12.7. Of the statues set up in the round buildings, the amber one represents Augustus the Roman emperor, the ivory one they told me was a portrait of Nicomedes, king of Bithynia. After him the greatest city in Bithynia was renamed Nicomedeia; before him it was called Astacus, and its first founder was Zypoetes, a Thracian by birth to judge from his name. This amber of which the statue of Augustus is made, when found native in the sand of the Eridanus, is very rare and precious to men for many reasons; the other “amber” is an alloy of gold and silver.
12.7. αἱ δὲ εἰκόνες αἱ τοῖς κατασκευάσμασι τοῖς περιφερέσιν ἐγκείμεναι, ἡ μὲν τοῦ ἠλέκτρου βασιλέως Ῥωμαίων ἐστὶν Αὐγούστου, ἡ δὲ τοῦ ἐλέφαντος βασιλέως Νικομήδους ἐλέγετο εἶναι Βιθυνῶν. ἀπὸ τούτου δὲ καὶ τῇ μεγίστῃ τῶν ἐν Βιθυνίᾳ πόλεων μετεβλήθη τὸ ὄνομα, Ἀστακῷ τὰ πρὸ τούτου καλουμένῃ· τὰ δὲ ἐξ ἀρχῆς αὐτῇ Ζυποίτης ἐγένετο οἰκιστής, Θρᾷξ γένος εἰκάζοντί γε ἀπὸ τοῦ ὀνόματος. τὸ δὲ ἤλεκτρον τοῦτο οὗ τῷ Αὐγούστῳ πεποίηνται τὴν εἰκόνα, ὅσον μὲν αὐτόματον ἐν τοῦ Ἠριδανοῦ ταῖς ψάμμοις εὑρίσκεται, σπανίζεται τὰ μάλιστα καὶ ἀνθρώπῳ τίμιον πολλῶν ἐστιν ἕνεκα· τὸ δὲ ἄλλο ἤλεκτρον ἀναμεμιγμένος ἐστὶν ἀργύρῳ χρυσός.
12.8. In the temple at Olympia are four offerings of Nero—three crowns representing wild-olive leaves, and one representing oak leaves. Here too are laid twenty-five bronze shields, which are for the armed men to carry in the race. Tablets too are set up, including one on which is written the oath sworn by the Eleans to the Athenians, the Argives and the Mantineans, that they would be their allies for a hundred years.
12.8. ἐν δὲ τῷ ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ ναῷ Νέρωνος ἀναθήματα τρεῖς μὲν ἐς κοτίνου φύλλα στέφανοι, τέταρτος δὲ ἐς δρυός ἐστι μεμιμημένος· κεῖνται δὲ αὐτόθι καὶ ἀσπίδες χαλκαῖ πέντε καὶ εἴκοσι, τοῖς ὁπλιτεύουσιν εἶναι φορήματα ἐς τὸν δρόμον. στῆλαι δὲ ἄλλαι τε ἑστήκασι καὶ ἡ πρὸς Ἀθηναίους καὶ Ἀργείους τε καὶ Μαντινέας ἔχουσα ὅρκον παρὰ Ἠλείων ἐς συμμαχίαν ἐτῶν ἑκατόν.
13.1. Within the Altis there is also a sacred enclosure consecrated to Pelops, whom the Eleans as much prefer in honor above the heroes of Olympia as they prefer Zeus over the other gods. To the right of the entrance of the temple of Zeus, on the north side, lies the Pelopium. It is far enough removed from the temple for statues and other offerings to stand in the intervening space, and beginning at about the middle of the temple it extends as far as the rear chamber. It is surrounded by a stone fence, within which trees grow and statues have been dedicated.
13.1. ἔστι δὲ ἐντὸς τῆς Ἄλτεως καὶ Πέλοπι ἀποτετμημένον τέμενος· ἡρώων δὲ τῶν ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ τοσοῦτον προτετιμημένος ἐστὶν ὁ Πέλοψ ὑπὸ Ἠλείων ὅσον Ζεὺς θεῶν τῶν ἄλλων. ἔστιν οὖν τοῦ ναοῦ τοῦ Διὸς κατὰ δεξιὰν τῆς ἐσόδου πρὸς ἄνεμον Βορέαν τὸ Πελόπιον, ἀφεστηκὸς μὲν τοῦ ναοῦ τοσοῦτον ὡς μεταξὺ καὶ ἀνδριάντας καὶ ἀναθήματα ἄλλα ἀνακεῖσθαι, παρήκει δὲ ὡς ἐπὶ τὸν ὀπισθόδομον ἀπὸ μέσου μάλιστα ἀρξάμενον τοῦ ναοῦ· καὶ λίθων τε θριγκῷ περιέχεται καὶ δένδρα ἐντὸς πεφυκότα καὶ ἀνδριάντες εἰσὶν ἀνακείμενοι, ἔσοδος δὲ ἐς αὐτὸ πρὸς δυσμῶν ἐστιν ἡλίου.
13.2. The entrance is on the west. The sanctuary is said to have been set apart to Pelops by Heracles the son of Amphitryon. Heracles too was a great-grandson of Pelops, and he is also said to have sacrificed to him into the pit. Right down to the present day the magistrates of the year sacrifice to him, and the victim is a black ram. No portion of this sacrifice goes to the sooth-sayer, only the neck of the ram it is usual to give to the “woodman,” as he is called.
13.2. τοῦτο ἀπονεῖμαι τῷ Πέλοπι Ἡρακλῆς ὁ Ἀμφιτρύωνος λέγεται· τέταρτος γὰρ δὴ ἀπόγονος καὶ οὗτος ἦν Πέλοπος, λέγεται δὲ καὶ ὡς ἔθυσεν ἐς τὸν βόθρον τῷ Πέλοπι. θύουσι δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ νῦν ἔτι οἱ κατὰ ἔτος τὰς ἀρχὰς ἔχοντες· τὸ δὲ ἱερεῖόν ἐστι κριὸς μέλας. ἀπὸ ταύτης οὐ γίνεται τῷ μάντει μοῖρα τῆς θυσίας, τράχηλον δὲ μόνον δίδοσθαι τοῦ κριοῦ καθέστηκε τῷ ὀνομαζομένῳ ξυλεῖ.
13.3. The woodman is one of the servants of Zeus, and the task assigned to him is to supply cities and private individuals with wood for sacrifices at a fixed rate, wood of the white poplar, but of no other tree, being allowed. If anybody, whether Elean or stranger, eat of the meat of the victim sacrificed to Pelops, he may not enter the temple of Zeus. The same rule applies to those who sacrifice to Telephus at Pergamus on the river Caicus; these too may not go up to the temple of Asclepius before they have bathed.
13.3. ἔστι δὲ ὁ ξυλεὺς ἐκ τῶν οἰκετῶν τοῦ Διός, ἔργον δὲ αὐτῷ πρόσκειται τὰ ἐς τὰς θυσίας ξύλα τεταγμένου λήμματος καὶ πόλεσι παρέχειν καὶ ἀνδρὶ ἰδιώτῃ· τὰ δὲ λεύκης μόνης ξύλα καὶ ἄλλου δένδρου ἐστὶν οὐδενός· ὃς δʼ ἂν ἢ αὐτῶν Ἠλείων ἢ ξένων τοῦ θυομένου τῷ Πέλοπι ἱερείου φάγῃ τῶν κρεῶν, οὐκ ἔστιν οἱ ἐσελθεῖν παρὰ τὸν Δία. τὸ δὲ αὐτὸ καὶ ἐν τῇ Περγάμῳ τῇ ὑπὲρ ποταμοῦ Καΐκου πεπόνθασιν οἱ τῷ Τηλέφῳ θύοντες· ἔστι γὰρ δὴ οὐδὲ τούτοις ἀναβῆναι πρὸ λουτροῦ παρὰ τὸν Ἀσκληπιόν.
13.4. The following tale too is told. When the war of the Greeks against Troy was prolonged, the soothsayers prophesied to them that they would not take the city until they had fetched the bow and arrows of Heracles and a bone of Pelops. So it is said that they sent for Philoctetes to the camp, and from Pisa was brought to them a bone of Pelops—a shoulder-blade. As they were returning home, the ship carrying the bone of Pelops was wrecked off Euboea in the storm.
13.4. λέγεται δὲ καὶ τοιοῦτον· μηκυνομένου τοῦ πρὸς Ἰλίῳ πολέμου ⟨τοῖς Ἕλλησιν,⟩ προαγορεῦσαι [δὲ] αὐτοῖς τοὺς μάντεις ὡς αἱρήσουσιν οὐ πρότερον τὴν πόλιν, πρὶν ἂν τὰ Ἡρακλέους τόξα καὶ ὀστοῦν ἐπαγάγωνται Πέλοπος. οὕτω δὴ μεταπέμψασθαι μὲν Φιλοκτήτην φασὶν αὐτοὺς ἐς τὸ στρατόπεδον, ἀχθῆναι δὲ καὶ τῶν ὀστῶν ὠμοπλάτην σφίσιν ἐκ Πίσης τῶν Πέλοπος· ὡς δὲ οἴκαδε ἐκομίζοντο, ἀπόλλυται περὶ Εὔβοιαν καὶ ἡ ναῦς ὑπὸ τοῦ χειμῶνος ἡ τὸ ὀστοῦν φέρουσα τὸ Πέλοπος.
13.5. Many years later than the capture of Troy, Damarmenus, a fisherman from Eretria, cast a net into the sea and drew up the bone. Marvelling at its size he kept it hidden in the sand. At last he went to Delphi, to inquire whose the bone was, and what he ought to do with it.
