Strabo, Geography, Hans Claude Hamilton (Translator), William Falconer (Translator), 6.1.10

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[10] After the Locri is the [river] Sagras,¹ in the feminine gender, on which is situated the altar of the Dioscuri, near which ten thousand Locrians, with a small body of Rhegians gained a victory over 130,000 Crotoniatae whence they say arose the proverb applied to incredulous people. It is more true than the victory of the Sagras. Some people add to the mysterious account, that it was announced the same day at the Olympic games to the people there assembled, and this speedy news was found perfectly correct. They say that this mischance was so unfortunate an event to the Crotoniatae, that after it they did not long remain as a nation, on account of the number of citizens who fell in the battle. After the Sagras is Caulonia, which was at first called Aulonia, from the αὐλὼν, or valley, in which it was situated; but it is deserted, for its former possessors were driven out by the barbarians,² and have taken refuge in Sicily, and there founded [another] Caulonia.³ After this is Scylletium,⁴ a colony of the Athenians, who set out under Menestheus;⁵ it is now called Scylacium.⁶

. . . Attollit se diva Lacinia contra

Caulonisque arces, et navifragum Scylaceum.

Aen. iii. 652. Dionysius [the elder] allotted a portion of it to the Locri, whilst it was in the possession of the Crotoniatae.⁷ The Scylleticus Sinus received its name from this city. It together with the Hipponiates Sinus forms the isthmus which we have mentioned above.⁸ Dionysius⁹ undertook to build a wall across the isthmus, at the time he was carrying on war against the Leucani, assigning as a pretext that it would afford security to the inhabitants of the peninsula from the inroads of the barbarians dwelling beyond it; but in truth his intention was to cut off the communication of the Greeks with each other, and to have the greater power over those who dwelt within the peninsula, but those who dwelt without¹⁰ assembled and prevented the undertaking.

Geography. Strabo. Hans Claude Hamilton (Translator), William Falconer (Translator). London. 1854-1857.

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Current edition Perseus

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

Editions (1)

Γεωγραφικά Perseus (Strabo. Strabonis Geographica, Vols. 1-3. Meineke, August, editor. Leipzig: Teubner. 1877.) — 6.1.10 focus

[10] μετὰ δὲ Λοκροὺς Σάγρα, ὃν θηλυκῶς ὀνομάζουσιν, ἐφʼ οὗ βωμοὶ Διοσκούρων, περὶ οὓς Λοκροὶ μύριοι μετὰ Ῥηγίνων πρὸς δεκατρεῖς μυριάδας Κροτωνιατῶν συμβαλόντες ἐνίκησαν· ἀφʼ οὗ τὴν παροιμίαν πρὸς τοὺς ἀπιστοῦντας ἐκπεσεῖν φασιν ἀληθέστερα τῶν ἐπὶ Σάγρᾳ. προσμεμυθεύκασι δʼ ἔνιοι καὶ διότι αὐθημερὸν τοῦ ἀγῶνος ἐνεστῶτος Ὀλυμπίασιν ἀπαγγελθείη τοῖς ἐκεῖ τὸ συμβάν, καὶ εὑρεθείη τὸ τάχος τῆς ἀγγελίας ἀληθές. ταύτην δὲ τὴν συμφορὰν αἰτίαν τοῖς Κροτωνιάταις φασὶ τοῦ μὴ πολὺν ἔτι συμμεῖναι χρόνον διὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν τότε πεσόντων ἀνδρῶν. μετὰ δὲ τὴν Σάγραν Ἀχαιῶν κτίσμα Καυλωνία, πρότερον δʼ Αὐλωνία λεγομένη διὰ τὸν προκείμενον αὐλῶνα. ἔστι δʼ ἔρημος· οἱ γὰρ ἔχοντες εἰς Σικελίαν ὑπὸ τῶν βαρβάρων ἐξέπεσον καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖ Καυλωνίαν ἔκτισαν. μετὰ δὲ ταύτην Σκυλλήτιον ἄποικος Ἀθηναίων τῶν μετὰ Μενεσθέως (νῦν δὲ Σκυλάκιον καλεῖται), Κροτωνιατῶν δʼ ἐχόντων Διονύσιος Λοκροῖς προσώρισεν. ἀπὸ δὲ τῆς πόλεως καὶ ὁ κόλπος Σκυλλητικὸς ὠνόμασται, ποιῶν τὸν εἰρημένον ἰσθμὸν πρὸς τὸν Ἱππωνιάτην κόλπον. ἐπεχείρησε δʼ ὁ Διονύσιος καὶ διατειχίζειν τὸν ἰσθμὸν στρατεύσας ἐπὶ Λευκανούς, λόγῳ μὲν ὡς ἀσφάλειαν παρέξων ἀπὸ τῶν ἐκτὸς βαρβάρων τοῖς ἐντὸς ἰσθμοῦ, τὸ δʼ ἀληθὲς λῦσαι τὴν πρὸς ἀλλήλους κοινωνίαν τῶν Ἑλλήνων βουλόμενος, ὥστʼ ἄρχειν ἀδεῶς τῶν ἐντός· ἀλλʼ ἐκώλυσαν οἱ ἐκτὸς εἰσελθόντες.

