Pausanias, Description of Greece, W.H.S. Jones (Translator), H.A. Ormerod (Translator), 7.18.12

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

View: By Chapter

← Previous Next →

[12] The festival begins with a most splendid procession in honor of Artemis, and the maiden officiating as priestess rides last in the procession upon a car yoked to deer. It is, however, not till the next day that the sacrifice is offered, and the festival is not only a state function but also quite a popular general holiday. For the people throw alive upon the altar edible birds and every kind of victim as well; there are wild boars, deer and gazelles; some bring wolf-cubs or bear-cubs, others the full-grown beasts. They also place upon the altar fruit of cultivated trees.

Description of Greece. Pausanias. W.H.S. Jones (Translator), H.A. Ormerod (Translator). Cambridge, MA. 1918-1935.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Perseus

Description of Greece (English) (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.)

Editions (1)

Ἑλλάδος Περιηγήσεως Perseus (Pausanias. Pausaniae Graeciae descriptio, Volumes 1-3. Spiro, Friedrich, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1903.) — 7.18.12 focus

[12] πρῶτα μὲν δὴ πομπὴν μεγαλοπρεπεστάτην τῇ Ἀρτέμιδι πομπεύουσι, καὶ ἡ ἱερωμένη παρθένος ὀχεῖται τελευταία τῆς πομπῆς ἐπὶ ἐλάφων ὑπὸ τὸ ἅρμα ἐζευγμένων· ἐς δὲ τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν τηνικαῦτα ἤδη δρᾶν τὰ ἐς τὴν θυσίαν νομίζουσι, δημοσίᾳ τε ἡ πόλις καὶ οὐχ ἧσσον ἐς τὴν ἑορτὴν οἱ ἰδιῶται φιλοτίμως ἔχουσιν. ἐσβάλλουσι γὰρ ζῶντας ἐς τὸν βωμὸν ὄρνιθάς τε τοὺς ἐδωδίμους καὶ ἱερεῖα ὁμοίως ἅπαντα, ἔτι δὲ ὗς ἀγρίους καὶ ἐλάφους τε καὶ δορκάδας, οἱ δὲ καὶ λύκων καὶ ἄρκτων σκύμνους, οἱ δὲ καὶ τὰ τέλεια τῶν θηρίων· κατατιθέασι δὲ ἐπὶ τὸν βωμὸν καὶ δένδρων καρπὸν τῶν ἡμέρων.

Translations (1)

English (Jones and Ormerod; retranslated Gregory Nagy, CHS, 2018) (OCR draft) Experimental (CHS Pausanias Reader retranslation by Gregory Nagy, based on Jones and Ormerod, with marked Greek terms, notes, quotations, and bibliographic attributions preserved.) — 7.18.12 focus

[12] The first thing that happens is the processing-of-a-procession [ pompēn pompeuein]—a most magnificent [ megaloprepestatē] procession—for Artemis, and the girl [ parthénos] who officiates-as-priestess [ hierâsthai], coming up last in [the sequence of] the procession [ pompē], rides [ okheîtai] in a chariot [ harma] yoked to deer. It is, however, not till the next day—yes, this is the day—when they do [ drân] the [special] things that they have-the-custom [ nomizein] of doing for the sacrifice [ thusiā]—both the city [ polis], by-way-of-its-public-support [ dēmosiāi], and no less so the people, each-one-of-them-as-private-individuals [ idiōtai], being-ambitiously-aware-of-the-honor [ philotīmōs ekhein] with regard to the festival [ heortē]. Here is what I mean. The people throw alive upon the altar [ bōmos] edible birds and all kinds of sacrificial-animals [ hiereîa] as well; there are wild boars, deer, and gazelles; some even bring wolf-cubs or bear-cubs, others bring the full-grown beasts. They also place upon the altar [ bōmos] fruit [ karpos] of cultivated trees.

New Alexandria Commentaries

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

Scroll I. Attica

The procession that leads up to the sacrifice features most prominently a priestess of Artemis. I argue that this contemporary priestess, as she figures in the ritual connected with Artems Laphria, matches the archetypal priestess who figures in the myth connected with Artemis Triklaria, which will be narrated later, starting at 7.19.1. In terms of such a match, I argue further that the overall role of the goddess supersedes her special roles as indicated by the epithets Laphria and Triklaria.

source

Pausanias Description of Greece 7.18.12

W.H.S. Jones (Translator), H.A. Ormerod (Translator)

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Current edition Perseus

New Alexandria Commentaries

Stable identifiers