13.5. ἔτεσι δὲ ὕστερον πολλοῖς μετὰ ἅλωσιν Ἰλίου Δαμάρμενον ἁλιέα ἐξ Ἐρετρίας ἀφέντα δίκτυον ἐς θάλασσαν τὸ ὀστοῦν ἑλκύσαι, θαυμάσαντα δὲ αὐτοῦ τὸ μέγεθος ἔχειν ἀποκρύψαντα ὑπὸ τὴν ψάμμον. τέλος δὲ αὐτὸν ἀφικέσθαι καὶ ἐς Δελφούς, ὅτου τε ἀνδρὸς τὸ ὀστοῦν εἴη καὶ ὅ τι χρηστέον αὐτῷ διδαχθῆναι δεησόμενον.
13.6. It happened that by the providence of Heaven there was then at Delphi an Elean embassy praying for deliverance from a pestilence. So the Pythian priestess ordered the Eleans to recover the bones of Pelops, and Damarmenus to give back to the Eleans what he had found. He did so, and the Eleans repaid him by appointing him and his descendants to be guardians of the bone. The shoulder-blade of Pelops had disappeared by my time, because, I suppose, it had been hidden in the depths so long, and besides its age it was greatly decayed through the salt water.
13.6. καί πως κατὰ πρόνοιαν τοῦ θεοῦ τηνικαῦτα ⟨πρεσβεία⟩ παρῆν Ἠλείων ἐπανόρθωμα αἰτούντων νόσου λοιμώδους· ἀνεῖπεν οὖν σφισιν ἡ Πυθία, τοῖς μὲν ἀνασώσασθαι Πέλοπος τὰ ὀστᾶ, Δαμαρμένῳ δὲ ἀποδοῦναι τὰ εὑρημένα αὐτῷ Ἠλείοις. καί οἱ ταῦτα ποιήσαντι ἄλλα τε ἀντέδοσαν Ἠλεῖοι καὶ Δαμάρμενόν τε αὐτὸν καὶ ἀπογόνους τοὺς ἐκείνου φύλακας σφᾶς εἶναι τοῦ ὀστοῦ. ἡ δὲ ὠμοπλάτη τοῦ Πέλοπος ἠφάνιστο ἤδη κατʼ ἐμέ, ὅτι ἐμοὶ δοκεῖν ἐκέκρυπτο ἐπὶ πολὺ κατὰ τοῦ βυθοῦ καὶ ὁμοῦ τῷ χρόνῳ προσέκαμνεν οὐχ ἥκιστα ὑπὸ τῆς θαλάσσης.
13.7. That Pelops and Tantalus once dwelt in my country there have remained signs right down to the present day. There is a lake called after Tantalus and a famous grave, and on a peak of Mount Sipylus there is a throne of Pelops beyond the sanctuary of Plastene the Mother. If you cross the river Hermus you see an image of Aphrodite in Temnus made of a living myrtle-tree. It is a tradition among us that it was dedicated by Pelops when he was propitiating the goddess and asking for Hippodameia to be his bride.
13.7. Πέλοπος δὲ καὶ Ταντάλου τῆς παρʼ ἡμῖν ἐνοικήσεως σημεῖα ἔτι καὶ ἐς τόδε λείπεται, Ταντάλου μὲν λίμνη τε ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ καλουμένη καὶ οὐκ ἀφανὴς τάφος, Πέλοπος δὲ ἐν Σιπύλῳ μὲν θρόνος ἐν κορυφῇ τοῦ ὄρους ἐστὶν ὑπὲρ τῆς Πλαστήνης μητρὸς τὸ ἱερόν, διαβάντι δὲ Ἕρμον ποταμὸν Ἀφροδίτης ἄγαλμα ἐν Τήμνῳ πεποιημένον ἐκ μυρσίνης τεθηλυίας· ἀναθεῖναι δὲ Πέλοπα αὐτὸ παρειλήφαμεν μνήμῃ, προϊλασκόμενόν τε τὴν θεὸν καὶ γενέσθαι οἱ τὸν γάμον τῆς Ἱπποδαμείας αἰτούμενον.
13.8. The altar of Olympic Zeus is about equally distant from the Pelopium and the sanctuary of Hera, but it is in front of both. Some say that it was built by Idaean Heracles, others by the local heroes two generations later than Heracles. It has been made from the ash of the thighs of the victims sacrificed to Zeus, as is also the altar at Pergamus. There is an ashen altar of Samian Hera not a bit grander than what in Attica the Athenians call “improvised hearths.”
13.8. ἔστι δὲ ὁ τοῦ Διὸς τοῦ Ὀλυμπίου βωμὸς ἴσον μὲν μάλιστα τοῦ Πελοπίου τε καὶ τοῦ ἱεροῦ τῆς Ἥρας ἀπέχων, προκείμενος μέντοι καὶ πρὸ ἀμφοτέρων· κατασκευασθῆναι δὲ αὐτὸν οἱ μὲν ὑπὸ Ἡρακλέους τοῦ Ἰδαίου λέγουσιν, οἱ δὲ ὑπὸ ἡρώων τῶν ἐπιχωρίων γενεαῖς δύο ὕστερον τοῦ Ἡρακλέους. πεποίηται δὲ ἱερείων τῶν θυομένων τῷ Διὶ ἀπὸ τῆς τέφρας τῶν μηρῶν, καθάπερ γε καὶ ἐν Περγάμῳ· τέφρας γὰρ δή ἐστι καὶ τῇ Ἥρᾳ τῇ Σαμίᾳ βωμὸς οὐδέν τι ἐπιφανέστερος ἢ ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ τῇ Ἀττικῇ ἃς αὐτοσχεδίας Ἀθηναῖοι καλοῦσιν ἐσχάρας.
13.9. The first stage of the altar at Olympia, called prothysis, has a circumference of one hundred and twenty-five feet; the circumference of the stage on the prothysis is thirty-two feet; the total height of the altar reaches to twenty-two feet. The victims themselves it is the custom to sacrifice on the lower stage, the prothysis. But the thighs they carry up to the highest part of the altar and burn them there.
13.9. τοῦ βωμοῦ δὲ τοῦ ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ κρηπῖδος μὲν τῆς πρώτης, προθύσεως καλουμένης, πόδες πέντε καὶ εἴκοσι καὶ ἑκατόν ἐστι περίοδος, τοῦ δὲ ἐπὶ τῇ προθύσει περίμετρος ἐπακτοῦ πόδες δύο καὶ τριάκοντα· τὸ δὲ ὕψος τοῦ βωμοῦ τὸ σύμπαν ἐς δύο καὶ εἴκοσιν ἀνήκει πόδας. αὐτὰ μὲν δὴ τὰ ἱερεῖα ἐν μέρει τῷ κάτω, τῇ προθύσει, καθέστηκεν αὐτοῖς θύειν· τοὺς μηροὺς δὲ ἀναφέροντες ⟨ἐς⟩ τοῦ βωμοῦ τὸ ὑψηλέστατον καθαγίζουσιν ἐνταῦθα.
13.10. The steps that lead up to the prothysis from either side are made of stone, but those leading from the prothysis to the upper part of the altar are, like the altar itself, composed of ashes. The ascent to the prothysis may be made by maidens, and likewise by women, when they are not shut out from Olympia, but men only can ascend from the prothysis to the highest part of the altar. Even when the festival is not being held, sacrifice is offered to Zeus by private individuals and daily by the Eleans.
13.10. ἀναβασμοὶ δὲ ἐς μὲν τὴν πρόθυσιν ἀνάγουσιν ἐξ ἑκατέρας τῆς πλευρᾶς λίθου πεποιημένοι· τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς προθύσεως ἐς τὸ ἄνω τοῦ βωμοῦ τέφρας παρέχεται ⟨καὶ⟩ ἀναβασμούς. ἄχρι μὲν δὴ τῆς προθύσεως ἔστιν ἀναβῆναι καὶ παρθένοις καὶ ὡσαύτως γυναιξίν, ἐπειδὰν τῆς Ὀλυμπίας μὴ ἐξείργωνται· ἀπὸ τούτου δὲ ἐς τὸ ἀνωτάτω τοῦ βωμοῦ μόνοις ἔστιν ἀνδράσιν ἀνελθεῖν. θύεται δὲ τῷ Διὶ καὶ ἄνευ τῆς πανηγύρεως ὑπό τε ἰδιωτῶν καὶ ἀνὰ πᾶσαν ἡμέραν ὑπὸ Ἠλείων.
13.11. Every year the soothsayers, keeping carefully to the nineteenth day of the month Elaphius, bring the ash from the town-hall, and making it into a paste with the water of the Alpheius they daub the altar therewith. But never may the ash be made into paste with other water, and for this reason the Alpheius is thought to be of all rivers the dearest to Olympic Zeus. There is also an altar at Didyma of the Milesians, which Heracles the Theban is said by the Milesians to have made from the blood of the victims. But in later times the blood of the sacrifices has not made the altar excessively large.
13.11. κατʼ ἔτος δὲ ἕκαστον φυλάξαντες οἱ μάντεις τὴν ἐνάτην ἐπὶ δέκα τοῦ Ἐλαφίου μηνὸς κομίζουσιν ἐκ τοῦ πρυτανείου τὴν τέφραν, φυράσαντες δὲ τῷ ὕδατι τοῦ Ἀλφειοῦ κονιῶσιν οὕτω τὸν βωμόν. ὑπὸ δὲ ἄλλου τὴν τέφραν ὕδατος ποιηθῆναι πηλὸν οὐ μή ποτε ἐγγένηται· καὶ τοῦδε ἕνεκα ὁ Ἀλφειὸς νενόμισται τῷ Ὀλυμπίῳ Διὶ ποταμῶν ⟨δὴ⟩ μάλιστα εἶναι φίλος. ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἐν Διδύμοις τῶν Μιλησίων βωμός, ἐποιήθη δὲ ὑπὸ Ἡρακλέους τοῦ Θηβαίου, καθὰ οἱ Μιλήσιοι λέγουσιν, ἀπὸ τῶν ἱερείων τοῦ αἵματος· ἐς δὲ τὰ ὕστερα τὸ αἷμα τῶν θυμάτων οὐκ ἐς ὑπέρογκον ηὔξηκεν αὐτὸν μέγεθος.
