Pausanias, Description of Greece, ed. W. H. S. Jones, ed. H. A. Ormerod, ed. Gregory Nagy, 10.2

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[1] When the forces of the Persians [ Persai] crossed into Europe [ Eurōpē], it is said that the men of Phokis were forced to join the Great King but defected from the side of the Medes [ Mēdoi] and went over to the Greek side [ tò Hellēnikon] on the occasion of the great deed-of-victory [ ergon] at [the battle at] Plataea. Subsequently, it happened that a fine was imposed on them by the Amphiktyones. I cannot find out the truth [ tò alēthes] of the story [ logos], whether the fine was imposed because of some misdeeds [ adikēmata] committed the people of Phokis, or whether the Thessalians imposed the fine on the people of Phokis because of their ancient hatred [ mīsos].

[2] Since they were disheartened at the greatness of the fine, Philomēlos, son of Theotīmos, than whom not one of the men of Phokis stood higher in rank, his country being Ledon, a city of Phokis, took charge and tried to persuade them to seize the sanctuary at Delphi, pointing out that the amount of the sum to be paid was beyond their resources. He stated, among other plausible arguments, that Athens and Sparta had always been favorable to them, and that if Thebes or any other state made war against them, they would have the better owing to their courage and resources.

[3] When Philomēlos put all this before them, the men of Phokis were not unwilling, either because their judgment was blinded by the god [ theos], or because their nature was to put gain before reverence-for-what-is-sacred [ eu-sebeia]. The seizure of Delphi by the men of Phokis occurred when Hērakleidēs was president [ prutanis] at Delphi and Agathokles was archon [ arkhōn] in Athens, in the fourth year of the hundred and fifth Olympiad, when Prōros of Cyrene was victorious in the foot-race.

[4] When they [= the men of Phokis] had seized the sanctuary [ hieron], the best mercenaries [ xenika] in Greece right away gathered to join them, while the Thebans, who were already feeling hostile, declared open war against them. The war lasted ten successive years, and during this long time, victory [ nīkân] often went to the men of Phokis and their mercenaries, but often the Thebans came-out-on-top [ krateîn]. But then, in a battle thattook place at the city of Neōn, the men of Phokis were routed, and, as he was fleeing, Philomēlos threw himself down a high precipice, and so lost his life [ psūkhē]. This was exactly the form of punishment [ dikē] set by the Amphiktyones for those who plundered [the sanctuary of Delphi].

[5] After the death of Philomēlos, the men of Phokis gave the command to Onomarkhos, while Philip, son of Amyntas, made an alliance with the Thebans. In the battle that took place, Philipcame out on top [ krateîn], and, when Onomarkhos fled to the coast, his own men killed him by throwing their javelins at him. They blamed their defeat on his lack of boldness and on his inexperience as a general.

[6] Such was the outcome [ telos] that the superhuman force [ daimōn] brought upon Onomarkhos, and his brother Phaülos was chosen as commander-in-chief. It is said that no sooner had this Phaülos attained rulership [ arkhē] over the people of Phokis when he saw the following vision in a dream. Among the votive offerings [ anathēmata] to Apollo was a representation [ mīmēma] in bronze of a man’s body in an advanced stage of decay, with the flesh already fallen off, and nothing left but the bones. The Delphians said that it was an offering [ anathēma] of Hippokrates the physician. Now the thought came to Phaülos that he resembled this offering [ anathēmata]. Right away he was attacked by a wasting disease, which thus brought to fulfillment [ epi-teleîn] the prophecy [ manteiā] of the dream.

[7] On the death of Phaylus, the sovereignty of the people of Phokis devolved on Phalaikos, his son. Phalaikos, accused of appropriating to his own use the sacred treasures, was deposed, and crossing with a fleet to Crete, accompanied by those men from Phokis who sided with him and by a part of his mercenaries, he sat down to besiege Kydonia, which refused to accede to his demand for money, and perished along with the greater part of his army.

Description of Greece. Pausanias. ed. W. H. S. Jones, ed. H. A. Ormerod, ed. Gregory Nagy. . .

