Aeschylus Eumenides 18

Anna Swanwick (Translator)

Table of Contents

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

View: By Card
← Previous Next →
APOLLO
Avaunt, I charge thee, leave these hallowed seats;
170
Depart with speed from this prophetic shrine,
Lest thou,-by wingèd glistering snake transfixed,
Shot from this golden-twisted cord,-through pain,
Shouldst vomit forth black gore, the clots disgorging
Which thou from slaughtered men hast ruthless sucked.
Thee it befits not to approach these seats,
But where head-lopping, eye-outscooping rage,
With vengeance that doth sap youth's vital powers,
Where slaughters, mutilations, stonings reign,
180
And where impaled, wretches with cruel throes
Groan forth their anguish. These the feasts ye love,
And therefore are ye hateful to the gods.
Your whole aspèct attests it,-such should dwell
In blood-gorged lion's den, not tarry here
Bringing pollution to these hallowed seats.
Begone, ye grisly troop, unshepherded,
For to such flock no heavenly power is kind.

Eumenides. Aeschylus. Anna Swanwick (Translator). London. 1886.

Sponsored by University of Leipzig.

Funding provided by European Social Fund Saxony.

Current edition Experimental

Eumenides (OCR draft) (English) (Eumenides. Anna Swanwick, 1886.)