14.1. The altar at Olympia shows another strange peculiarity, which is this. The kite, the bird of prey with the most rapacious nature, never harms those who are sacrificing at Olympia. Should ever a kite seize the entrails or some of the flesh, it is regarded as an unfavorable sign for the sacrificer. There is a story that when Heracles the son of Alcmena was sacrificing at Olympia he was much worried by the flies. So either on his own initiative or at somebody's suggestion he sacrificed to Zeus Averter of Flies, and thus the flies were diverted to the other side of the Alpheius. It is said that in the same way the Eleans too sacrifice to Zeus Averter of Flies, to drive the flies out of Olympia.
14.1. ὁ δὲ ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ βωμὸς παρέχεται καὶ ἄλλο τοιόνδε ἐς θαῦμα· οἱ γὰρ ἰκτῖνες πεφυκότες ἁρπάζειν μάλιστα ὀρνίθων ἀδικοῦσιν οὐδὲν ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ τοὺς θύοντας· ἢν δὲ ἁρπάσῃ ποτὲ ἰκτῖνος ἤτοι σπλάγχνα ἢ τῶν κρεῶν, νενόμισται τῷ θύοντι οὐκ αἴσιον εἶναι τὸ σημεῖον. φασὶ δὲ Ἡρακλεῖ τῷ Ἀλκμήνης θύοντι ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ διʼ ὄχλου μάλιστα γενέσθαι τὰς μυίας· ἐξευρόντα οὖν αὐτὸν ἢ καὶ ὑπʼ ἄλλου διδαχθέντα Ἀπομυίῳ θῦσαι Διί, καὶ οὕτως ἀποτραπῆναι τὰς μυίας πέραν τοῦ Ἀλφειοῦ. λέγονται δὲ κατὰ ταὐτὰ καὶ Ἠλεῖοι θύειν τῷ Ἀπομυίῳ Διί, ἐξελαύνοντες τῆς [Ἠλείας] Ὀλυμπίας τὰς μυίας.
14.2. The Eleans are wont to use for the sacrifices to Zeus the wood of the white poplar and of no other tree, preferring the white poplar, I think, simply and solely because Heracles brought it into Greece from Thesprotia. And it is my opinion that when Heracles sacrificed to Zeus at Olympia he himself burned the thigh bones of the victims upon wood of the white poplar. Heracles found the white poplar growing on the banks of the Acheron, the river in Thesprotia, and for this reason Homer calls it “Acheroid.”
14.2. τῆς δὲ λεύκης μόνης τοῖς ξύλοις ἐς τοῦ Διὸς τὰς θυσίας καὶ ἀπʼ οὐδενὸς δένδρου τῶν ἄλλων οἱ Ἠλεῖοι χρῆσθαι νομίζουσι, κατʼ ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν προτιμῶντες ἐμοὶ δοκεῖν τὴν λεύκην, ὅτι δὲ Ἡρακλῆς ἐκόμισεν αὐτὴν ἐς Ἕλληνας ἐκ τῆς Θεσπρωτίδος χώρας. καί μοι καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Ἡρακλῆς ἐφαίνετο, ἡνίκα τῷ Διὶ ἔθυεν ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ, τῶν ἱερείων τὰ μηρία ἐπὶ λεύκης καῦσαι ξύλων· τὴν δὲ λεύκην ὁ Ἡρακλῆς πεφυκυῖαν παρὰ τὸν Ἀχέροντα εὗρε τὸν ἐν Θεσπρωτίᾳ ποταμόν, καὶ τοῦδε ἕνεκά φασιν αὐτὴν Ἀχερωίδα ὑπὸ Ὁμήρου καλεῖσθαι.
14.3. So from the first down to the present all rivers have not been equally suited for the growth of plants and trees. Tamarisks grow best and in the greatest numbers by the Maeander; the Boeotian Asopus can produce the tallest reeds; the persea tree flourishes only in the water of the Nile. So it is no wonder that the white poplar grew first by the Acheron and the wild olive by the Alpheius, and that the dark poplar is a nursling of the Celtic land of the Celtic Eridanus.
14.3. εἶχον δὲ ἄρα καὶ ἐξ ἀρχῆς οἱ ποταμοὶ καὶ ἐς τόδε ἔχουσιν οὐ κατὰ τὰ αὐτὰ ἐπιτηδείως πρὸς γένεσιν πόας τε καὶ δένδρων· ἀλλὰ πλεῖσται μὲν ὑπὸ Μαιάνδρου μυρῖκαι καὶ μάλιστα αὔξονται, Ἀσωπὸς δὲ ὁ Βοιώτιος βαθυτάτας πέφυκεν ἐκτρέφειν τὰς σχοίνους, τὸ δένδρον δὲ ἡ περσεία μόνου χαίρει τοῦ Νείλου τῷ ὕδατι. οὕτω καὶ τὴν λεύκην θαῦμα οὐδὲν καὶ αἴγειρόν τε καὶ κότινον, τὴν μὲν ἐπὶ Ἀχέροντι ἀναφῦναι πρώτῳ, κότινον δὲ ἐπὶ τῷ Ἀλφειῷ, τὴν δὲ αἴγειρον γῆς τῆς τῶν Κελτῶν καὶ Ἠριδανοῦ τοῦ Κελτικοῦ θρέμμα εἶναι.
14.4. Now that I have finished my account of the greatest altar, let me proceed to describe all the altars in Olympia. My narrative will follow in dealing with them the order in which the Eleans are wont to sacrifice on the altars. They sacrifice to Hestia first, secondly to Olympic Zeus, going to the altar within the temple, thirdly to Zeus Laoetas and to Poseidon Laoetas. This sacrifice too it is usual to offer on one altar. Fourthly and fifthly they sacrifice to Artemis and to Athena, Goddess of Booty, sixthly to the Worker Goddess.
14.4. φέρε δή, ἐποιησάμεθα γὰρ βωμοῦ τοῦ μεγίστου μνήμην, ἐπέλθωμεν καὶ τὰ ἐς ἅπαντας ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ τοὺς βωμούς· ἐπακολουθήσει δὲ ὁ λόγος μοι τῇ ἐς αὐτοὺς τάξει, καθʼ ἥντινα Ἠλεῖοι θύειν ἐπὶ τῶν βωμῶν νομίζουσι. θύουσι δὲ Ἑστίᾳ μὲν πρώτῃ, δευτέρῳ δὲ τῷ Ὀλυμπίῳ Διὶ ἰόντες ἐπὶ τὸν βωμὸν τὸν ἐντὸς τοῦ ναοῦ, τρίτα δὲ ⟨Λαοίτᾳ Διὶ καὶ Ποσειδῶνι Λαοίτᾳ·⟩ ἐπὶ ἑνὸς βωμοῦ καὶ αὕτη καθέστηκεν ἡ θυσία.
14.5. The descendants of Pheidias, called Cleansers, have received from the Eleans the privilege of cleaning the image of Zeus from the dirt that settles on it, and they sacrifice to the Worker Goddess before they begin to polish the image. There is another altar of Athena near the temple, and by it a square altar of Artemis rising gently to a height.
14.5. ⟨τέταρτα καὶ⟩ πέμπτα Ἀρτέμιδι θύουσι καὶ Ληίτιδι Ἀθηνᾷ, ἕκτα Ἐργάνῃ· ταύτῃ τῇ Ἐργάνῃ καὶ οἱ ἀπόγονοι Φειδίου, καλούμενοι δὲ φαιδρυνταί, γέρας παρὰ Ἠλείων εἰληφότες τοῦ Διὸς τὸ ἄγαλμα ἀπὸ τῶν προσιζανόντων καθαίρειν, οὗτοι θύουσιν ἐνταῦθα πρὶν ἢ λαμπρύνειν τὸ ἄγαλμα ἄρχονται. ἔστι δὲ Ἀθηνᾶς καὶ ἄλλος βωμὸς πλησίον τοῦ ναοῦ, καὶ Ἀρτέμιδος παρʼ αὐτὸν τετράγωνος ἀνήκων ἠρέμα ἐς ὕψος.
14.6. After the altars I have enumerated there is one on which they sacrifice to Alpheius and Artemis together. The cause of this Pindar, I think, intimates in an ode, and I give it in my account of Letrini. Not far from it stands another altar of Alpheius, and by it one of Hephaestus. This altar of Hephaestus some Eleans call the altar of Warlike Zeus. These same Eleans also say that Oenomaus used to sacrifice to Warlike Zeus on this altar whenever he was about to begin a chariot-race with one of the suitors of Hippodameia.
14.6. μετὰ δὲ τοὺς κατειλεγμένους Ἀλφειῷ καὶ Ἀρτέμιδι θύουσιν ἐπὶ ἑνὸς βωμοῦ· τὸ δὲ αἴτιον τούτου παρεδήλωσε μέν που καὶ Πίνδαρος ἐν ᾠδῇ, γράφομεν δὲ καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐν τοῖς λόγοις τοῖς Λετριναίοις. τούτου δὲ οὐ πόρρω καὶ ἄλλος τῷ Ἀλφειῷ βωμὸς πεποίηται, παρὰ δὲ αὐτόν ἐστιν Ἡφαίστου· τοῦ δὲ Ἡφαίστου τὸν βωμόν εἰσιν Ἠλείων οἳ ὀνομάζουσιν Ἀρείου Διός· λέγουσι δὲ οἱ αὐτοὶ οὗτοι καὶ ὡς Οἰνόμαος ἐπὶ τοῦ βωμοῦ τούτου θύοι τῷ Ἀρείῳ Διί, ὁπότε τῶν Ἱπποδαμείας μνηστήρων καθίστασθαι μέλλοι τινὶ ἐς ἵππων ἅμιλλαν.
