Strabo, Geography, Horace Leonard Jones (Translator), 6.2.11

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[11] Of Lipara , then, and Thermessa I have already spoken. As for Strongyle,¹ it is so called from its shape, and it too is fiery; it falls short in the violence of its flame, but excels in the brightness of its light; and this is where Aeolus lived, it is said. The fourth island is Didyme,² and it too is named after its shape. Of the remaining islands, Ericussa³ and Phoenicussa⁴ have been so called from their plants, and are given over to pasturage of flocks. The seventh is Euonymus,⁵ which is farthest out in the high sea and is desert; it is so named because it is more to the left than the others, to those who sail from Lipara to Sicily .⁶ Again, many times flames have been observed running over the surface of the sea round about the islands when some passage had been opened up from the cavities down in the depths of the earth and the fire had forced its way to the outside. Poseidonius says that within his own recollection,⁷ one morning at daybreak about the time of the summer solstice, the sea between Hiera and Euonymus was seen raised to an enormous height, and by a sustained blast remained puffed up for a considerable time, and then subsided; and when those who had the hardihood to sail up to it saw dead fish driven by the current, and some of the men were stricken ill because of the heat and stench, they took flight; one of the boats, however, approaching more closely, lost some of its occupants and barely escaped to Lipara with the rest, who would at times become senseless like epileptics, and then afterwards would recur to their proper reasoning faculties; and many days later mud was seen forming on the surface of the sea, and in many places flames, smoke, and murky fire broke forth, but later the scum hardened and became as hard as mill-stone; and the governor of Sicily , Titus Flaminius,⁸ reported the event to the Senate, and the Senate sent a deputation to offer propitiatory sacrifices, both in the islet⁹ and in Liparae, to the gods both of the underworld and of the Sea. Now, according to the Chorographer,¹⁰ the distance from Ericodes to Phoenicodes¹¹ is ten miles, and thence to Didyme thirty, and thence to the northern part of Lipara twenty-nine, and thence to Sicily nineteen, but from Strongyle sixteen. Off Pachynus lie Melita ,¹² whence come the little dogs called Melitaean, and Gaudos, both eighty-eight miles distant from the Cape. Cossura¹³ lies off Lilybaeum , and off Aspis,¹⁴ a Carthaginian city whose Latin name is Clupea; it lies midway between the two, and is the aforesaid distance¹⁵ from either. Aegimurus,¹⁶ also, and other small islands lie off Sicily and Libya . So much for the islands.

Geography. Strabo. Horace Leonard Jones (Translator). London. 1924-1929.

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Current edition Perseus

Geography (Books 6-14) (English) (Strabo. The Geography of Strabo, Vols. 3-6. Jones, Horace Leonard, translator. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd., 1924-1929 (printing).)

Editions (1)

Γεωγραφικά Perseus (Strabo. Strabonis Geographica, Vols. 1-3. Meineke, August, editor. Leipzig: Teubner. 1877.) — 6.2.11 focus