Translations (1)

Geography (Books 6-14) Perseus (Strabo. The Geography of Strabo, Vols. 3-6. Jones, Horace Leonard, translator. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd., 1924-1929 (printing).) — 6.1.10 focus

[10] After Locri comes the Sagra , a river which has a feminine name. On its banks are the altars of the Dioscuri, near which ten thousand Locri , with Rhegini,¹ clashed with one hundred and thirty thousand Crotoniates and gained the victory—an occurrence which gave rise, it is said, to the proverb we use with incredulous people, “Truer than the result at Sagra .” And some have gone on to add the fable that the news of the result was reported on the same day² to the people at the Olympia when the games were in progress, and that the speed with which the news had come was afterwards verified. This misfortune of the Crotoniates is said to be the reason why their city did not endure much longer, so great was the multitude of men who fell in the battle. After the Sagra comes a city founded by the Achaeans, Caulonia , formerly called Aulonia, because of the glen³ which lies in front of it. It is deserted, however, for those who held it were driven out by the barbarians to Sicily and founded the Caulonia there. After this city comes Scylletium, a colony of the Athenians who were with Menestheus (and now called Scylacium ).⁴ Though the Crotoniates held it, Dionysius included it within the boundaries of the Locri . The Scylletic Gulf, which, with the Hipponiate Gulf forms the aforementioned isthmus,⁵ is named after the city. Dionysius undertook also to build a wall across the isthmus when he made war upon the Leucani, on the pretext, indeed, that it would afford security to the people inside the isthmus from the barbarians outside, but in truth because he wished to break the alliance which the Greeks had with one another, and thus command with impunity the people inside; but the people outside came in and prevented the undertaking.

Notes on the current edition

Geography

1. Geographers differ much as to the modern river which corresponda to this stream. Romanelli and Swinburne consider it to be the Alam.

2. During the war against Pyrrhus, whose cause was espoused by Caulonia, the city was pillaged by the Mamertini, the allies of the Romans. The town was subsequently occupied by the Bruttii, who defended it against the Romans in the second Punic war. Barrio and other Calabrian topographers have fixed its site at Castro Vetere, but Strabo placed it on the left bank of the Sagras, which is inconsistent with their supposition, and it is still a subject of inquiry.

3. Cluvier (Sicil. ant. lib. ii.) reckons this place was situated between Caltanis and Pietrapreccia.

4. Now Squillace.

5. Servius observes that these Athenians were returning from Africa, Serv. Aen. iii. 552.

6. Saumaise (Exercit. Plin. p. 47, 57) thinks the true reading should be Scylaceium, or Virgil could not have made the penultimate long.

7. About B. C. 389.

8. Book vi. cap. i. § 4.

9. Pliny seems to attribute to Dionysius the elder the project of cutting not walling off the isthmus: Itaque Dionysius major intercisam eo loco adjicere Siciliae voluit. Hist. Nat. lib. iii. § 15. Grimaldi also is of opinion that the circumstance mentioned by Strabo should be referred to the first years of Dionysius the younger, about B. C. 366–359.

10. By those who dwelt without, Strabo doubtless intended the Crotoniatae, and their allies.

Strabo Geography 6.1.10

Hans Claude Hamilton (Translator), William Falconer (Translator)

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