14.7. After this stands an altar of Heracles surnamed Parastates (Assistant); there are also altars of the brothers of Heracles—Epimedes, Idas, Paeonaeus, and Iasus; I am aware, however, that the altar of Idas is called by others the altar of Acesidas. At the place where are the foundations of the house of Oenomaus stand two altars: one is of Zeus of the Courtyard, which Oenomaus appears to have had built himself, and the other of Zeus of the Thunderbolt, which I believe they built later, when the thunderbolt had struck the house of Oenomaus.
14.7. μετὰ τοῦτον πεποίηται μὲν Ἡρακλεῖ βωμὸς ἐπίκλησιν Παραστάτῃ, πεποίηται δὲ καὶ τοῦ Ἡρακλέους τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς Ἐπιμήδει καὶ Ἴδᾳ καὶ Παιωναίῳ τε καὶ Ἰάσῳ· τὸν δὲ τοῦ Ἴδα βωμὸν Ἀκεσίδα ὑπὸ ἑτέρων οἶδα καλούμενον. ἔνθα δὲ τῆς οἰκίας τὰ θεμέλιά ἐστι τῆς Οἰνομάου, δύο ἐνταῦθά εἰσι βωμοί, Διός τε Ἑρκείου —τοῦτον ὁ Οἰνόμαος ἐφαίνετο αὐτὸς οἰκοδομήσασθαι —, τῷ δὲ Κεραυνίῳ Διὶ ὕστερον ἐποιήσαντο ἐμοὶ δοκεῖν βωμόν, ὅτʼ ἐς τοῦ Οἰνομάου τὴν οἰκίαν κατέσκηψεν ὁ κεραυνός.
14.8. An account of the great altar I gave a little way back; it is called the altar of Olympian Zeus. By it is an altar of Unknown Gods, and after this an altar of Zeus Purifier, one of Victory, and another of Zeus—this time surnamed Underground. There are also altars of all gods, and of Hera surnamed Olympian, this too being made of ashes. They say that it was dedicated by Clymenus. After this comes an altar of Apollo and Hermes in common, because the Greeks have a story about them that Hermes invented the lyre and Apollo the lute.
14.8. τὰ δὲ ἐς τὸν μέγαν βωμὸν ὀλίγῳ μέν τι ἡμῖν πρότερόν ἐστιν εἰρημένα, καλεῖται δὲ Ὀλυμπίου Διός· πρὸς αὐτῷ δέ ἐστιν Ἀγνώστων θεῶν βωμὸς καὶ μετὰ τοῦτον Καθαρσίου Διὸς καὶ Νίκης καὶ αὖθις Διὸς ἐπωνυμίαν Χθονίου. εἰσὶ δὲ καὶ θεῶν πάντων βωμοὶ καὶ Ἥρας ἐπίκλησιν Ὀλυμπίας, πεποιημένος τέφρας καὶ οὗτος· Κλυμένου δέ φασιν αὐτὸν ἀνάθημα εἶναι. μετὰ δὲ τοῦτον Ἀπόλλωνος καὶ Ἑρμοῦ βωμός ἐστιν ἐν κοινῷ, διότι Ἑρμῆν λύρας, Ἀπόλλωνα δὲ εὑρέτην εἶναι κιθάρας Ἑλλήνων ἐστὶν ἐς αὐτοὺς λόγος.
14.9. Next come an altar of Concord, another of Athena, and the altar of the Mother of the gods. Quite close to the entrance to the stadium are two altars; one they call the altar of Hermes of the Games, the other the altar of Opportunity. I know that a hymn to Opportunity is one of the poems of Ion of Chios; in the hymn Opportunity is made out to be the youngest child of Zeus. Near the treasury of the Sicyonians is an altar of Heracles, either one of the Curetes or the son of Alcmena, for both accounts are given.
14.9. ἐφεξῆς δὲ Ὁμονοίας βωμὸς καὶ αὖθις Ἀθηνᾶς, ὁ δὲ Μητρὸς θεῶν. τῆς ἐσόδου δὲ τῆς ἐς τὸ στάδιόν εἰσιν ἐγγύτατα βωμοὶ δύο· τὸν μὲν αὐτῶν Ἑρμοῦ καλοῦσιν Ἐναγωνίου, τὸν δὲ ἕτερον Καιροῦ. Ἴωνι δὲ οἶδα τῷ Χίῳ καὶ ὕμνον πεποιημένον Καιροῦ· γενεαλογεῖ δὲ ἐν τῷ ὕμνῳ νεώτατον παίδων Διὸς Καιρὸν εἶναι. πλησίον δὲ τοῦ Σικυωνίων θησαυροῦ ἤτοι Κουρήτων ἢ τοῦ Ἀλκμήνης ἐστὶν Ἡρακλέους· λέγεται γὰρ καὶ ἀμφότερα.
14.10. On what is called the Gaeum (sanctuary of Earth) is an altar of Earth; it too is of ashes. In more ancient days they say that there was an oracle also of Earth in this place. On what is called the Stomium (Mouth) the altar to Themis has been built. All round the altar of Zeus Descender runs a fence; this altar is near the great altar made of the ashes. The reader must remember that the altars have not been enumerated in the order in which they stand, but the order followed by my narrative is that followed by the Eleans in their sacrifices. By the sacred enclosure of Pelops is an altar of Dionysus and the Graces in common; between them is an altar of the Muses, and next to these an altar of the Nymphs.
14.10. ἐπὶ δὲ τῷ Γαίῳ καλουμένῳ, βωμός ἐστιν ἐπʼ αὐτῷ Γῆς, τέφρας καὶ οὗτος· τὰ δὲ ἔτι ἀρχαιότερα καὶ μαντεῖον τῆς Γῆς αὐτόθι εἶναι λέγουσιν. ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ ὀνομαζομένου Στομίου Θέμιδι ὁ βωμὸς πεποίηται. τοῦ δὲ Καταιβάτου Διὸς προβέβληται μὲν πανταχόθεν πρὸ τοῦ βωμοῦ φράγμα, ἔστι δὲ πρὸς τῷ βωμῷ τῷ ἀπὸ τῆς τέφρας τῷ μεγάλῳ. μεμνήσθω δέ τις οὐ κατὰ στοῖχον τῆς ἱδρύσεως ἀριθμουμένους τοὺς βωμούς, τῇ δὲ τάξει τῇ Ἠλείων ἐς τὰς θυσίας συμπερινοστοῦντα ἡμῖν τὸν λόγον. πρὸς δὲ τῷ τεμένει τοῦ Πέλοπος Διονύσου μὲν καὶ Χαρίτων ἐν κοινῷ, μεταξὺ δὲ αὐτῶν Μουσῶν καὶ ἐφεξῆς τούτων Νυμφῶν ἐστι βωμός.
15.1. Outside the Altis there is a building called the workshop of Pheidias, where he wrought the image of Zeus piece by piece. In the building is an altar to all the gods in common. Now return back again to the Altis opposite the Leonidaeum.
15.1. ἔστι δὲ οἴκημα ἐκτὸς τῆς Ἄλτεως, καλεῖται δὲ ἐργαστήριον Φειδίου, καὶ ὁ Φειδίας καθʼ ἕκαστον τοῦ ἀγάλματος ἐνταῦθα εἰργάζετο· ἔστιν οὖν βωμὸς ἐν τῷ οἰκήματι θεοῖς πᾶσιν ἐν κοινῷ. ὀπίσω δὲ ἀναστρέψαντι αὖθις ἐς τὴν Ἄλτιν ἐστὶν ἀπαντικρὺ τοῦ Λεωνιδαίου— τὸ δὲ ἐκτὸς μὲν τοῦ περιβόλου τοῦ ἱεροῦ τὸ Λεωνίδαιον, τῶν δὲ ἐσόδων πεποίηται τῶν ἐς τὴν Ἄλτιν κατὰ τὴν πομπικήν, ἣ μόνη τοῖς πομπεύουσίν ἐστιν ὁδός·
15.2. The Leonidaeum is outside the sacred enclosure, but at the processional entrance to the Altis, which is the only way open to those who take part in the processions. It was dedicated by Leonidas, a native, but in my time the Roman governors of Greece used it as their lodging. Between the processional entrance and the Leonidaeum is a street, for the Eleans call streets what the Athenians call lanes.
15.2. τοῦτο δὲ ἀνδρὸς μὲν τῶν ἐπιχωρίων ἐστὶν ἀνάθημα Λεωνίδου, κατʼ ἐμὲ δὲ ἐς αὐτὸ Ῥωμαίων ἐσῳκίζοντο οἱ τὴν Ἑλλάδα ἐπιτροπεύοντες· διέστηκε δὲ ἀγυιὰν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐσόδου τῆς πομπικῆς, τοὺς γὰρ δὴ ὑπὸ Ἀθηναίων καλουμένους στενωποὺς ἀγυιὰς ὀνομάζουσιν οἱ Ἠλεῖοι— ἔστι δὲ ἐν τῇ Ἄλτει τοῦ Λεωνιδαίου περᾶν μέλλοντι ἐς ἀριστερὰν Ἀφροδίτης βωμὸς καὶ Ὡρῶν μετʼ αὐτόν.