Current edition Experimental

English (Jones and Ormerod; retranslated Gregory Nagy, CHS, 2018) (OCR draft) (English) (CHS Pausanias Reader retranslation by Gregory Nagy, based on Jones and Ormerod, with marked Greek terms, notes, quotations, and bibliographic attributions preserved.)

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (1)

Ἑλλάδος Περιηγήσεως Perseus (Pausanias. Pausaniae Graeciae descriptio, Volumes 1-3. Spiro, Friedrich, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1903.) — 10.2 focus

[1]
ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐς τὴν Εὐρώπην ὁ Περσῶν στρατὸς διέβη, λέγεται τοὺς Φωκέας φρονῆσαι μὲν ὑπὸ ἀνάγκης τὰ βασιλέως, αὐτομολῆσαι δὲ ἐκ τῶν Μήδων καὶ ἐς τὸ Ἑλληνικὸν παρὰ τὸ ἔργον τὸ Πλαταιᾶσι παρατάξασθαι. χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον κατέλαβεν αὐτοὺς ζημιωθῆναι χρήμασιν ὑπὸ Ἀμφικτυόνων· οὐδὲ ἔχω τοῦ λόγου τὸ ἀληθὲς ἐξευρεῖν εἴτε ἀδικήσασιν ἐπεβλήθη σφίσιν εἴτε 0 Θεσσαλοὶ κατὰ τὸ ἐκ παλαιοῦ μῖσος γενέσθαι τὴν ζημίαν τοῖς Φωκεῦσιν ἦσαν οἱ πράξαντες.

[2] ἐχόντων δὲ ἀθύμως αὐτῶν πρὸς τῆς ζημίας τὸ μέγεθος, Φιλόμηλος σφᾶς ὑπολαβὼν ὁ Θεοτίμου, Φωκέων οὐδενὸς ἀξιώματι ὕστερος—πατρὶς δὲ αὐτῷ Λέδων τῶν ἐν Φωκεῦσιν ἦν πόλεων—οὗτος οὖν ὁ Φιλόμηλος τήν τε ἔκτισιν αὐτοῖς ἀδύνατον ἀπέφηνε τῶν χρημάτων καὶ ἀνέπειθε τὸ ἱερὸν καταλαβεῖν τὸ ἐν Δελφοῖς, λέγων καὶ ἄλλα ἐπαγωγὰ καὶ ὡς τὰ Ἀθηναίων καὶ ἐκ Λακεδαίμονος ἐπιτήδεια ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐστιν αὐτοῖς, Θηβαίων δὲ καὶ εἴ τις ἄλλος κατασταίη σφίσιν ἐς πόλεμον, περιέσεσθαι καὶ ἀρετῇ σφᾶς καὶ δαπάνῃ χρημάτων.

[3] ταῦτα τοῦ Φιλομήλου λέγοντος οὐκ ἐγίνετο ἀκούσια τῷ πλήθει τῶν Φωκέων, εἴτε τὴν γνώμην σφίσι τοῦ θεοῦ βλάπτοντος εἴτε καὶ αὐτοῖς πεφυκόσιν ἐπίπροσθεν εὐσεβείας τὰ κέρδη ποιεῖσθαι. τὴν δὲ τῶν Δελφῶν κατάληψιν ἐποιήσαντο οἱ Φωκεῖς Ἡρακλείδου μὲν πρυτανεύοντος ἐν Δελφοῖς καὶ Ἀγαθοκλέους Ἀθήνῃσιν ἄρχοντος, τετάρτῳ δὲ ἔτει πέμπτης Ὀλυμπιάδος ἐπὶ ταῖς ἑκατόν, ἣν Πρῶρος ἐνίκα Κυρηναῖος στάδιον.