[11] τὴν μὲν δὴ Λιπάραν καὶ τὴν Θέρμεσσαν εἰρήκαμεν. ἡ δὲ Στρογγύλη καλεῖται μὲν ἀπὸ τοῦ σχήματος, ἔστι δὲ καὶ αὕτη διάπυρος, βίᾳ μὲν φλογὸς λειπομένη τῷ δὲ φέγγει πλεονεκτοῦσα· ἐνταῦθα δὲ τὸν Αἰόλον οἰκῆσαί φασι. τετάρτη δʼ ἐστὶ Διδύμη, καὶ αὕτη δʼ ἀπὸ τοῦ σχήματος ὠνόμασται. τῶν δὲ λοιπῶν Ἐρικοῦσσα μὲν καὶ Φοινικοῦσσα ἀπὸ τῶν φυτῶν κέκληνται, ἀνεῖνται δὲ εἰς νομάς. ἑβδόμη δʼ ἐστὶν Εὐώνυμος, πελαγία μάλιστα καὶ ἔρημος· ὠνόμασται δʼ ὅτι μάλιστα τοῖς εἰς Λιπάρας ἐκ Σικελίας πλέουσιν εὐώνυμός ἐστι. πολλάκις δὲ καὶ φλόγες εἰς τὴν ἐπιφάνειαν τοῦ πελάγους τοῦ περὶ τὰς νήσους ὤφθησαν ἐπιδραμοῦσαι, τῶν κατὰ βάθους κοιλιῶν ἀναστομωθέντος πόρου τινὸς καὶ τοῦ πυρὸς βιασαμένου πρὸς τὸ ἐκτός. Ποσειδώνιος δὲ κατὰ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ μνήμην φησὶ περὶ τροπὰς θερινὰς ἅμα τῇ ἕῳ μεταξὺ τῆς Ἱέρας καὶ τῆς Εὐωνύμου πρὸς ὕψος ἀρθεῖσαν ἐξαίσιον τὴν θάλατταν ὁραθῆναι, καὶ συμμεῖναί τινα χρόνον ἀναφυσωμένην συνεχῶς, εἶτα παύσασθαι· τοὺς δὲ τολμήσαντας προσπλεῖν, ἰδόντας νεκροὺς ἰχθύας ἐλαυνομένους ὑπὸ τοῦ ῥοῦ¹ καὶ θέρμῃ καὶ δυσωδίᾳ πληγέντας φυγεῖν, ἓν δὲ τῶν πλοιαρίων τὸ μᾶλλον πλησιάσαν τοὺς μὲν τῶν ἐνόντων ἀποβαλεῖν τοὺς δʼ εἰς Λιπάραν μόλις σῶσαι, τοτὲ μὲν ἔκφρονας γινομένους ὁμοίως τοῖς ἐπιληπτικοῖς τοτὲ δὲ ἀνατρέχοντας εἰς τοὺς οἰκείους λογισμούς· πολλαῖς δʼ ἡμέραις ὕστερον ὁρᾶσθαι πηλὸν ἐπανθοῦντα τῇ θαλάττῃ, πολλαχοῦ δὲ καὶ φλόγας ἐκπιπτούσας καὶ καπνοὺς καὶ λιγνύας, ὕστερον δὲ παγῆναι καὶ γενέσθαι τοῖς μυλίταις λίθοις ἐοικότα τὸν πάγον· τὸν δὲ τῆς Σικελίας στρατηγὸν Τίτον Φλαμίνιον δηλῶσαι τῇ συγκλήτῳ, τὴν δὲ πέμψασαν ἐκθύσασθαι ἔν τε τῷ νησιδίῳ καὶ ἐν Λιπάραις τοῖς τε καταχθονίοις θεοῖς καὶ τοῖς θαλαττίοις. ἀπὸ μὲν οὖν Ἐρικώδους εἰς Φοινικώδη δέκα μίλιά φησιν ὁ χωρογράφος, ἔνθεν δʼ εἰς Διδύμην τριάκοντα, ἔνθεν δʼ εἰς Λιπάραν πρὸς ἄρκτον ἐννέα καὶ εἴκοσιν, ἔνθεν δʼ εἰς Σικελίαν ἐννεακαίδεκα· ἑκκαίδεκα δʼ ἐκ τῆς Στρογγύλης. πρόκειται δὲ τοῦ Παχύνου Μελίτη, ὅθεν τὰ κυνίδια ἃ καλοῦσι Μελιταῖα, καὶ Γαῦδος, ὀγδοήκοντα καὶ ὀκτὼ μίλια τῆς ἄκρας ἀμφότεραι διέχουσαι· Κόσσουρα δὲ πρὸ τοῦ Λιλυβαίου καὶ πρὸ τῆς Ἀσπίδος Καρχηδονιακῆς πόλεως ἣν Κλυπέαν καλοῦσι, μέση ἀμφοῖν κειμένη καὶ τὸ λεχθὲν διάστημα ἀφʼ ἑκατέρας ἀπέχουσα· καὶ ἡ Αἰγίμουρος δὲ πρὸ τῆς Σικελίας καὶ τῆς Λιβύης ἐστὶ καὶ ἄλλα μικρὰ νησίδια. ταῦτα μὲν περὶ τῶν νήσων.

