Κροίσῳ δὲ ἐστὶ ἄλλα ἀναθήματα ἐν τῇ Ἑλλάδι πολλὰ καὶ οὐ τὰ εἰρημένα μοῦνα. ἐν μὲν γὰρ Θήβῃσι τῇσι Βοιωτῶν τρίπους χρύσεος, τὸν ἀνέθηκέ τῷ Ἀπόλλωνι τῷ Ἰσμηνίῳ, ἐν δὲ Ἐφέσῳ αἵ τε βόες αἱ χρύσεαι καὶ τῶν κιόνων αἱ πολλαί, ἐν δὲ Προνηίης τῆς ἐν Δελφοῖσι ἀσπὶς χρυσέη μεγάλη. ταῦτα μὲν καὶ ἔτι ἐς ἐμὲ ἦν περιεόντα, τὰ δʼ ἐξαπόλωλε τῶν ἀναθημάτων·
τὰ δʼ ἐν Βραγχίδῃσι τῇσι Μιλησίων ἀναθήματα Κροίσῳ, ὡς ἐγὼ πυνθάνομαι, ἴσα τε σταθμὸν καὶ ὅμοια τοῖσι ἐν Δελφοῖσι […] τὰ μέν νυν ἔς τε Δελφοὺς καὶ ἐς τοῦ Ἀμφιάρεω ἀνέθηκε οἰκήιά τε ἐόντα καὶ τῶν πατρωίων χρημάτων ἀπαρχήν· τὰ δὲ ἄλλα ἀναθήματα ἐξ ἀνδρὸς ἐγένετο οὐσίης ἐχθροῦ, ὅς οἱ πρὶν ἢ βασιλεῦσαι ἀντιστασιώτης κατεστήκεε, συσπεύδων Πανταλέοντι γενέσθαι τὴν Λυδῶν ἀρχήν.
ὁ δὲ Πανταλέων ἦν Ἀλυάττεω μὲν παῖς, Κροίσου δὲ ἀδελφεὸς οὐκ ὁμομήτριος· Κροῖσος μὲν γὰρ ἐκ Καείρης ἦν γυναικὸς Ἀλυάττῃ, Πανταλέων δὲ ἐξ Ἰάδος.
ἐπείτε δὲ δόντος τοῦ πατρὸς ἐκράτησε τῆς ἀρχῆς ὁ Κροῖσος, τὸν ἄνθρωπον τὸν ἀντιπρήσσοντα ἐπὶ κνάφου ἕλκων διέφθειρε, τὴν δὲ οὐσίην αὐτοῦ ἔτι πρότερον κατιρώσας τότε τρόπῳ τῷ εἰρημένῳ ἀνέθηκε ἐς τὰ εἴρηται. καὶ περὶ μὲν ἀναθημάτων τοσαῦτα εἰρήσθω.
Now there are in Hellas many other votive offerings made by Croesus and not only those which have been mentioned: for first at Thebes of the Boeotians there is a tripod of gold, which he dedicated to the Ismenian Apollo; then at Ephesos there are the golden cows and the greater number of the pillars of the temple; and in the temple of Athene Pronaia at Delphi a large golden shield. These were still remaining down to my own time, but others of his votive offerings have perished: and the votive offerings of Croesus at Branchidai of the Milesians were, as I am told, equal in weight and similar to those at Delphi. Now those which he sent to Delphi and to the temple of Amphiaraos he dedicated of his own goods and as first-fruits of the wealth inherited from his father; but the other offerings were made of the substance of a man who was his foe, who before Croesus became king had been factious against him and had joined in endeavouring to make Pantaleon ruler of the Lydians. Now Pantaleon was a son of Alyattes and a brother of Croesus, but not by the same mother, for Croesus was born to Alyattes of a Carian woman, but Pantaleon of an Ionian. And when Croesus had gained possession of the kingdom by the gift of his father, he put to death the man who opposed him, drawing him upon the carding-comb; and his property, which even before that time he had vowed to dedicate, he then offered in the manner mentioned to those shrines which have been named. About his votive offerings let it suffice to have said so much.
θώματα δὲ γῆ ἡ Λυδίη ἐς συγγραφὴν οὐ μάλα ἔχει, οἷά τε καὶ ἄλλη χώρη, πάρεξ τοῦ ἐκ τοῦ Τμώλου καταφερομένου ψήγματος.