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (12)
Εὐμενίδες First1KGreek (Aeschyli Tragoediae. Sidgwick, Arthur, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1902.) — 1-142 focus
Εὐμενίδες Perseus (Aeschylus, Volume 2. Smyth, Herbert Weir, editor. London; New York: William Heinemann; G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1926.) — 1-142 focus
Εὐμενίδες (1518 edition; OCR draft) Experimental (Aeschylus, Eumenides, 1518 edition. VLM-assisted OCR with native lineation and automated correspondence to the Smyth edition.) — 34 focus
Εὐμενίδες (OCR draft) Experimental (Εὐμενίδες. Guilielmus Dindorfius, 1882.) — 34 focus
ἡ δεινὰ λέξαι, δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν,
πάλιν μ᾽ ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου,
35
ὡς μήτε σωκεῖν μήτε μ᾽ ἀκταίνειν βάσιν·
τρέχω δὲ χερσὶν, οὐ ποδωκείᾳ σκελῶν·
δείσασα γὰρ γραῦς οὐδὲν, ἀντίπαις μὲν οὖν.
ἐγὼ μὲν ἕρπω πρὸς πολυστεφῆ μυχόν·
ὁρῶ δ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ὀμφαλῷ μὲν ἄνδρα θεομυσῆ
40
ἕδραν ἔχοντα προστρόπαιον, αἵματι
στάζοντα χεῖρας καὶ νεοσπαδὲς ξίφος
ἔχοντ᾽ ἐλάας θ᾽ ὑψιγέννητον κλάδον,
λήνει μεγίστῳ σωφρόνως ἐστεμμένον,
ἀργῆτι μαλλῷ· τῇδε γὰρ τρανῶς ἐρῶ.
45
πρόσθεν δὲ τἀνδρὸς τοῦδε θαυμαστὸς λόχος
εὕδει γυναικῶν ἐν θρόνοισιν ἥμενος.
οὔτοι γυναῖκας, ἀλλὰ Γοργόνας λέγω,
οὐδ᾽ αὖτε Γοργείοισιν εἰκάσω τύποις.
εἶδόν ποτ᾽ ἤδη Φινέως γεγραμμένας
50
δεῖπνον φερούσας· ἄπτεροί γε μὴν ἰδεῖν
αὗται, μέλαιναι δ᾽ ἐς τὸ πᾶν βδελύκτροποι·
ῥέγκουσι δ᾽ οὐ πλατοῖσι φυσιάμασιν·
ἐκ δ᾽ ὀμμάτων λείβουσι δυσφιλῆ λίβα·
καὶ κόσμος οὔτε πρὸς θεῶν ἀγάλματα
55
φέρειν δίκαιος οὔτ᾽ ἐς ἀνθρώπων στέγας.
τὸ φῦλον οὐκ ὄπωπα τῆσδ᾽ ὁμιλίας,
οὐδ᾽ ἥτις αἷα τοῦτ᾽ ἐπεύχεται γένος
τρέφουσ᾽ ἀνατὶ μὴ μεταστένειν πόνον.
τἀντεῦθεν ἤδη τῶνδε δεσπότῃ δόμων
60
αὐτῷ μελέσθω Λοξίᾳ μεγασθενεῖ.
ἰατρόμαντις δ᾽ ἐστὶ καὶ τερασκόπος
καὶ τοῖσιν ἄλλοις δωμάτων καθάρσιος.
Εὐμενίδες (OCR draft) Experimental (Εὐμενίδες. Gottfried Hermann, 1852.) — 34 focus
δεινὰ λέξαι, δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν,
35
πάλιν μ' ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου,
ὡς μήτε σθένειν μήτε μ' ἀκταίνειν βάσιν·
τρέχω δὲ χερσίν, οὐ ποδωκίᾳ σκελῶν·
δείσασα γὰρ γραῦς οὐδέν, ἀντίπαις μὲν οὖν.
ἐγὼ μὲν ἕρπω πρὸς πολυστεφῆ μυχόν·
40
ὁρῶ δ᾽ ἐπ' ὀμφαλῷ μὲν ἄνδρα θεομυσῆ
ἕδραν ἔχοντα, προςτρόπαιον, αἵματι
στάζοντα χεῖρας, καὶ νεοσπαδὲς ξίφος
ἔχοντ', ἐλαίας θ' ὑψιγέννητον κλάδον,
λῆνῃ μεγίστῃ σωφρόνως ἐστεμμένον,
45
ἀργῆτι μαλλῷ, τῇδε γὰρ τρανῶς ἐρῶ.
πρόσθεν δὲ τἀνδρὸς τοῦδε θαυμαστὸς λόχος
εὕδει γυναικῶν ἐν θρόνοισιν ἥμενος.
οὔτοι γυναῖκας, ἀλλὰ Γοργόνας λέγω·
οὐδ᾽ αὖτε Γοργείοισιν εἰκάσω τύποις·
50
εἶδόν ποτ᾽ ἤδη Φινέως γεγραμμένας
δεῖπνον φερούσας· ἄπτεροί γε μὴν ἰδεῖν
αὗται, μέλαιναι δ᾽ ἐς τὸ πᾶν βδελύκτροποι·
ῥέγκουσι δ᾽ οὐ πλαστοῖσι φυσιάμασιν·
55
ἐκ δ᾽ ὀμμάτων λείβουσι δυςφιλῆ λίβα·
καὶ κόσμος οὔτε πρὸς θεῶν ἀγάλματα
ΕΥΜΕΝΙΔΕΣ (OCR draft) Experimental (ΕΥΜΕΝΙΔΕΣ. Paul Mazon, 1920-1925.) — 34 focus
Ἦ δεινὰ λέξαι, δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν
πάλιν μ' ἔπεμψεν ἐκ τόπων τῶν Λοξίου,
35
ὡς μήτε σωκεῖν μήτε μ' ἀκταίνειν στάσιν βάσιν,
τρέχω δὲ χερσίν, οὐ ποδωκίᾳ -κεία σκελῶν·
δείσασα γὰρ γραῦς οὐδέν, ἀντίπαις μὲν οὖν.
Ἐγὼ μὲν ἔρπω πρὸς πολυστεφῆ μυχόν,
ὁρῶ δ' ἐπ' ὀμφαλῷ μὲν ἄνδρα θεομυσῆ -μυσῆι -μισῆ
40
ἕδραν ἕδρας ἔχοντα -τι προστρόπαιον, αἵματι
στάζοντα χεῖρας καὶ νεοσπαδὲς ξίφος
ἔχοντ' ἐλαίας θ' ὑψιγέννητον κλάδον
λήνει μεγίστῳ σωφρόνως ἐστεμμένον,
ἀργῆτι μαλλῷ· τῇδε γὰρ τρανῶς ἐρῶ.
45
Πρόσθεν δὲ τἀνδρὸς τοῦδε θαυμαστὸς λόχος
εὕδει γυναικῶν ἐν θρόνοισιν ἥμενος·
οὔτοι γυναῖκας, ἀλλὰ Γοργόνας λέγω·
οὐδ᾽ αὖτε Γοργείοισιν εἰκάσω τύποις·
εἶδόν ποτ' ἤδη ποτ' εἶδον Φινέως γεγραμμένας
50
Εὐμενίδες (OCR draft) Experimental (Εὐμενίδες. Arthur Sidgwick, 1887.) — 34 focus