[4]
καταλαβοῦσι δὲ αὐτοῖς τὸ ἱερὸν ξενικά τε αὐτίκα τὰ ἰσχυρότατα τῶν ἐν Ἕλλησιν ἠθροίσθη καὶ οἱ Θηβαῖοί σφισιν ἐς πόλεμον ἐκ τοῦ φανεροῦ καθεστήκεσαν, διάφοροι καὶ τὰ πρότερα ὄντες. χρόνος μὲν δὴ ἐγένετο ὃν ἐπολέμησαν δέκα ἔτη συνεχῶς, καὶ ἐν τοσούτῳ πολέμου μήκει πολλάκις μὲν οἱ Φωκεῖς καὶ τὰ παρʼ αὐτοῖς ξενικὰ ἐνίκησε, πολλάκις δὲ ἦν τὰ τῶν Θηβαίων ἐπικρατέστερα· γενομένης δὲ κατὰ Νεῶνα πόλιν συμβολῆς ἐτράποντο οἱ Φωκεῖς, καὶ ὁ Φιλόμηλος ῥίπτει 0 τε αὑτὸν ἐν τῇ φυγῇ κατὰ ὑψηλοῦ καὶ ἀποτόμου κρημνοῦ καὶ ἀφίησιν οὕτω τὴν ψυχήν· ἐτέτακτο δὲ καὶ ἄλλως τοῖς Ἀμφικτύοσιν ἐς τοὺς συλῶντας αὕτη ἡ δίκη.

[5] μετὰ δὲ Φιλόμηλον τελευτήσαντα Ὀνομάρχῳ μὲν τὴν ἡγεμονίαν διδόασιν οἱ Φωκεῖς, ἐς δὲ τῶν Θηβαίων τὴν συμμαχίαν προσεχώρησε Φίλιππος ὁ Ἀμύντου· καὶ —ἐκράτησε γὰρ Φίλιππος τῆς συμβολῆς—φεύγων ὁ Ὀνόμαρχος καὶ ἐπὶ θάλασσαν ἀφικόμενος ἐνταῦθα ὑπὸ τῶν στρατιωτῶν κατηκοντίσθη τῶν οἰκείων, ὡς τὴν ἧσσάν σφισιν ὑπὸ ἀτολμίας συμβᾶσαν τῆς ἐκείνου καὶ ἐς τὸ στρατηγεῖν ἀπειρίας.

[6] Ὀνομάρχῳ μὲν τέλος τοῦ βίου τοιοῦτον ἐπήγαγεν ὁ δαίμων, στρατηγὸν δὲ αὐτοκράτορα εἵλοντο ἀδελφὸν τοῦ Ὀνομάρχου Φάυλον. λέγουσι δὲ τοῦτον τὸν Φάυλον παρεληλυθέναι τε δὴ ἄρτι ἐπὶ τῶν Φωκέων τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ ὄψιν ὀνείρατος ἰδεῖν τοιάνδε. ἐν τοῖς ἀναθήμασι τοῦ Ἀπόλλωνος μίμημα ἦν χαλκοῦν ἀνδρὸς χρονιωτέρου, κατερρυηκότος τε ἤδη τὰς σάρκας καὶ τὰ ὀστᾶ ὑπολειπομένου μόνα· ἀνάθημα δὲ ὑπὸ Δελφῶν Ἱπποκράτους ἐλέγετο εἶναι τοῦ ἰατροῦ. τούτῳ δὴ ἑαυτὸν ἐοικέναι τῷ ἀναθήματι ἔδοξεν ὁ Φάυλος· αὐτίκα δὲ ὑπολαβοῦσα αὐτὸν φθοώδης νόσος ἐπετέλει τοῦ ἐνυπνίου τὴν μαντείαν.

[7] Φαύλου δὲ ἀποθανόντος ἐς Φάλαικον τὸν παῖδα αὐτοῦ περιεχώρησεν ἡ ἐν Φωκεῦσι δυναστεία· καὶ ἐπεὶ ἔσχεν ὁ Φάλαικος αἰτίαν ἰδίᾳ περιποιεῖσθαι τῶν ἱερῶν χρημάτων, ἐπαύθη τῆς ἀρχῆς. διαβὰς δὲ ναυσὶν ἐς Κρήτην ὁμοῦ Φωκέων τοῖς ᾑρημένοις τὰ ἐκείνου καὶ μοίρᾳ τοῦ ξενικοῦ, Κυδωνίᾳ προσκαθήμενος— οὐ γάρ οἱ διδόναι χρήματα ἐβούλοντο αἰτοῦντι— τῆς στρατιᾶς τὸ πολὺ ἀπόλλυσι καὶ αὐτὸς ἀπώλετο.