15.3. Well, there is in the Altis, when you are about to pass to the left of the Leonidaeum, an altar of Aphrodite, and after it one of the Seasons. About opposite the rear chamber a wild olive is growing on the right. It is called the olive of the Beautiful Crown, and from its leaves are made the crowns which it is customary to give to winners of Olympic contests. Near this wild olive stands an altar of Nymphs; these too are styled Nymphs of the Beautiful Crowns.
15.3. κατὰ δὲ τὸν ὀπισθόδομον μάλιστά ἐστιν ἐν δεξιᾷ πεφυκὼς κότινος· καλεῖται δὲ ἐλαία Καλλιστέφανος, καὶ τοῖς νικῶσι τὰ Ὀλύμπια καθέστηκεν ἀπʼ αὐτῆς δίδοσθαι τοὺς στεφάνους. τούτου πλησίον τοῦ κοτίνου πεποίηται Νύμφαις βωμός·
15.4. Outside the Altis, but on the right of the Leonidaeum, is an altar of Artemis of the Market, and one has also been built for Mistresses, and in my account of Arcadia I will tell you about the goddess they call Mistress. After this is an altar of Zeus of the Market, and before what is called the Front Seats stands an altar of Apollo surnamed Pythian, and after it one of Dionysus. The last altar is said to be not old, and to have been dedicated by private individuals.
15.4. Καλλιστεφάνους ὀνομάζουσι καὶ ταύτας. ἔστι δὲ [τοῖς] ἐκτὸς τῆς Ἄλτεως μὲν Ἀρτέμιδος Ἀγοραίας βωμός, ἐν δεξιᾷ δὲ τοῦ Λεωνιδαίου, πεποίηται δὲ καὶ Δεσποίναις —τὰ δὲ ἐς τὴν θεὸν ἥντινα ὀνομάζουσι Δέσποιναν διδάξει μοι τοῦ λόγου τὰ ἐς Ἀρκάδας—, μετὰ δὲ τοῦτον ἔστιν Ἀγοραίου Διὸς βωμός, πρὸ δὲ τῆς καλουμένης Προεδρίας Ἀπόλλωνος ἐπωνυμίαν Πυθίου καὶ μετʼ αὐτὸν Διονύσου· τοῦτον οὔτε πάλαι τὸν βωμὸν καὶ ὑπὸ ἀνδρῶν ἰδιωτῶν ἀνατεθῆναι λέγουσιν.
15.5. As you go to the starting-point for the chariot-race there is an altar with an inscription “to the Bringer of Fate.” This is plainly a surname of Zeus, who knows the affairs of men, all that the Fates give them, and all that is not destined for them. Near there is also an oblong altar of Fates, after it one of Hermes, and the next two are of Zeus Most High. At the starting-point for the chariot-race, just about opposite the middle of it, there are in the open altars of Poseidon Horse-god and Hera Horse-goddess, and near the pillar an altar of the Dioscuri.
15.5. ἰόντι δὲ ἐπὶ τὴν ἄφεσιν τῶν ἵππων ἔστι βωμός, ἐπίγραμμα δὲ ἐπʼ αὐτῷ Μοιραγέτα· δῆλα οὖν ἐστιν ἐπίκλησιν εἶναι Διὸς ὃς τὰ ἀνθρώπων οἶδεν, ὅσα διδόασιν αἱ Μοῖραι καὶ ὅσα μὴ πέπρωταί σφισι. πλησίον δὲ καὶ Μοιρῶν βωμός ἐστιν ἐπιμήκης, μετὰ δὲ αὐτὸν Ἑρμοῦ καὶ δύο ἐφεξῆς Διὸς Ὑψίστου· ἐν δὲ τῶν ἵππων τῇ ἀφέσει ἐν μὲν τῷ ὑπαίθρῳ, τῆς ἀφέσεως κατὰ μέσον που μάλιστα, Ποσειδῶνος Ἱππίου καὶ Ἥρας εἰσὶν Ἱππίας βωμοί, πρὸς δὲ τῷ κίονι Διοσκούρων.
15.6. At the entrance to what is called the Wedge there is on one side an altar of Ares Horse-god, on the other one of Athena Horse-goddess. On entering the Wedge itself you see altars of Good Luck, Pan and Aphrodite; at the innermost part of the Wedge an altar of the Nymphs called Blooming. An altar of Artemis stands on the right as you return from the Portico that the Eleans call the Portico of Agnaptus, giving to the building the name of its architect.
15.6. τῆς δὲ πρὸς τὸν Ἔμβολον καλούμενον ἐσόδου τῇ μὲν Ἄρεως Ἱππίου, τῇ δὲ Ἀθηνᾶς Ἱππίας βωμός, ἐς δὲ αὐτὸν τὸν Ἔμβολον ἐσελθόντων Τύχης ἐστὶν ἀγαθῆς βωμὸς καὶ Πανός τε καὶ Ἀφροδίτης, ἐνδοτάτω δὲ τοῦ Ἐμβόλου Νυμφῶν ἃς Ἀκμηνὰς καλοῦσιν. ἀπὸ δὲ τῆς στοᾶς ἣν οἱ Ἠλεῖοι καλοῦσιν Ἀγνάπτου, τὸν ἀρχιτέκτονα ἐπονομάζοντες τῷ οἰκοδομήματι, ἀπὸ ταύτης ἐπανιόντι ἐστὶν ἐν δεξιᾷ βωμὸς Ἀρτέμιδος.
15.7. After re-entering the Altis by the processional gate there are behind the Heraeum altars of the river Cladeus and of Artemis; the one after them is Apollo's, the fourth is of Artemis surnamed Coccoca, and the fifth is of Apollo Thermius. As to the Elean surname Thermius, the conjecture occurred to me that in the Attic dialect it would be thesmios (god of laws), but why Artemis is surnamed Coccoca I could not discover.
15.7. ἐσελθόντων δὲ αὖθις διὰ τῆς πομπικῆς ἐς τὴν Ἄλτιν, εἰσὶν ὄπισθεν τοῦ Ἡραίου Κλαδέου τε τοῦ ποταμοῦ καὶ Ἀρτέμιδος βωμοί, ὁ δὲ μετʼ αὐτοὺς Ἀπόλλωνος, τέταρτος δὲ Ἀρτέμιδος ἐπίκλησιν Κοκκώκας, καὶ Ἀπόλλωνος πέμπτος Θερμίου. τὸν μὲν δὴ παρὰ Ἠλείοις Θέρμιον καὶ αὐτῷ μοι παρίστατο εἰκάζειν ὡς κατὰ Ἀτθίδα γλῶσσαν εἴη θέσμιος· ἀνθʼ ὅτου δὲ Ἄρτεμιν ἐπονομάζουσι Κοκκώκαν, οὐχ οἷά τε ἦν μοι διδαχθῆναι.
15.8. Before what is called Theëcoleon is a building, in a corner of which has been set up an altar of Pan. The Town Hall of the Eleans is within the Altis, and it has been built beside the exit beyond the gymnasium. In this gymnasium are the running-tracks and the wrestling-grounds for the athletes. In front of the door of the Town Hall is an altar of Artemis Huntress.
15.8. ἔστι δὲ πρὸ τοῦ καλουμένου Θεηκολεῶνος οἴκημα· τούτου δὲ ἐν γωνίᾳ τοῦ οἰκήματος Πανὸς ἵδρυται βωμός. τὸ πρυτανεῖον δὲ Ἠλείοις ἔστι μὲν τῆς Ἄλτεως ἐντός, πεποίηται δὲ παρὰ τὴν ἔξοδον ἥ ἐστι τοῦ γυμνασίου πέραν· ἐν τούτῳ δὲ οἵ τε δρόμοι τῷ γυμνασίῳ καὶ τοῖς ἀθληταῖς εἰσιν αἱ παλαῖστραι. ⟨τοῦ⟩ πρυτανείου δὲ πρὸ μὲν τῶν θυρῶν βωμός ἐστιν Ἀρτέμιδος Ἀγροτέρας·
15.9. In the Town Hall itself, on the right as you enter the room where they have the hearth, is an altar of Pan. This hearth too is made of ashes, and on it fire burns every day and likewise every night. The ashes from this hearth, according to the account I have already given, they bring to the altar of Olympian Zeus, and what is brought from the hearth contributes a great deal to the size of the altar.
15.9. ἐν δὲ αὐτῷ τῷ πρυτανείῳ παριόντων ἐς τὸ οἴκημα, ἔνθα σφίσιν ἡ ἑστία, Πανός ἐστιν ἐν δεξιᾷ τῆς ἐσόδου βωμός. ἔστι δὲ ἡ ἑστία τέφρας καὶ αὕτη πεποιημένη, καὶ ἐπʼ αὐτῆς πῦρ ἀνὰ πᾶσάν τε ἡμέραν καὶ ἐν πάσῃ νυκτὶ ὡσαύτως καίεται· ἀπὸ ταύτης τῆς ἑστίας τὴν τέφραν κατὰ τὰ εἰρημένα ἤδη μοι κομίζουσιν ἐπὶ τὸν τοῦ Ὀλυμπίου βωμόν, καὶ οὐχ ἥκιστα ἐς μέγεθος συντελεῖ τῷ βωμῷ τὸ ἀπὸ τῆς ἑστίας ἐπιφορούμενον.
15.10. Each month the Eleans sacrifice once on all the altars I have enumerated. They sacrifice in an ancient manner; for they burn on the altars incense with wheat which has been kneaded with honey, placing also on the altars twigs of olive, and using wine for a libation. Only to the Nymphs and the Mistresses are they not wont to pour wine in libation, nor do they pour it on the altar common to all the gods. The care of the sacrifices is given to a priest, holding office for one month, to soothsayers and libation-bearers, and also to a guide, a flute-player and the woodman.