Εὐμενίδες (OCR draft) Experimental (Εὐμενίδες. N. Wecklein, 1885.) — 34 focus
ἢ δεινὰ λέξαι, δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν
πάλιν μὲ ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου,
35
ὡς μήτε σωκεῖν μήτε μὲ ἀκταίνειν βάσιν·
τρέχω δὲ χερσίν, οὐ ποδωκείᾳ σκελῶν·
δείσασα γὰρ γραὺς οὐδέν, ἀντίπαις μὲν οὖν.
Εὐμενίδες (OCR draft) Experimental (Εὐμενίδες. Martin L. West, 1990.) — 34 focus
ἦ δεινὰ λέξαι, δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν
πάλιν μ᾽ ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου,
35
Aeschyli Eumenides (OCR draft) Experimental (Aeschyli Eumenides. Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff, 1914.) — 34 focus
δεινὰ λέξαι δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν
πάλιν μ᾽ ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου,
35
ὡς μήτε σωκεῖν μήτε μ᾿ ἀκταίνειν στάσιν·
τρέχω δὲ χερσίν, οὐ ποδωκείαι σκελῶν·
δείσασα γὰρ γραῦς οὐδέν, ἀντίπαις μὲν οὖν.
ἐγὼ μὲν ἕρπω πρὸς πολυστεφῆ μυχόν,
ὁρῶ δ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ὀμφαλῶι μὲν ἄνδρα θεομυσῆ
40
ἕδρας ἔχοντα προστρόπαιον, αἵματι
στάζοντα χεῖρας καὶ νεοσπαδὲς ξίφος
ἔχοντ᾽ ἐλαίας θ᾽ ὑψιγέννητον κλάδον,
Εὐμενίδες (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek text of Aeschylus' Eumenides, edited by F. A. Paley, 1885.) — 34 focus
ἢ δεινὰ λέξαι δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν
πάλιν μ᾿ ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου,
35
ὡς μήτε σωκεῖν μήτε μ᾿ ἀκταίνειν βάσιν·
τρέχω δὲ χερσὶν, οὐ ποδωκίᾳ σκελῶν·
δείσασα γὰρ γραῦς οὐδέν· ἀντίπαις μὲν οὖν.
ἐγὼ μὲν ἕρπω πρὸς πολυστεφῆ μυχόν.
ὁρῶ δ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ὀμφαλῷ μὲν ἄνδρα θεομυσή
40
ἕδραν ἔχοντα προστρόπαιον, αἵματι
στάζοντα χεῖρας, καὶ νεοσπαδὲς ξίφος
ἔχοντ᾽, ἐλαίας θ᾽ ὑψιγέννητον κλάδον
λήνει μεγίστῳ σωφρόνως ἐστεμμένον,
ἀργῆτι μαλλῷ. τῇδε γὰρ τρανῶς ἐρῶ.
45
πρόσθεν δὲ τἀνδρὸς τοῦδε θαυμαστὸς λόχος
εὕδει γυναικῶν ἐν θρόνοισιν ἥμενος.
οὔτοι γυναῖκας, ἀλλὰ Γοργόνας λέγω·
οὐδ᾽ αὖτε Γοργείοισιν εἰκάσω τύποις·
εἶδόν ποτ᾽ ἤδη Φινέως γεγραμμένας
50
δεῖπνον φερούσας· ἄπτεροί γε μὴν ἰδεῖν
αὗται, μέλαιναι δ᾽ ἐς τὸ πᾶν βδελύκτροποι·
ῥέγκουσι δ᾽ οὐ πλατοῖσι φυσιάμασιν·
ἐκ δ᾽ ὀμμάτων λείβουσι δυσφιλῆ λίβα·
καὶ κόσμος οὔτε πρὸς θεῶν ἀγάλματα
55
φέρειν δίκαιος, οὔτ᾽ ἐς ἀνθρώπων στέγας.
τὸ φῦλον οὐκ ὄπωπα τῆσδ᾽ ὁμιλίας,
οὐδ᾽ ἥτις αἷα τοῦτ᾽ ἐπεύχεται γένος
τρέφουσ᾽ ἀνατὶ μὴ μεταστένειν πόνον.
τἀντεῦθεν ἤδη τῶνδε δεσπότῃ δόμων
60
αὐτῷ μελέσθω Λοξίᾳ μεγασθενεῖ.
ἰατρόμαντις δ᾽ ἐστὶ καὶ τερασκόπος,
καὶ τοῖσιν ἄλλοις δωμάτων καθάρσιος.
Εὐμενίδες (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek text of Aeschylus' Eumenides, edited by Friedrich Blass, 1907.) — 34 focus
Ἦ δεινὰ λέξαι, δεινὰ δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοῖς δρακεῖν,
πάλιν μ᾽ ἔπεμψεν ἐκ δόμων τῶν Λοξίου,
35
ὡς μήτε σωκεῖν μήτε μ᾿ ἀκταίνειν βάσιν·
τρέχω δὲ χερσίν, οὐ ποδωκείᾶι σκελῶν·
δείσασα γὰρ γραῦς οὐδέν, ἀντίπαις μὲν οὖν.
ἐγὼ μὲν ἕρπω πρὸς πολυστεφῆ μυχόν·
ὁρῶ δ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ὀμφαλῶι μὲν ἄνδρα θεομυσῆ
40
ἕδραν ἔχοντα προστρόπαιον, αἵματι
στάζοντα χεῖρας καὶ νεοσπαδὲς ξίφος
ἔχοντ᾽ ἐλάιας θ᾽ ὑψιγέννητον κλάδον,
λήνει μεγίστωι σωφρόνως ἐστεμμένον,
ἀργῆτι μαλλῶι· τῆιδε γὰρ τρανῶς ἐρῶ.
45
πρόσθεν δὲ τἀνδρὸς τοῦδε θαυμαστὸς λόχος
εὕδει γυναικῶν ἐν θρόνοισιν ἥμενος.
οὔτοι γυναῖκας, ἀλλὰ Γοργόνας λέγω,
οὐδ᾽ αὖτε Γοργείοισιν εἰκάσω τύποις.
εἶδόν ποτ᾽ ἤδη Φινέως γεγραμμένας
50
δεῖπνον φερούσας· ἄπτεροί γε μὴν ἰδεῖν
αὗται, μέλαιναι δ᾽, ἐς τὸ πᾶν βδελύκτροποι·
ῥέγκουσι δ᾽ οὐ πλατοῖσι φυσιάμασιν·
ἐκ δ᾽ ὀμμάτων λείβουσι δυσφιλῆ λίβα·
καὶ κόσμος οὔτε πρὸς θεῶν ἀγάλματα
55
φέρειν δίκαιος οὔτ᾽ ἐς ἀνθρώπων στέγας.
τὸ φῦλον οὐκ ὄπωπα τῆσδ᾽ ὁμιλίας,
οὐδ᾽ ἥτις αἷα τοῦτ᾽ ἐπεύχεται γένος