ἓν δὲ ἔργον πολλὸν μέγιστον παρέχεται χωρὶς τῶν τε Αἰγυπτίων ἔργων καὶ τῶν Βαβυλωνίων· ἔστι αὐτόθι Ἀλυάττεω τοῦ Κροίσου πατρὸς σῆμα, τοῦ ἡ κρηπὶς μὲν ἐστὶ λίθων μεγάλων, τὸ δὲ ἄλλο σῆμα χῶμα γῆς. ἐξεργάσαντο δέ μιν οἱ ἀγοραῖοι ἄνθρωποι καὶ οἱ χειρώνακτες καὶ αἱ ἐνεργαζόμεναι παιδίσκαι.
οὖροι δὲ πέντε ἐόντες ἔτι καὶ ἐς ἐμὲ ἦσαν ἐπὶ τοῦ σήματος ἄνω, καί σφι γράμματα ἐνεκεκόλαπτο τὰ ἕκαστοι ἐξεργάσαντο, καὶ ἐφαίνετο μετρεόμενον τὸ τῶν παιδισκέων ἔργον ἐὸν μέγιστον.
τοῦ γὰρ δὴ Λυδῶν δήμου αἱ θυγατέρες πορνεύονται πᾶσαι, συλλέγουσαι σφίσι φερνάς, ἐς ὃ ἂν συνοικήσωσι τοῦτο ποιέουσαι· ἐκδιδοῦσι δὲ αὐταὶ ἑωυτάς.
ἡ μὲν δὴ περίοδος τοῦ σήματός εἰσὶ στάδιοι ἓξ καὶ δύο πλέθρα, τὸ δὲ εὖρος ἐστὶ πλέθρα τρία καὶ δέκα. λίμνη δὲ ἔχεται τοῦ σήματος μεγάλη, τὴν λέγουσι Λυδοὶ ἀείναον εἶναι· καλέεται δὲ αὕτη Γυγαίη. τοῦτο μὲν δὴ τοιοῦτο ἐστί.
Of marvels to be recorded the land of Lydia has no great store as compared with other lands, excepting the gold-dust which is carried down from Tmolos; but one work it has to show which is larger far than any other except only those in Egypt and Babylon: for there is there the sepulchral monument of Alyattes the father of Croesus, of which the base is made of larger stones and the rest of the monument is of earth piled up. And this was built by contributions of those who practised trade and of the artisans and the girls who plied their traffic there; and still there existed to my own time boundary-stones five in number erected upon the monument above, on which were carved inscriptions telling how much of the work was done by each class; and upon measurement it was found that the work of the girls was the greatest in amount. For the daughters of the common people in Lydia practice prostitution one and all, to gather for themselves dowries, continuing this until the time when they marry; and the girls give themselves away in marriage. Now the circuit of the monument is six furlongs and two hundred feet, and the breadth is thirteen hundred feet. And adjoining the monument is a great lake, which the Lydians say has a never-failing supply of water, and it is called the lake of Gyges. Such is the nature of this monument.
Λυδοὶ δὲ νόμοισι μὲν παραπλησίοισι χρέωνται καὶ Ἕλληνές, χωρὶς ἢ ὅτι τὰ θήλεα τέκνα καταπορνεύουσι, πρῶτοι δὲ ἀνθρώπων τῶν ἡμεῖς ἴδμεν νόμισμα χρυσοῦ καὶ ἀργύρου κοψάμενοι ἐχρήσαντο, πρῶτοι δὲ καὶ κάπηλοι ἐγένοντο.
φασὶ δὲ αὐτοὶ Λυδοὶ καὶ τὰς παιγνίας τὰς νῦν σφίσι τε καὶ Ἕλλησι κατεστεώσας ἑωυτῶν ἐξεύρημα γενέσθαι· ἅμα δὲ ταύτας τε ἐξευρεθῆναι παρὰ σφίσι λέγουσι καὶ Τυρσηνίην ἀποικίσαι, ὧδε περὶ αὐτῶν λέγοντες.
ἐπὶ Ἄτυος τοῦ Μάνεω βασιλέος σιτοδείην ἰσχυρὴν ἀνὰ τὴν Λυδίην πᾶσαν γενέσθαι, καὶ τοὺς Λυδοὺς τέως μὲν διάγειν λιπαρέοντας, μετὰ δὲ ὡς οὐ παύεσθαι, ἄκεα δίζησθαι, ἄλλον δὲ ἄλλο ἐπιμηχανᾶσθαι αὐτῶν. ἐξευρεθῆναι δὴ ὦν τότε καὶ τῶν κύβων καὶ τῶν ἀστραγάλων καὶ τῆς σφαίρης καὶ τῶν ἀλλέων πασέων παιγνιέων τὰ εἴδεα, πλὴν πεσσῶν τούτων γὰρ ὦν τὴν ἐξεύρεσιν οὐκ οἰκηιοῦνται Λυδοί.