15.10. ἑκάστου δὲ ἅπαξ τοῦ μηνὸς θύουσιν ἐπὶ πάντων Ἠλεῖοι τῶν κατειλεγμένων βωμῶν. θύουσι δὲ ἀρχαῖόν τινα τρόπον· λιβανωτὸν γὰρ ὁμοῦ πυροῖς μεμαγμένοις μέλιτι θυμιῶσιν ἐπὶ τῶν βωμῶν, τιθέασι δὲ καὶ κλῶνας ἐλαίας ἐπʼ αὐτῶν καὶ οἴνῳ χρῶνται σπονδῇ. μόναις δὲ ταῖς Νύμφαις οὐ νομίζουσιν οἶνον οὐδὲ ταῖς Δεσποίναις σπένδειν οὐδὲ ἐπὶ τῷ βωμῷ τῷ κοινῷ πάντων θεῶν. μέλει δὲ τὰ ἐς θυσίας θεηκόλῳ τε, ὃς ἐπὶ μηνὶ ἑκάστῳ τὴν τιμὴν ἔχει, καὶ μάντεσι καὶ σπονδοφόροις, ἔτι δὲ ἐξηγητῇ τε καὶ αὐλητῇ καὶ τῷ ξυλεῖ·
15.11. The traditional words spoken by them in the Town Hall at the libations, and the hymns which they sing, it were not right for me to introduce into my narrative. They pour libations, not only to the Greek gods, but also to the god in Libya, to Hera Ammonia and to Parammon, which is a surname of Hermes. From very early times it is plain that they used the oracle in Libya, and in the temple of Ammon are altars which the Eleans dedicated. On them are engraved the questions of the Eleans, the replies of the god, and the names of the men who came to Ammon from Elis. These are in the temple of Ammon.
15.11. ὁπόσα δὲ ἐπὶ ταῖς σπονδαῖς λέγειν σφίσιν ἐν τῷ πρυτανείῳ καθέστηκεν, ἢ καὶ ὕμνους ὁποίους ᾄδουσιν, οὔ με ἦν εἰκὸς ἐπεισαγαγέσθαι καὶ ταῦτα ἐς τὸν λόγον. θεοῖς δὲ οὐ τοῖς Ἑλληνικοῖς μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ ἐν Λιβύῃ σπένδουσι καὶ Ἥρᾳ τε Ἀμμωνίᾳ καὶ Παράμμωνι· Ἑρμοῦ δὲ ἐπίκλησίς ἐστιν ὁ Παράμμων. φαίνονται δὲ χρώμενοι ἐκ παλαιοτάτου τῷ ἐν Λιβύῃ μαντείῳ, καὶ ἀναθήματα Ἠλείων ἐν Ἄμμωνός εἰσι βωμοί· γέγραπται δὲ ἐπʼ αὐτῶν ὅσα τε ἐπυνθάνοντο οἱ Ἠλεῖοι καὶ τὰ χρησθέντα ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὰ ὀνόματα τῶν ἀνδρῶν οἳ παρὰ τὸν Ἄμμωνα ἦλθον ἐξ Ἤλιδος. ταῦτα μὲν δή ἐστιν ἐν Ἄμμωνος·
15.12. The Eleans also pour libations to all heroes and wives of heroes who are honored either in Elis or among the Aetolians. The songs sung in the Town Hall are in the Doric dialect, but they do not say who it was that composed them. The Eleans also have a banqueting room. This too is in the Town Hall, opposite the chamber where stands the hearth. In this room they entertain the winners in the Olympic games.
15.12. Ἠλεῖοι δὲ καὶ ἥρωσι καὶ γυναιξὶ σπένδουσιν ἡρώων, ὅσοι τε ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ τῇ Ἠλείᾳ καὶ ὅσοι παρὰ Αἰτωλοῖς τιμὰς ἔχουσιν. ὁπόσα δὲ ᾄδουσιν ἐν τῷ πρυτανείῳ, φωνὴ μέν ἐστιν αὐτῶν ἡ Δώριος, ὅστις δὲ ὁ ποιήσας ἦν τὰ ᾄσματα, οὐ λέγουσιν. ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἑστιατόριον Ἠλείοις· καὶ τοῦτο ἔστι μὲν ἐντὸς τοῦ πρυτανείου, τοῦ οἰκήματος τοῦ τῆς ἑστίας ἀπαντικρύ, τοὺς δὲ τὰ Ὀλύμπια νικῶντας ἑστιῶσιν ἐν τούτῳ τῷ οἰκήματι.
16.1. It remains after this for me to describe the temple of Hera and the noteworthy objects contained in it. The Elean account says that it was the people of Scillus, one of the cities in Triphylia, who built the temple about eight years after Oxylus came to the throne of Elis. The style of the temple is Doric, and pillars stand all round it. In the rear chamber one of the two pillars is of oak. The length of the temple is one hundred and sixty-nine feet, the breadth sixty-three feet, the height not short of fifty feet. Who the architect was they do not relate.
16.1. λείπεται δὲ τὸ μετὰ τοῦτο ἡμῖν τῆς τε Ἥρας ὁ ναὸς καὶ ὁπόσα ἐστὶν ἐν τῷ ναῷ πρέποντα ἐς συγγραφήν. λέγεται δὲ ὑπὸ Ἠλείων ὡς Σκιλλούντιοι τῶν ἐν τῇ Τριφυλίᾳ πόλεών εἰσιν οἱ κατασκευασάμενοι τὸν ναὸν ὀκτὼ μάλιστα ἔτεσιν ὕστερον ἢ τὴν βασιλείαν τὴν ἐν Ἤλιδι ἐκτήσατο Ὄξυλος. ἐργασία μὲν δή ἐστι τοῦ ναοῦ Δώριος, κίονες δὲ περὶ πάντα ἑστήκασιν αὐτόν· ἐν δὲ τῷ ὀπισθοδόμῳ δρυὸς ὁ ἕτερος τῶν κιόνων ἐστί. μῆκος δέ εἰσι τοῦ ναοῦ πόδες ⟨ἐννέα καὶ ἑξήκοντα καὶ ἑκατόν, εὖρος δὲ⟩ τρεῖς καὶ ἑξήκοντα⟨, τὸ δὲ ὕψος τῶν πεντήκοντα⟩ οὐκ ἀποδεῖ· τὸν δὲ ἀρχιτέκτονα ὅστις ἐγένετο οὐ μνημονεύουσι.
16.2. Every fourth year there is woven for Hera a robe by the Sixteen women, and the same also hold games called Heraea. The games consist of foot-races for maidens. These are not all of the same age. The first to run are the youngest; after them come the next in age, and the last to run are the oldest of the maidens. They run in the following way:
16.2. διὰ πέμπτου δὲ ὑφαίνουσιν ἔτους τῇ Ἥρᾳ πέπλον αἱ ἓξ καὶ δέκα γυναῖκες· αἱ δὲ αὐταὶ τιθέασι καὶ ἀγῶνα Ἡραῖα. ὁ δὲ ἀγών ἐστιν ἅμιλλα δρόμου παρθένοις· οὔτι που πᾶσαι ἡλικίας τῆς αὐτῆς, ἀλλὰ πρῶται μὲν αἱ νεώταται, μετὰ ταύτας δὲ αἱ τῇ ἡλικίᾳ δεύτεραι, τελευταῖαι δὲ θέουσιν ὅσαι πρεσβύταται τῶν παρθένων εἰσί.
16.3. their hair hangs down, a tunic reaches to a little above the knee, and they bare the right shoulder as far as the breast. These too have the Olympic stadium reserved for their games, but the course of the stadium is shortened for them by about one-sixth of its length. To the winning maidens they give crowns of olive and a portion of the cow sacrificed to Hera. They may also dedicate statues with their names inscribed upon them. Those who administer to the Sixteen are, like the presidents of the games, married women.
16.3. θέουσι δὲ οὕτω· καθεῖταί σφισιν ἡ κόμη, χιτὼν ὀλίγον ὑπὲρ γόνατος καθήκει, τὸν ὦμον ἄχρι τοῦ στήθους φαίνουσι τὸν δεξιόν. ἀποδεδειγμένον μὲν δὴ ἐς τὸν ἀγῶνά ἐστι καὶ ταύταις τὸ Ὀλυμπικὸν στάδιον, ἀφαιροῦσι δὲ αὐταῖς ἐς τὸν δρόμον τοῦ σταδίου τὸ ἕκτον μάλιστα· ταῖς δὲ νικώσαις ἐλαίας τε διδόασι στεφάνους καὶ βοὸς μοῖραν τεθυμένης τῇ Ἥρᾳ, καὶ δὴ ἀναθεῖναί σφισιν ἔστι γραψαμέναις εἰκόνας. εἰσὶ δὲ καὶ αἱ διακονούμεναι ταῖς ἑκκαίδεκα κατὰ ταὐτὰ ταῖς ἀγωνοθετούσαις γυναῖκες.
16.4. The games of the maidens too are traced back to ancient times; they say that, out of gratitude to Hera for her marriage with Pelops, Hippodameia assembled the Sixteen Women, and with them inaugurated the Heraea. They relate too that a victory was won by Chloris, the only surviving daughter of the house of Amphion, though with her they say survived one of her brothers. As to the children of Niobe, what I myself chanced to learn about them I have set forth in my account of Argos.
16.4. ἐπανάγουσι δὲ καὶ τῶν παρθένων τὸν ἀγῶνα ἐς τὰ ἀρχαῖα, Ἱπποδάμειαν τῇ Ἤρᾳ τῶν γάμων τῶν Πέλοπος ἐκτίνουσαν χάριν τάς τε ἑκκαίδεκα ἀθροῖσαι γυναῖκας λέγοντες καὶ σὺν αὐταῖς διαθεῖναι πρώτην τὰ Ἡραῖα· μνημονεύουσι δὲ καὶ ὅτι Χλῶρις νικήσειεν Ἀμφίονος θυγάτηρ μόνη λειφθεῖσα τοῦ οἴκου. σὺν δὲ αὐτῇ καὶ ἕνα περιγενέσθαι φασὶ τῶν ἀρσένων· ἃ δὲ ἐς τοὺς Νιόβης παῖδας παρίστατο αὐτῷ μοι γινώσκειν, ἐν τοῖς ἔχουσιν ἐς Ἀργείους ἐδήλωσα.