τρέφουσ᾽ ἀνατεὶ μὴ μεταστένειν πόνον.
τἀντεῦθεν ἤδη τῶνδε δεσπότηι δόμων
60
αὐτῶι μελέσθω Λοξίαι μεγασθενεῖ.
ἰατρόμαντις δ᾽ ἐστὶ καὶ τερασκόπος
καὶ τοῖσιν ἄλλοις δωμάτων καθάρσιος.
Translations (10)
Eumenides Perseus (Aeschylus, Volume 2. Smyth, Herbert Weir, translator. London; New York: William Heinemann; G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1926. (Modernized by Perseus.)) — 1-140 focus
The Eumenides (OCR draft) Experimental (The Eumenides. Theodore Alois Buckley, 1849.) — 34 focus
Certainly things dreadful to tell, and dreadful to behold with eyes have sent me back from the abodes of Loxias, so that I neither have strength, nor can uplift my steps: but I run with my hands, not by swiftness of legs; for an affrighted old woman is nothing, like a child [in strength]. I creep, indeed, towards the shrine of many garlands 3
, and I behold at the marble navel stone 4
a man under the curse 5
of god, sitting as a suppliant, with his hands dripping with blood, and hold­ ing a newly-drawn 1
sword, and a high-grown branch of olive, wreathed decorously with much 2
wool, with a white fleece: for so I will clearly declare. But before this man a wondrous troop of women sleeps seated in the seats; by no means women, but Gorgons I call them; nor again will I liken them to Gorgon forms 3
, [for] I have seen once on a time [the Harpies] painted, carrying off the food of Phineus; but these are wingless to behold, and black, abominable in kind. And they snore with breathings not to be approached, and from their eyes they distil hateful violence 4
. And their dress is fit to wear neither at the images of gods, nor within the dwellings of men. I have not beheld the tribe of this sisterhood; nor [do I know] what land can boast of having nourished this race with impunity, so as not to groan on account of its troubles. Let what ensues now be a care to the ruler of these abodes mighty Loxias himself: but he is healing-seer and diviner and purifier of abodes 5
to others. The interior of the temple, with the tripod and omphalus, is disclosed, and ORESTES is dis­ covered sitting on the omphalus, the chorus of FURIES sleeping on seats around him. APOLLO standing by his side, and HERMES in the background 1
.
LES EUMÉNIDES (OCR draft) Experimental (LES EUMÉNIDES. Paul Mazon, 1920-1925.) — 34 focus
Ah! horrible à dire, horrible à voir de ses yeux le spec-
tacle qui me rejette hors du temple de Loxias — si horrible que me voici là impuissante, incapable de me tenir droite, et que mes mains courent seules, pour mes jambes alourdies. Une vieille qui prend peur est sans force; ou, plutôt, ce n'est qu'une enfant. J'allais vers le lieu saint,
encombré d'offrandes, quand je vois près de l'Ombilic 1 , un homme chargé d'une souillure, accroupi en suppliant, les mains dégouttantes de sang, avec une épée frais sortie d'une blessure, et un long rameau d'olivier, dévotement
entouré d'un épais réseau de bandelettes — une vraie toison blanche, le mot sera plus clair. En face de l'homme, une troupe étrange de femmes dort, assise sur les sièges. Mais que dis-je, des femmes? Des Gorgones plutôt... Et encore, non! ce n'est pas l'aspect des Gorgones que je rappro-
cherai du leur... J'ai bien vu naguère, en peinture, les
The Furies (OCR draft) Experimental (The Furies. Robert Potter, 1779.) — 34 focus
Things horrible to tell, and horrible
To fight, have forc'd me from the fane again:
Trembling with fear my lax limbs ill ſupport
My frame, ſave that my hands with eager graſp
Uphold my ſinking weakness as I paſs.
50
As to the ſhrine with many' a garland crown'd
I bend my age-enfeebled ſteps, beneath
The central dome I ſee a man abhorr'd
By the juſt Gods, a ſuppliant it ſhou'd ſeem,
For ſuch his poſture; but his hands are ſtain'd