Translations (1)

Geography Perseus (Strabo. The Geography of Strabo, Vols. 1-3. Hamilton, Hans Claude, translator; Falconer, William, translator. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1854-1857.) — 6.2.11 focus

[11] We have noticed the islands of Lipari and Thermessa. As for Strongyle,¹ it takes its name from its form.² Like the other two, it is subigneous, but is deficient in the force of the flames which are emitted, while their brightness is greater. It is here they say that Aeolus resided.³ The fourth is Didyma; this island also is named from its form.⁴ Of the others, [the fifth and sixth] are Ericussa⁵ and phoenicussa;⁶ they are called from the plants which they produce, and are given up to pasture. The seventh [island] is called Euonymus;⁷ it is the farthest in the sea and barren. It is called Euonymus because it lies the most to the left when you sail from the island of Lipari to Sicily,⁸ and many times flames of fire have been seen to rise to the surface, and play upon the sea round the islands: these flames rush with violence from the cavities at the bottom of the sea,⁹ and force for themselves a passage to the open air. Posidonius says, that at a time so recent as to be almost within his recollection, about the summer solstice and at break of day, between Hiera and Euonymus, the sea was observed to be suddenly raised aloft, and to abide some time raised in a compact mass and then to subside. Some ventured to approach that part in their ships; they observed the fish dead and driven by the current, but being distressed by the heat and foul smell, were compelled to turn back. One of the boats which had approached nearest lost some of her crew, and was scarcely able to reach Lipari with the rest, and they had fits like an epileptic person, at one time fainting and giddy, and at another returning to their senses; and many days afterwards a mud or clay was observed rising in the sea, and in many parts the flames issued, and smoke and smoky blazes; afterwards it congealed and became a rock like mill-stones. Titus Flaminius,¹⁰ who then commanded in Sicily, despatched to the senate [of Rome] a fill account of the phenomenon; the senate sent and offered sacrifices to the infernal and marine divinities both in the little island [which had thus been formed] and the Lipari Islands. Now the chorographer reckons that from Ericodes to Phoenicodes are 10 miles, from thence to Didyma 30, from thence to the northernmost point¹¹ of Lipari 29, and from thence to Sicily 19, while from Strongyle are 16.¹² Melita¹³ lies before¹⁴ Pachynus; from thence come the little dogs called Maltese;¹⁵ so does also Gaudus,¹⁶ both of them are situated about 88 miles distant from that promontory. Cossura¹⁷ is situated before Cape Lilybaesum, and opposite the Carthaginian city Aspis, which they call [in Latin] Clypea, it is situated in the midst of the space which lies between those two places, and is distant from each the number of miles last given.¹⁸ Aegimurus also and other little islands lie off Sicily and Africa. So much for the islands.

Notes on the current edition

Geography

1. i.e., “Round,” the Stromboli of today.

2. i.e., “Double.” It is formed by two volcanic cones; the Salina of today.

3. i.e., “Heather” (cp. the botanical term “Ericaceae”); now called Alicudi.

4. i.e., “Palm” (cp. the botanical term “Phoenicaceae”); or perhaps “Rye-grass” (Lolium perenne), the sense in which Theophrastus Hist. Plant. 2. 6.11 uses the Greek word “phoenix”; now called Felicudi.

5. i.e., “Left”; now called Panaria.

6. This would not be true if one sailed the shortest way to Sicily , but Strabo obviously has in mind the voyage from the city of Lipara to Cape Pelorias.

7. Poseidonius was born about 130 B.C.

8. This Titus Flaminius, who must have lived “within the recollection” of Poseidonius, is otherwise unknown. If the text is correct, he was governor of Sicily about 90 B.C. Cp. Nissen, op. cit. II.251. But Du Theil, Corais and C. Müller emend to Titus “Flamininus,” who was governor in 123 B.C., trying to connect this eruption with that which is generally put at 126 B.C. (cp. Pliny 2. 88 [89] ).

9. The islet just created.

10. See footnote 3 in Vol. II, p. 358.

11. i.e., Ericussa and Phoenicussa.

12. Now Malta .

13. Now Pantellaria.

14. So called from the resemblance of the hill (see 17. 3. 16), where it is situated, to a shield (aspis, Lat. clupeus).

15. Eighty-eight miles.

16. Now Al Djamur.

Strabo Geography 6.2.11

Horace Leonard Jones (Translator)

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