16.5. Besides the account already given they tell another story about the Sixteen Women as follows. Damophon, it is said, when tyrant of Pisa did much grievous harm to the Eleans. But when he died, since the people of Pisa refused to participate as a people in their tyrant's sins, and the Eleans too became quite ready to lay aside their grievances, they chose a woman from each of the sixteen cities of Elis still inhabited at that time to settle their differences, this woman to be the oldest, the most noble, and the most esteemed of all the women.
16.5. ἐς δὲ τὰς ἑκκαίδεκα γυναῖκας καὶ ἄλλον τοιόνδε λέγουσιν ἐπὶ τῷ προτέρῳ λόγον. Δαμοφῶντά φασι τυραννοῦντα ἐν Πίσῃ πολλά τε ἐργάσασθαι καὶ χαλεπὰ Ἠλείους· ὡς δὲ ἐτελεύτησεν ὁ Δαμοφῶν—οὐ γὰρ δὴ οἱ Πισαῖοι συνεχώρουν μετέχειν δημοσίᾳ τοῦ τυράννου τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων, καί πως ἀρεστὰ καὶ Ἠλείοις ἐγένετο καταλύεσθαι τὰ ἐς αὐτοὺς ἐγκλήματα—, οὕτως ἑκκαίδεκα οἰκουμένων τηνικαῦτα ἔτι ἐν τῇ Ἠλείᾳ πόλεων γυναῖκα ἀφʼ ἑκάστης εἵλοντο διαλύειν τὰ διάφορά σφισιν, ἥτις ἡλικίᾳ τε ἦν πρεσβυτάτη καὶ ἀξιώματι καὶ δόξῃ τῶν γυναικῶν προεῖχεν.
16.6. The cities from which they chose the women were Elis, … … The women from these cities made peace between Pisa and Elis. Later on they were entrusted with the management of the Heraean games, and with the weaving of the robe for Hera. The Sixteen Women also arrange two choral dances, one called that of Physcoa and the other that of Hippodameia. This Physcoa they say came from Elis in the Hollow, and the name of the parish where she lived was Orthia.
16.6. αἱ πόλεις δὲ ἀφʼ ὧν τὰς γυναῖκας εἵλοντο, ἦσαν Ἦλις. ἀπὸ τούτων μὲν αἱ γυναῖκες οὖσαι τῶν πόλεων Πισαίοις διαλλαγὰς πρὸς Ἠλείους ἐποίησαν· ὕστερον δὲ καὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα ἐπετράπησαν ὑπʼ αὐτῶν θεῖναι τὰ Ἡραῖα καὶ ὑφήνασθαι τῇ Ἥρᾳ τὸν πέπλον. αἱ δὲ ἑκκαίδεκα γυναῖκες καὶ χοροὺς δύο ἱστᾶσι καὶ τὸν μὲν Φυσκόας τῶν χορῶν, τὸν δὲ Ἱπποδαμείας καλοῦσι· τὴν Φυσκόαν δὲ εἶναι ταύτην φασὶν ἐκ τῆς Ἤλιδος τῆς Κοίλης, τῷ δήμῳ δὲ ἔνθα ᾤκησεν ὄνομα [μὲν] Ὀρθίαν εἶναι.
16.7. She mated they say with Dionysus, and bore him a son called Narcaeus. When he grew up he made war against the neighboring folk, and rose to great power, setting up moreover a sanctuary of Athena surnamed Narcaea. They say too that Narcaeus and Physcoa were the first to pay worship to Dionysus. So various honors are paid to Physcoa, especially that of the choral dance, named after her and managed by the Sixteen Women. The Eleans still adhere to the other ancient customs, even though some of the cities have been destroyed. For they are now divided into eight tribes, and they choose two women from each.
16.7. ταύτῃ τῇ Φυσκόᾳ Διόνυσον συγγενέσθαι λέγουσι, Φυσκόαν δὲ ἐκ Διονύσου τεκεῖν παῖδα Ναρκαῖον· τοῦτον, ὡς ηὐξήθη, πολεμεῖν τοῖς προσοίκοις καὶ δυνάμεως ἐπὶ μέγα ἀρθῆναι, καὶ δὴ καὶ Ἀθηνᾶς ἱερὸν ἐπίκλησιν Ναρκαίας αὐτὸν ἱδρύσασθαι· Διονύσῳ τε τιμὰς λέγουσιν ὑπὸ Ναρκαίου ⟨καὶ⟩ Φυσκόας δοθῆναι πρώτων. Φυσκόας μὲν δὴ γέρα καὶ ἄλλα καὶ χορὸς ἐπώνυμος παρὰ τῶν ἑκκαίδεκα γυναικῶν, φυλάσσουσι δὲ οὐδὲν ἧσσον Ἠλεῖοι καὶ τἄλλα ⟨καταλυθεισῶν⟩ ὅμως τῶν πόλεων· νενεμημένοι γὰρ ἐς ὀκτὼ φυλὰς ἀφʼ ἑκάστης αἱροῦνται γυναῖκας δύο.
16.8. Whatever ritual it is the duty of either the Sixteen Women or the Elean umpires to perform, they do not perform before they have purified themselves with a pig meet for purification and with water. Their purification takes place at the spring Piera. You reach this spring as you go along the flat road from Olympia to Elis.
16.8. ὁπόσα δὲ ἢ ταῖς ἑκκαίδεκα γυναιξὶν ἢ τοῖς ἑλλανοδικοῦσιν Ἠλείων δρᾶν καθέστηκεν, οὐ πρότερον δρῶσι πρὶν ἢ χοίρῳ τε ἐπιτηδείῳ πρὸς καθαρμὸν καὶ ὕδατι ἀποκαθήρωνται. γίνεται δέ σφισιν ἐπὶ κρήνῃ Πιέρᾳ τὰ καθάρσια· ἐκ δὲ Ὀλυμπίας τὴν πεδιάδα ἐς Ἦλιν ἐρχομένῳ πρὸς τὴν πηγὴν ἀφικέσθαι τὴν Πιέραν ἔστι.
17.1. These things, then, are as I have already described. In the temple of Hera is an image of Zeus, and the image of Hera is sitting on a throne with Zeus standing by her, bearded and with a helmet on his head. They are crude works of art. The figures of Seasons next to them, seated upon thrones, were made by the Aeginetan Smilis. Beside them stands an image of Themis, as being mother of the Seasons. It is the work of Dorycleidas, a Lacedaemonian by birth and a disciple of Dipoenus and Scyllis.
17.1. ταῦτα μὲν δὴ ἔχει κατὰ τὰ προειρημένα· τῆς Ἥρας δέ ἐστιν ἐν τῷ ναῷ Διός, τὸ δὲ Ἥρας ἄγαλμα καθήμενόν ἐστιν ἐπὶ θρόνῳ· παρέστηκε δὲ γένειά τε ἔχων καὶ ἐπικείμενος κυνῆν ἐπὶ τῇ κεφαλῇ, ἔργα δέ ἐστιν ἁπλᾶ. τὰς δὲ ἐφεξῆς τούτων καθημένας ἐπὶ θρόνων Ὥρας ἐποίησεν Αἰγινήτης Σμῖλις. παρὰ δὲ αὐτὰς Θέμιδος ἅτε μητρὸς τῶν Ὡρῶν ἄγαλμα ἕστηκε Δορυκλείδου τέχνη, γένος μὲν Λακεδαιμονίου, μαθητοῦ δὲ Διποίνου καὶ Σκύλλιδος.
17.2. The Hesperides, five in number, were made by Theocles, who like Dorycleidas was a Lacedaemonian, the son of Hegylus; he too, they say, was a student under Scyllis and Dipoenus. The Athena wearing a helmet and carrying a spear and shield is, it is said, a work of Medon, a Lacedaemonian, brother of Dorycleidas and a pupil of the same masters.
17.2. τὰς δὲ Ἑσπερίδας πέντε ἀριθμὸν Θεοκλῆς ἐποίησε, Λακεδαιμόνιος μὲν καὶ οὗτος, πατρὸς Ἡγύλου, φοιτῆσαι δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς παρὰ Σκύλλιν καὶ Δίποινον λέγεται. τὴν δὲ Ἀθηνᾶν κράνος ἐπικειμένην καὶ δόρυ καὶ ἀσπίδα ἔχουσαν Λακεδαιμονίου λέγουσιν ἔργον εἶναι Μέδοντος, τοῦτον δὲ ἀδελφόν τε εἶναι Δορυκλείδου καὶ παρὰ ἀνδράσι διδαχθῆναι τοῖς αὐτοῖς.
17.3. Then the Maid and Demeter sit opposite each other, while Apollo and Artemis stand opposite each other. Here too have been dedicated Leto, Fortune, Dionysus and a winged Victory. I cannot say who the artists were, but these figures too are in my opinion very ancient. The figures I have enumerated are of ivory and gold, but at a later date other images were dedicated in the Heraeum, including a marble Hermes carrying the baby Dionysus, a work of Praxiteles, and a bronze Aphrodite made by Cleon of Sicyon.