55
With blood; in one he holds a new-drawn ſword,
High in the other crown'd with ample wreaths
An olive branch, with wreaths of ſnowy wool
Handſomely wrought: thus far I ſpeak aſſur'd.
Before him lies a troop of hideous women
60
Stretch'd on the feats, and ſleeping; yet not women,
But Gorgons rather, nor the Gorgon form
Exactly repreſenting, as I have ſeen them
Drawn by the painter's imitative pencil,
Eschilo, Le Eumenidi: traduzione italiana di Ettore Romagnoli (OCR draft) Experimental (Eschilo, Le Eumenidi: traduzione italiana di Ettore Romagnoli. Ettore Romagnoli, 1922.) — 34 focus
Ahi! terribile a dire, e piú terribile
a vederlo, mi scaccia uno spettacolo
fuor dal tempio del Nume!
Io non ho forze
45
piú: non mi reggo piú: sovra le palme
io mi trascino, e non sui piedi.
Aeschylus, Eumenides: versio Latina Ioannis Sanravii (OCR draft) Experimental (Aeschylus, Eumenides: versio Latina Ioannis Sanravii. Ioannes Sanravius, 1555.) — 34 focus
Certè grauia dicere, & grauia uidere,
Rurſus me miſit ex æde Loxiæ.
35
Vt neq; poſset, neq; attollere ſeditionem.
Curro manibus, non uelocitate crurium.
Verita enim uetula nihil contraria filio quidem.
Ego quidem repo ad multicoronatum antrum,
Video enim in umbilico quidem uirum Deo inuiſo
40
Sedem habentem pollutum ſanguine,
Pandentem manus, & recenter strictum enſem
Habentem, oliuæq;
alte genitum ramum,
Lana maxima coronatum modeſtè.
45
Candida ualde, manifeſtè huic dicam.
Ante uirum hunc mirabilis manipulus
Dormit mulierum in ſolijs ſedens.
Non mulieres, ſed Gorgonas dico.
Neq; rurſus Gorgijs aſsimilabo formis.
50
Vidi aliquando depictas Phinei
Prandium ferentes celeres uisu: tamen
Ipſæ, nigræ enim omnino execratæ ſunt.
Stertunt uerò non fictis flatibus
Ex oculis ſtillant inimicam uiolentiam.
55
Et ornatus, neq; ad deorum ſtatua:s
Ferre dignus, neq;
ad hominum domos.
Amicitiam non uidi huius conuerſationis.
Neq; ulla terra hoc optat genus
60
Alens impune, neq; lugere laborem.
Hinc iam domino domuum hæc
Ipſi ſint curæ Loxiæ fortiſsimo,
Medicouates eſt & prodigiorum ſpeculator.
Et alijs domorum purgatio.
65
Aeschylus, Die Eumeniden: German translation (OCR draft) Experimental (Aeschylus, Die Eumeniden: German translation. Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff, 1919–1923.) — 34 focus
Aus Phoibos' Hause jagt ein Anblick mich zurück,
35 den Augen grau'nvoll, grau'nvoll zu beschreiben auch.
Mir schwinden meine Sinne, wanken meine Knie,
die Arme fliegen zitternd, doch der Fuſs ist steif.
Das Alter wird vor Schrecken hilflos, wird zum Kind.
Ein tret' ich in das kranzbehang'ne Heiligtum,
40 da seh' ich einen Menschen nah dem Nabelstein.
Schutzflehend sitzt er und entweiht den heil'gen Ort.
Blut trieft von seinen Händen, die das nackte Schwert
noch halten und des Ölbaums hochgewachs'nen Zweig,
den keusch ein weithin wallendes Gewand verhüllt,
45 die weiſse Wollenbinde, deutlich sag' ich so.
Vor diesem Menschen aber auf den Stühlen sitzt
und schläft von Weibern eine wundersame Schar,
nein, Weiber nicht, Gorgonen mögen's eher sein
English (E. D. A. Morshead, 1889, second edition) (OCR draft) Experimental (Aeschylus, The Furies — Morshead translation. Wikisource transcription; speech corresp and card milestones aligned to Smyth perseus-grc2.) — 34 focus
Things fell to speak of, fell for eyes to see,
Have sped me forth again from Loxias' shrine,
45
With strength unstrung, moving erect no more,
But aiding with my hands my failing feet,
Unnerved by fear. A beldame's force is naught—
Is as a child's, when age and fear combine.
For as I pace towards the inmost fane
50
Bay-filleted by many a suppliant's hand,
Lo, at the central altar I descry
One crouching as for refuge—yea, a man
Abhorred of heaven; and from his hands, wherein