ποιέειν δὲ ὧδε πρὸς τὸν λιμὸν ἐξευρόντας, τὴν μὲν ἑτέρην τῶν ἡμερέων παίζειν πᾶσαν, ἵνα δὴ μὴ ζητέοιεν σιτία, τὴν δὲ ἑτέρην σιτέεσθαι παυομένους τῶν παιγνιέων. τοιούτῳ τρόπῳ διάγειν ἐπʼ ἔτεα δυῶν δέοντα εἴκοσι.
ἐπείτε δὲ οὐκ ἀνιέναι τὸ κακὸν ἀλλʼ ἔτι ἐπὶ μᾶλλον βιάζεσθαι οὕτω δὴ τὸν βασιλέα αὐτῶν δύο μοίρας διελόντα Λυδῶν πάντων κληρῶσαι τὴν μὲν ἐπὶ μόνῃ τὴν δὲ ἐπὶ ἐξόδῳ ἐκ τῆς χώρης, καὶ ἐπὶ μὲν τῇ μένειν αὐτοῦ λαγχανούσῃ τῶν μοιρέων ἑωυτὸν τὸν βασιλέα προστάσσειν, ἐπὶ δὲ τῇ ἀπαλλασσομένῃ τὸν ἑωυτοῦ παῖδα, τῷ οὔνομα εἶναι Τυρσηνόν.
λαχόντας δὲ αὐτῶν τοὺς ἑτέρους ἐξιέναι ἐκ τῆς χώρης καταβῆναι ἐς Σμύρνην καὶ μηχανήσασθαι πλοῖα, ἐς τὰ ἐσθεμένους τὰ πάντα ὅσα σφι ἦν χρηστὰ ἐπίπλοα, ἀποπλέειν κατὰ βίου τε καὶ γῆς ζήτησιν, ἐς ὃ ἔθνεα πολλὰ παραμειψαμένους ἀπικέσθαι ἐς Ὀμβρικούς, ἔνθα σφέας ἐνιδρύσασθαι πόλιας καὶ οἰκέειν τὸ μέχρι τοῦδε.
ἀντὶ δὲ Λυδῶν μετονομασθῆναι αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ τοῦ βασιλέος τοῦ παιδός, ὅς σφεας ἀνήγαγε, ἐπὶ τούτου τὴν ἐπωνυμίην ποιευμένους ὀνομασθῆναι Τυρσηνούς.
Λυδοὶ μὲν δὴ ὑπὸ Πέρσῃσι ἐδεδούλωντο.
Now the Lydians have very nearly the same customs as the Hellenes, with the exception that they prostitute their female children; and they were the first of men, so far as we know, who struck and used coin of gold or silver; and also they were the first retail-traders. And the Lydians themselves say that the games which are now in use among them and among the Hellenes were also their invention. These they say were invented among them at the same time as they colonised Tyrsenia, and this is the account they give of them:—In the reign of Atys the son of Manes their king there came to be a grievous dearth over the whole of Lydia; and the Lydians for a time continued to endure it, but afterwards, as it did not cease, they sought for remedies; and one devised one thing and another of them devised another thing. And then were discovered, they say, the ways of playing with the dice and the knucklebones and the ball, and all the other games excepting draughts (for the discovery of this last is not claimed by the Lydians). These games they invented as a resource against the famine, and thus they used to do:—on one of the days they would play games all the time in order that they might not feel the want of food, and on the next they ceased from their games and had food: and thus they went on for eighteen years. As however the evil did not slacken but pressed upon them ever more and more, therefore their king divided the whole Lydian people into two parts, and he appointed by lot one part to remain and the other to go forth from the land; and the king appointed himself to be over that one of the parts which had the lot to stay in the land, and his son to be over that which was departing; and the name of his son was Tyrsenos. So the one party of them, having obtained the lot to go forth from the land, went down to the sea at Smyrna and built ships for themselves, wherein they placed all the movable goods which they had and sailed away to seek for means of living and a land to dwell in; until after passing by many nations they came at last to the land of the Ombricans, and there they founded cities and dwell up to the present time: and changing their name they were called after the king’s son who led them out from home, not Lydians but Tyrsenians, taking the name from him.
The Lydians then had been made subject to the Persians as I say:
Cite This Text