17.3. Κόρη δὲ καὶ Δημήτηρ καὶ Ἀπόλλων καὶ Ἄρτεμις, αἱ μὲν ἀλλήλων εἰσὶν ἀπαντικρὺ καθήμεναι, Ἀπόλλων δὲ ἐναντίος ἑστώσῃ τῇ Ἀρτέμιδι ἕστηκεν. ἀνάκειται δὲ ἐνταῦθα καὶ Λητὼ Τύχη τε καὶ Διόνυσος καὶ ἔχουσα Νίκη πτερά· τοὺς δὲ εἰργασμένους αὐτὰ οὐκ ἔχω δηλῶσαι, φαίνεται δὲ εἶναί μοι καὶ ταῦτα ἐς τὰ μάλιστα ἀρχαῖα. τὰ μὲν δὴ κατειλεγμένα ἐστὶν ἐλέφαντος καὶ χρυσοῦ, χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον καὶ ἄλλα ἀνέθεσαν ἐς τὸ Ἡραῖον· Ἑρμῆν λίθου, Διόνυσον δὲ φέρει νήπιον, τέχνη δέ ἐστι Πραξιτέλους, καὶ Ἀφροδίτη χαλκῆ Κλέωνος ἔργον Σικυωνίου.
17.4. The master of this Cleon, called Antiphanes, was a pupil of Periclytus, who himself was a pupil of Polycleitus of Argos. A nude gilded child is seated before Aphrodite, a work fashioned by Boethus of Calchedon. There were also brought hither from what is called the Philippeum other images of gold and ivory, Eurydice the wife of Aridaeus and Olympias the wife of Philip.
17.4. τούτου δὲ ὁ διδάσκαλος τοῦ Κλέωνος, ὄνομα Ἀντιφάνης, ἐκ φοιτήσεως Περικλύτου, Πολυκλείτου δὲ ἦν τοῦ Ἀργείου μαθητὴς ὁ Περίκλυτος. παιδίον δὲ ἐπίχρυσον κάθηται γυμνὸν πρὸ τῆς Ἀφροδίτης· Βοηθὸς δὲ ἐτόρευσεν αὐτὸ Καλχηδόνιος. μετεκομίσθη δὲ αὐτόσε καὶ ἐκ τοῦ καλουμένου Φιλιππείου, χρυσοῦ καὶ ταῦτα καὶ ἐλέφαντος, Εὐρυδίκη τε ἡ ⟨Ἀριδαίου γυνὴ καὶ Ὀλυμπιὰς ἡ⟩ Φιλίππου.
17.5. There is also a chest made of cedar, with figures on it, some of ivory, some of gold, others carved out of the cedar-wood itself. It was in this chest that Cypselus, the tyrant of Corinth, was hidden by his mother when the Bacchidae were anxious to discover him after his birth. In gratitude for the saving of Cypselus, his descendants, Cypselids as they are called, dedicated the chest at Olympia. The Corinthians of that age called chests kypselai, and from this word, they say, the child received his name of Cypselus.
17.5. λάρναξ δὲ κέδρου μὲν πεποίηται, ζῴδια δὲ ἐλέφαντος ἐπʼ αὐτῆς, τὰ δὲ χρυσοῦ, τὰ δὲ καὶ ἐξ αὐτῆς ἐστιν εἰργασμένα τῆς κέδρου· ἐς ταύτην τὴν λάρνακα Κύψελον τὸν Κορίνθου τυραννήσαντα ἀπέκρυψεν ἡ μήτηρ, ἡνίκα τεχθέντα ἀνευρεῖν αὐτὸν σπουδὴν ἐποιοῦντο οἱ Βακχίδαι. τῆς μὲν δὴ σωτηρίας ἕνεκα τοῦ Κυψέλου τὸ ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ γένος οἱ ὀνομαζόμενοι Κυψελίδαι τὴν λάρνακα ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν ἀνέθεσαν, τὰς δὲ λάρνακας οἱ τότε ἐκάλουν Κορίνθιοι κυψέλας· ἀπὸ τούτου δὲ καὶ ὄνομα Κύψελον τῷ παιδὶ θέσθαι λέγουσι.
17.6. On most of the figures on the chest there are inscriptions, written in the ancient characters. In some cases the letters read straight on, but in others the form of the writing is what the Greeks call bustrophedon. It is like this: at the end of the line the second line turns back, as runners do when running the double race. Moreover the inscriptions on the chest are written in winding characters difficult to decipher. Beginning our survey at the bottom we see in the first space of the chest the following scenes.
17.6. τῶν δὲ ἐπὶ τῇ λάρνακι ἐπιγράμματα ἔπεστι τοῖς πλείοσι, γράμμασι τοῖς ἀρχαίοις γεγραμμένα· καὶ τὰ μὲν ἐς εὐθὺ αὐτῶν ἔχει, σχήματα δὲ ἄλλα τῶν γραμμάτων βουστροφηδὸν καλοῦσιν Ἕλληνες. τὸ δέ ἐστι τοιόνδε· ἀπὸ τοῦ πέρατος τοῦ ἔπους ἐπιστρέφει τῶν ἐπῶν τὸ δεύτερον ὥσπερ ἐν διαύλου δρόμῳ. γέγραπται δὲ ἐπὶ τῇ λάρνακι καὶ ἄλλως τὰ ἐπιγράμματα ἑλιγμοῖς συμβαλέσθαι χαλεποῖς. ἀρξαμένῳ δὲ ἀνασκοπεῖσθαι κάτωθεν τοσάδε ἐπὶ τῆς λάρνακος ἡ πρώτη παρέχεται χώρα.
17.7. Oenomaus is chasing Pelops, who is holding Hippodameia. Each of them has two horses, but those of Pelops have wings. Next is wrought the house of Amphiaraus, and baby Amphilochus is being carried by some old woman or other. In front of the house stands Eriphyle with the necklace, and by her are her daughters Eurydice and Demonassa, and the boy Alcmaeon naked.
17.7. Οἰνόμαος διώκων Πέλοπά ἐστιν ἔχοντα Ἱπποδάμειαν· ἑκατέρῳ μὲν δὴ δύο αὐτῶν εἰσιν ἵπποι, τοῖς δὲ τοῦ Πέλοπός ἐστι πεφυκότα καὶ πτερά. ἑξῆς δὲ Ἀμφιαράου τε ἡ οἰκία πεποίηται καὶ Ἀμφίλοχον φέρει νήπιον πρεσβῦτις ἥτις δή· πρὸ δὲ τῆς οἰκίας Ἐριφύλη τὸν ὅρμον ἔχουσα ἕστηκε, παρὰ δὲ αὐτὴν αἱ θυγατέρες Εὐρυδίκη καὶ Δημώνασσα, καὶ Ἀλκμαίων παῖς γυμνός.
17.8. Asius in his poem makes out Alcmena also to be a daughter of Amphiaraus and Eriphyle. Baton is driving the chariot of Amphiaraus, holding the reins in one hand and a spear in the other. Amphiaraus already has one foot on the chariot and his sword drawn; he is turned towards Eriphyle in such a transport of anger that he can scarcely refrain from striking her.
17.8. Ἄσιος δὲ ἐν τοῖς ἔπεσι καὶ Ἀλκμήνην ἐποίησε θυγατέρα Ἀμφιαράου καὶ Ἐριφύλης εἶναι. Βάτων δέ, ὃς ἡνιοχεῖ τῷ Ἀμφιαράῳ, τάς τε ἡνίας τῶν ἵππων καὶ τῇ χειρὶ ἔχει τῇ ἑτέρᾳ λόγχην. Ἀμφιαράῳ δὲ ὁ μὲν τῶν ποδῶν ἐπιβέβηκεν ἤδη τοῦ ἅρματος, τὸ ξίφος δὲ ἔχει γυμνὸν καὶ ἐς τὴν Ἐριφύλην ἐστὶν ἐπεστραμμένος ἐξαγόμενός τε ὑπὸ τοῦ θυμοῦ, ⟨ὡς μόλις⟩ ἐκείνης ἂν ἀποσχέσθαι.
17.9. After the house of Amphiaraus come the games at the funeral of Pelias, with the spectators looking at the competitors. Heracles is seated on a throne, and behind him is a woman. There is no inscription saying who the woman is, but she is playing on a Phrygian, not a Greek, flute. Driving chariots drawn by pairs of horses are Pisus, son of Perieres, and Asterion, son of Cometas (Asterion is said to have been one of the Argonauts), Polydeuces, Admetus and Euphemus. The poets declare thatthe last was a son of Poseidon and a companion of Jason on his voyage to Colchis. He it is who is winning the chariot-race.
17.9. μετὰ δὲ τοῦ Ἀμφιαράου τὴν οἰκίαν ἔστιν ἀγὼν ὁ ἐπὶ Πελίᾳ καὶ οἱ θεώμενοι τοὺς ἀγωνιστάς. πεποίηται δὲ Ἡρακλῆς ἐν θρόνῳ καθήμενος καὶ ὄπισθεν γυνὴ αὐτοῦ· ταύτης τῆς γυναικὸς ἐπίγραμμα μὲν ἄπεστιν ἥτις ἐστί, Φρυγίοις δὲ αὐλεῖ καὶ οὐχ Ἑλληνικοῖς αὐλοῖς. ἡνιοχοῦντες δὲ συνωρίδα Πῖσός ἐστιν ὁ Περιήρους καὶ Ἀστερίων Κομήτου, πλεῦσαι καὶ οὗτος λεγόμενος ἐπὶ τῆς Ἀργοῦς, καὶ Πολυδεύκης τε καὶ Ἄδμητος, ἐπὶ δὲ αὐτοῖς Εὔφημος, Ποσειδῶνός τε ὢν κατὰ τὸν τῶν ποιητῶν λόγον καὶ Ἰάσονι ἐς Κόλχους τοῦ πλοῦ μετεσχηκώς· οὗτος δὲ καὶ τῇ συνωρίδι ὁ νικῶν ἐστιν.