A sword new-drawn he holds, blood reeked and fell:
55
A wand he bears, the olive's topmost bough,
Twined as of purpose with a deep close tuft
Of whitest wool. This, that I plainly saw,
Plainly I tell. But lo, in front of him,
Crouched on the altar-steps, a grisly band
60
Of women slumbers—not like women they,
But Gorgons rather; nay, that word is weak,
Nor may I match the Gorgons' shape with theirs!
Such have I seen in painted semblance erst—
Winged Harpies, snatching food from Phineus' board,—
65
But these are wingless, black, and all their shape
The eye's abomination to behold.
Fell is the breath—let none draw nigh to it—
Wherewith they snort in slumber; from their eyes
Exude the damned drops of poisonous ire:
70
And such their garb as none should dare to bring
To statues of the gods or homes of men.
I wot not of the tribe wherefrom can come
So fell a legion, nor in what land Earth
Could rear, unharmed, such creatures, nor avow
75
That she had travailed and had brought forth death.
But, for the rest, be all these things a care
Unto the mighty Loxias, the lord
Of this our shrine: healer and prophet he,
Discerner he of portents, and the cleanser
80
Of other homes—behold, his own to cleanse!
[ The scene opens, disclosing the interior of the temple: Orestes clings to the central altar; the Furies lie slumbering at a little distance; Apollo and Hermes appear from the innermost shrine.
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1854; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (Aeschylos. Deutsch in den Versmaßen der Urschrift. Stuttgart: Hoffmann, 1854. Native Donner line citations, Smyth card correspondence, selected textual readings and metrical facsimiles. Remaining OCR differences and unattributed reading notes are documented in the linked review inventory.) — 34 focus
Ha, Gräuel auszusprechen, Gräuel anzuschau'n!
Es treibt mich wieder aus Apollons Haus zurück,
35
Daß mir die Glieder brechen, daß mein Schritt erstarrt;
Die Hände, nicht die schnellen Füße, tragen mich.
Schreck macht die Greisin nichtig, ja dem Kinde gleich.
Ich schleiche hin zum vielbekränzten Heiligthum;
Und sizen seh' ich einen fluchbeladnen Mann
40
Am Nabelsteine, der um Sühne fleht, von Blut
Die Hände triefend, und ein frischgezücktes Schwert,
Auch eines Delbaums hochgewachsnen Zweig zur Hand,
Den sorgsam rings die reichgewundne Flocke kränzt,
Das weiße Wollband; also leg' ich's deutlich dar.
45
Und vor dem Mann liegt eine wunderſame Schaar
Von Frauen schlummernd auf die Sessel hingestreckt.
Nicht Frauen wahrlich, nein, Gorgonen nenn' ich sie;
Doch auch Gorgonenbildern gleicht ihr Aeußres nicht.
Wohl auf Gemälden sah ich einst, die raschbeschwingt
50
Das Mahl des Phineus raubten; aber flügellos
Sind diese, schwarz, entseylich, daß mir's Grauen wedt.
Tiefschnarchend haucht ihr Odem unnahbaren Hauch,
Und aus den Augen träufeln sie graunvolles Gift.
Gewand umhüllt die Glieder, wie sich nicht geziemt
55
Vor Götterbildern oder in der Menschen Haus.
Genossen dieses Stammes sah mein Auge nie,
Noch mag ein Land sich rühmen, solch unholde Brut
Straflos zu nähren, ohne Nachgefühl des Weh's.
Das Weit're sei dem Fürsten dieses Heiligthums
60
Selbst heimgestellt, dem hochgewalt'gen Loxias!
Wahrsagerarzt und Zeichendeuter ist er ja,
Und kann die Häuser Andrer auch entsündigen.
(Die Seherin geht ab. Man erblickt das Innere des delphischen Heilig. thums, in demselben auf Sesseln umher den Chor der Erinnyen. Apollon tritt mit Orestes aus dem Hintergrunde des Tempels.)
English (Smyth; revised Bannon and Nagy, CHS) (OCR draft) Experimental (CHS Primary Sources revision of Herbert Weir Smyth’s translation by Cynthia Bannon and Gregory Nagy, with transliterated Greek terms tagged and aligned to the Smyth edition.)

