δαίμων.

242

Χορός

ἐπεὶ πρό τʼ οἴκων πρό τε γᾶς ἔτλα μόνος

ναύσταθμα βὰς κατιδεῖν· ἄγαμαι

λήματος· ἦ σπανία τις
245

τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ὅταν ᾖ

δυσάλιος ἐν πελάγει

καὶ σαλεύῃ

πόλις. ἔστι Φρυγῶν τις ἔστιν ἄλκιμος·
250

ἔνι δὲ θράσος ἐν αἰχ-

μᾷ· πόθι Μυσῶν ὃς ἐμὰν

συμμαχίαν ἀτίζει;

254

Χορός

τίνʼ ἄνδρʼ Ἀχαιῶν ὁ πεδοστιβὴς σφαγεὺς

οὐτάσει ἐν κλισίαις, τετράπουν
255

μῖμον ἔχων ἐπιγαίου

θηρός; ἕλοι Μενέλαν,

κτανὼν δʼ Ἀγαμεμνόνιον

κρᾶτʼ ἐνέγκοι

Ἑλένᾳ κακόγαμβρον ἐς χέρας γόον,
260

ὃς ἐπὶ πόλιν, ὃς ἐπὶ

γᾶν Τροΐαν χιλιόναυν

ἤλυθʼ ἔχων στρατείαν.

Translations (2)

Rhesus Perseus (Euripides. The Rhesus of Euripides. Murray, Gilbert, translator. London: George Allen and Company, Ltd., 1913.) — 224-263 focus

CHORUS.¹

Thymbraean, Delian, Birth divine,

That walkest Lycia’s inmost shrine,
225

Come, strong to guard, to guide, to follow,

Come, bow in hand and girt with night,

To help thy Dardans as of old,

When stone by stone thy music rolled—

O conquering Strength, O Sire Apollo!—
230

Young Ilion into towers of light.

233

CHORUS.

Grant that he reach the shipyard, creep

Keen-eyed through all that host asleep,

Then back to home and hearth, yet living,
235

Where now his father prays alone:

Yea, grant that, when the Greeks are slain,

Our wolf shall mount with scourge and rein

Those coursers of the sea-god’s giving,

Whom Peleus drove in days foregone.
240

242

CHORUS.

Alone in those Greek ships to stake

His life, for home and country’s sake:

’Tis wondrous! Few be hearts so true
245

When seas across the bulwark break,

And sunlight sickens o’er the crew.

⁴

Ah, Phrygia still hath hearts of rock!
250

The Phrygian spear flies fast and far!

Where shall ye find the fool to mock

Our works in war?

254

CHORUS.

Whom will he stab a-sleeping, whom,

The quick grey wolf, the crawling doom?
255
⁵

Grant that he slay the Spartan! Nay,

Or Agamemnon’s head and plume

⁶

To Helen bear at dawn of day!
260

A lightsome dawn to hear her wail

Her brother sworn, her King who came

To Ilion with his thousand sail,

And swords, and flame! As the song ends DOLON reappears, in the disguise of a wolf. The Guards gather round him, bidding him godspeed as he crawls off in the dark towards the Greek camp. Meantime from the direction of Mount Ida has entered a SHEPHERD who goes to HECTOR’S door and calls. The Guards seeing him return to their places.

Rhesus (OCR draft) Experimental (Rhesus. Robert Potter's English verse translation, first published in 1781–1783; text from the 1808 Oxford printing.)

No corresponding passage available

Euripides Rhesus 224-260

Edward P. Coleridge (Translator)

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Chorus

Lord of Thymbra and of Delos, who haunt

your temple in Lycia , Apollo, O divine head, come with all your archery, appear this night, and by your guidance save this man,
225

and aid the Dardanians, O almighty god whose hands in days of old built the walls of Troy .
230

Current edition Perseus

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Chorus Lord of Thymbra and of Delos, who haunt your temple in Lycia , Apollo, O divine head, come with all your archery, appear this night, and by your guidance save this man, 225 and aid the Dardanians, O almighty god whose hands in days of old built the walls of Troy . 230

Current edition Perseus

Stable identifiers

Chorus

Lord of Thymbra and of Delos, who haunt

your temple in Lycia , Apollo, O divine head, come with all your archery, appear this night, and by your guidance save this man,
225

and aid the Dardanians, O almighty god whose hands in days of old built the walls of Troy .
230