Translations (1)

Description of Greece Perseus (Pausanias. Pausanias Description of Greece, Volumes 1-4. Jones, W.H.S. (William Henry Samuel), translator; Ormerod, Henry Arderne, translator. London, New York: W. Heinemann, G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1918-1935.) — 10.2 focus

[1]
When the Persian army crossed into Europe , it is said that the Phocians were forced to join the Great King, but deserted the Persian cause and ranged themselves with the Greeks at the battle of Plataea . Subsequently it happened that a fine was inflicted on them by the Amphictyons. I cannot find out the truth of the story, whether the fine was inflicted because of the misdeeds of the Phocians, or whether the Thessalians exacted the fine from the Phocians because of their ancient hatred.

[2] As they were disheartened at the greatness of the fine, Philomelus, son of Theotimus, than whom no Phocian stood higher in rank, his country being Ledon, a city of Phocis , took charge and tried to persuade them to seize the sanctuary at Delphi , pointing out that the amount of the sum to be paid was beyond their resources. He stated, among other plausible arguments, that Athens and Sparta had always been favorable to them, and that if Thebes or any other state made war against them, they would have the better owing to their courage and resources.

[3] When Philomelus put all this before them, the Phocians were nothing loath, either because their judgment was blinded by heaven, or because their nature was to put gain before religion. The seizure of Delphi by the Phocians occurred when Heracleides was president at Delphi and Agathocles archon at Athens , in the fourth year of the hundred and fifth Olympiad,¹ when Prorus of Cyrene was victorious in the foot-race.

[4]
When they had seized the sanctuary, the best mercenaries in Greece at once mustered to join them, while the Thebans, at variance before, declared open war against them. The war lasted ten successive years, and during this long time victory often fell to the Phocians and their mercenaries, and often the Thebans proved the better. An engagement took place at the town of Neon, in which the Phocians were worsted, and in the rout Philomelus threw himself down a high precipice, and so lost his life. This was the very punishment fixed by the Amphictyons for spoilers of the sanctuary.

[5] After the death of Philomelus the Phocians gave the command to Onomarchus, while Philip, son of Amyntas, made an alliance with the Thebans. Philip had the better of the encounter, and Onomarchus fleeing to the coast was there shot down by his own troops, who considered their defeat due to his lack of enterprise and inexperience as a general.

[6] Such was the end which fate brought upon Onomarchus, and his brother Phaylus was chosen as commander-in-chief. It is said that no sooner had this Phaylus come to rule over the Phocians when he saw the following vision in a dream. Among the votive offerings to Apollo was a representation in bronze of a man's body in an advanced stage of decay, with the flesh already fallen off, and nothing left but the bones. The Delphians said that it was an offering of Hippocrates the physician. Now the thought came to Phaylus that he resembled this offering. Forthwith he was attacked by a wasting disease, which so fulfilled the omen of the dream.

[7] On the death of Phaylus the sovereignty of the Phocians devolved on Phalaecus his son. Phalaecus, accused of appropriating to his own use the sacred treasures, was deposed, and crossing with a fleet to Crete , accompanied by such Phocians as sided with him and by a part of his mercenaries, he sat down to besiege Cydonia , which refused to accede to his demand for money, and perished along with the greater part of his army.

New Alexandria Commentaries

Gregory Nagy, Editors: Angelia Hanhardt and Keith DeStone, Web producer: Noel Spencer, Consultant for images: Jill Curry Robbins, \[\[Noel gives this a separate URN\]\]

Pausanias Description of Greece 10.2

ed. W. H. S. Jones, ed. H. A. Ormerod, ed. Gregory Nagy

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