No corresponding passage available

Commentary

Commentary on Aeschylus: Eumenides (Aeschylus. Eumenides. Sidgwick, Arthur, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1887.)

169. μάντις ὤν , i. e. ‘though a seer,' and thus the last who should have allowed pollution.

170. αὐτόσσυτος, αὐτόκλητος , at thine own bidding, at thine own summons: the repetition of similar words is noticeable all through this chorus; a rhetorical turn due to the strength of their wrath and passion. So περὶ πόδα, περὶ κάρα - βαρὺ περίβαρυ - δαΐου δαμίου, etc.

174. τόν , Orestes: for Epic form cp. 137, 357.

177. μιάστωρ , properly one who pollutes, used for 'an avenger' Soph. El. 603 (of Orestes), Eur. Med. 1371.

Critical apparatus to Eumenides (OCR draft) (Latin and Greek critical apparatus to Gottfried Hermann's 1852 edition of Eumenides.) focus

mvp-comment-125-1 μυχὸν ... ἔχρανας: μυχὸν M. Rob. Τurn. μυκὸν G. Ald. σὸν οἶκον Ven. Flor. Farn. Deinde έχρανας Turn. ἔχρανάτ' M. Flor. ἔχράνατ' G. ἔχρακατ' Αld. ἔχρανάς Rob. ἐχθράνατ' Ven. Bekkero teste. ἔχθρανα τ' Farn.

mvp-comment-126-1 παρὰ νόμον θεῶν βρότεα: παρὰ νόμον θεῶν Par. Rob. παρανόμων θεῶν M. G. Ald. Turn. παρὰ νόμων θεῶν Ven. Flor. Farn. Deinde βρότεα M. G. Ald. Rob. βρέτεα Par. Ven. Flor. Farn. Turn.

mvp-comment-127-1 ἐμοί τε λυπρὸς ... ἐκλύσεται: Libri καμοί τε. Casaubonus aliique καμοί γε. Scripsi ἐμοί τε. Deinde πικρός pro λυπρὸς Par. Deinde εὐκλύσεται G. Aid. Hoc dicit, me iniuria afficit, illum tamen non liberabit.

mvp-comment-128-1 ὑπό ... φυγὼν: ὑπαὶ Farn. φυγὼν Porsonus. Libri φεύγων.

mvp-comment-129-1 ποτιτρόπαιος ὢν δ᾽: Libri ποτιτρόπαιος δ᾽ ὤν. Correxit Porsonus. Deinde Schoemanno ἐν χώρᾳ mutandum videtur in ᾧ κάρα. Non opus est mutatione.

mvp-comment-130-1 μιάστορ᾽ αὑτῷ πάσεται: μιάστορ᾽ ἐκείνου πάσεται M. G. Rob. μιάστορ᾽ ἐκείνου πάσσεται Ven. Flor. Farn. Ald. Turn. Apud scholiastem metricum legitur μιάστορ, ἐκείνου πράσσεται. Schoemannus scribendum coniicit μιάστορ᾽ αὐτ᾽ ἐκεῖ πάσεται. Lenius est quod posui, μιάστορ᾽ ἔστιν ὃν πάσεται. Sic enim potius scribendum est, quam, ut olim feci, ἔστιν οὗ.

mvp-comment-131-1 κελεύω: κενεύω Αld.

Commentary on the Eumenides (OCR draft) (Brief English notes on Aeschylus' Eumenides by F. A. Paley, 1885.) focus

mvp-comment-61-1 ἔχρανας] By giving an asylum to a murderer you have knowingly defiled your own temple.

mvp-comment-62-1 φθίσας] By destroying our influence, as far as in you lay (Schol.). They here call themselves Μοῖραι, because it would seem still more presumptuous in Apollo to interfere with Fate.

mvp-comment-63-1 καὶ τόν] See v. 132. While he gives pain to me, he will not succeed in delivering him.'

mvp-comment-64-1 ἐξ ἐμοῦ] after me. The MS. has ἐκείνου, and the Schol. appears to have read ἐκ κείνου, since he explains καὶ οἱ ἐξ αὐτοῦ δίκας ἡμῖν δώσουσιν. The notion is that of a spiteful demon alighting on the head ( Ag. 1146, 1444 ), and it seems to have been regarded as a bad omen if a foul bird left its mark on a statue or roof. See Suppl. 637 , and the note. -πάσεται, Schol.

λήψεται.

mvp-comment-65-1 Apollo reappears, and orders the loathsome band to leave his shrine, under threat of an arrow from his unerring bow, with which he is seen armed. This is a very fine passage. Go, he says, where tortures and mutilations, impaling and other horrors are practised, as ἐν βαρβάροις. The arrow is called a glistening winged serpent, both from the ambiguous sense of lòs and from the feathering, πτέρωμα (Schol.).

Selected scholia accompanying Blass's Eumenides (OCR draft) (The mixed Greek, Latin, and German scholia register printed with Friedrich Blass's 1907 edition, aligned to O. L. Smith's later recensional editions.) focus

mvp-comment-77-1 αὐτὸς αὐτὸν (αὑτὸν Μ) καλέσας ἐπὶ τῶι μιᾶναι τὸν ναόν. ὅσον ἐπὶ σοί.

mvp-comment-78-1 προστρόπαιος, ἀντὶ τοῦ ἐναγής. ὢν ἐναγὴς ἐν τῶι κάρᾶι ἑαυτοῦ ἕτερον μιάστορα λήψεται, καὶ οἱ ἐξ αὐτοῦ δίκας ἡμῖν δώσουσιν. ἐναγής.

Wecklein’s commentary on Eumenides (1888; German; OCR draft) (Explanatory commentary, pp. 251–322; HW42J8 and HXJHA8 OCR collated, with missing comparison pages 294–295 explicitly marked. Unresolved OCR and provisional reference mappings are explicitly marked.) focus

mvp-comment-84-1 Wecklein 1888, p. 262

mvp-comment-84-2 Parodos (vgl. zu 1). Die Chorführerin erwacht und weckt die nächste Erinye, welche wieder eine andere anstöfst u. s. f. Dann stellen sie sich zu Halbchören zusammen.

mvp-comment-99-1 Wecklein 1888, p. 265

mvp-comment-99-2 παρὰ νόμον θεῶν: gegen diesen Göttercomment verfehlte sich auch Prometheus: Prom. 29

θεὸς θεῶν γὰρ οὐχ ὑποπτήσσων χόλον βροτοῖσι τιμὰς ὤπασας πέρα δίκης
, 977 τὸν ἐξαμαρτόντ᾽ εἰς θεοὺς ἐφημέροις πορόντα τιμάς. Vgl. auch Eur. Hipp. 1328
θεοῖσι δ᾽ ὧδ᾽ ἔχει νόμος· οὐδεὶς ἀπαντᾶν βούλεται, προθυμίᾳ τῇ τοῦ θέλον τος, ἀλλ᾽ ἀφιστάμεστ᾽ ἀεί
. Die epische Form βρότεος kommt sonst nirgends bei den attischen Dichtern vor. wenn

mvp-comment-99-3 1

mvp-comment-100-1 Wecklein 1888, p. 265

mvp-comment-100-2 Μοίρας φθίσας: Apollon das Amt der Erinyen vernichtet, so vernichtet er damit die Satzungen der Mören, durch welche den Erinyen ihr Amt zugeteilt ist. Vgl. 336, 395.

mvp-comment-101-1 Wecklein 1888, p. 265

mvp-comment-101-2 καμοί γε λυπρός (ἐστι κτέ, und dabei kränkt er mich, ohne doch diesem zu helfen. tov wie τῷ 137.

mvp-comment-102-1 Wecklein 1888, p. 265

mvp-comment-102-2 ὑπό ἐλευθεροῦται (Wechsel des Subjekts): vgl. 339, Suppl. 234

οὐδὲ μὴ 'ν "Αιδου θα νὼν φύγῃ ματαίων αἰτίας πράξας τάδε· κἀκεῖ δικάζει ταμπλακήμαθ', ὡς λόγος, Ζεὺς ἄλλος ἐν καμοῦσιν ὑστάτας δίκας
. Wegen des Präsens ἐλευθεροῦται κu Ag. 131 .

mvp-comment-103-1 Wecklein 1888, p. 265

mvp-comment-103-2 ποτιτρόπαιος, ἐναγής Schol., schuldbeladen. μιάστορα, ἀλά στορα wie Soph. El. 603 . Es wird ihm aus seiner Schuld ( σίνος wie Ag. 399 ) ein anderer Rächer anfs Haupt erwachsen.

mvp-comment-104-1 Wecklein 1888, p. 265

mvp-comment-104-2 erstes Epeisodion. Apollon tritt wieder hervor und jagt nachher die Erinyen aus seinem Tempel: der Chor tritt also auf die Bühne heraus und Apollon folgt ihnen. Damit wird die zu 63 erwähnte Maschinerie zurückgedreht.

Commentary (Arthur Sidgwick, 1887) (OCR draft) (Arthur Sidgwick's commentary on the Eumenides, aligned to the canonical Greek text.) focus

αὐτόσσυτος, αὐτόκλητος , at thine own bidding, at thine own summons: the repetition of similar words is noticeable all through this chorus; a rhetorical turn due to the strength of their wrath and passion. So περὶ πόδα, περὶ κάρα - βαρὺ περίβαρυ - δαΐου δαμίου, etc.

mvp-sidgwick-93-1-1 And crushing the ancient Fates. The Schol. followed by Pal. and others, understands this of themselves, the Furies being identified for the moment with the Fates. So Eurip. Elect. 1252 says of Orestes-

δειναὶ δὲ Κῆρές σ' αἱ κυνώπιδες θεαὶ
τροχηλατήσουσ᾽ ἐμμανῆ πλανώμενον.
But it is very difficult to believe that Aeschylus who makes the Furies call upon the Fates (961) as our own sisters, righteous goddesses, and speak of them as apart from themselves (724), should here put one for the other. It is better to consider (with Dind. Linw. Weil) that the allusion is here, as more fully explained below (724), to Apollo having allowed the Fates to be robbed by the rescue of Alkestis from death. This explains the κάμοί γε next line, To us too the Furies, as well as to the Fates; and also l. 175
He if he fly beneath the earth shall never be set free, as Alkestis was set free by Herakles who wrestled with death and recovered her.

mvp-sidgwick-93-2-1 It remains however an unusually obscure allusion, and hence one cannot feel confident.

τόν , Orestes: for Epic form cp. 137, 357.

mvp-sidgwick-95-1-1 MSS. read μιάστορ᾽ ἐκείνου πάσεται : corrupt, neither metre nor sense. The Schol. say,

Being defiled he shall receive on his head another avenger, and his descendants shall pay us the penalty.
The words italicised clearly point to some correction like ἐγγενῆ or ἐν γένει (Hart.) or ἐκ γένους (Weil). I have taken the former, 'being guilty of blood he shall find, smiting his head, another avenger of his kindred: i. e. the blood feud shall be continued: Klytaimnestra smote Agamemnon: Orestes smote Klytaimnestra; another shall strike him and the feud be carried on.

μιάστωρ , properly one who pollutes, used for an avenger Soph. El. 603 (of Orestes), Eur. Med. 1371 .

mvp-sidgwick-95-3-1 [Enter from the inner shrine Apollo, who sternly addresses the Furies.]