ταῦτα μέν νυν τοῦ ζεύξαντος τὴν γέφυραν μνημόσυνα ἐγένετο. Δαρεῖος δὲ δωρησάμενος Μανδροκλέα διέβαινε ἐς τὴν Εὐρώπην, τοῖσι Ἴωσι παραγγείλας πλέειν ἐς τὸν Πόντον μέχρι Ἴστρου ποταμοῦ, ἐπεὰν δὲ ἀπίκωνται ἐς τὸν Ἴστρον, ἐνθαῦτα αὐτὸν περιμένειν ζευγνύντας τὸν ποταμόν. τὸ γὰρ δὴ ναυτικὸν ἦγον Ἴωνές τε καὶ Αἰολέες καὶ Ἑλλησπόντιοι.
ὁ μὲν δὴ ναυτικὸς στρατὸς Κυανέας διεκπλώσας ἔπλεε ἰθὺ τοῦ Ἴστρου, ἀναπλώσας δὲ ἀνὰ ποταμὸν δυῶν ἡμερέων πλόον ἀπὸ θαλάσσης, τοῦ ποταμοῦ τὸν αὐχένα, ἔκ τοῦ σχίζεται τὰ στόματα τοῦ Ἴστρου, ἐζεύγνυε.
Δαρεῖος δὲ ὡς διέβη τὸν Βόσπορον κατὰ τὴν σχεδίην, ἐπορεύετο διὰ τῆς Θρηίκης, ἀπικόμενος δὲ ἐπὶ Τεάρου ποταμοῦ τὰς πηγὰς ἐστρατοπεδεύσατο ἡμέρας τρεῖς.
This memorial was made of him who constructed the bridge: and Dareios, after he had rewarded Mandrocles with gifts, passed over into Europe, having first commanded the Ionians to sail into the Pontus as far as the river Ister, and when they arrived at the Ister, there to wait for him, making a bridge meanwhile over the river; for the chief of his naval force were the Ionians, the Aiolians and the Hellespontians. So the fleet sailed through between the Kyanean rocks and made straight for the Ister; and then they sailed up the river a two days’ voyage from the sea and proceeded to make a bridge across the neck, as it were, of the river, where the mouths of the Ister part off. Dareios meanwhile, having crossed the Bosphorus on the floating bridge, was advancing through Thrace, and when he came to the sources of the river Tearos he encamped for three days.
ὁ δὲ Τέαρος λέγεται ὑπὸ τῶν περιοίκων εἶναι ποταμῶν ἄριστος τὰ τε ἄλλα τὰ ἐς ἄκεσιν φέροντα καὶ δὴ καὶ ἀνδράσι καὶ ἵπποισι ψώρην ἀκέσασθαι. εἰσὶ δὲ αὐτοῦ αἱ πηγαὶ δυῶν δέουσαι τεσσεράκοντα, ἐκ πέτρης τῆς αὐτῆς ῥέουσαι, καὶ αἳ μὲν αὐτέων εἰσὶ ψυχραὶ αἳ δὲ θερμαί.
ὁδὸς δʼ ἐπʼ αὐτάς ἐστι ἴση ἐξ Ἡραίου τε πόλιος τῆς παρὰ Περίνθῳ καὶ ἐξ Ἀπολλωνίης τῆς ἐν τῷ Εὐξείνῳ πόντῳ, δυῶν ἡμερέων ἑκατέρη. ἐκδιδοῖ δὲ ὁ Τέαρος οὗτος ἐς τὸν Κοντάδεσδον ποταμόν, ὁ δὲ Κοντάδεσδος ἐς τὸν Ἀγριάνην, ὁ δὲ Ἀγριάνης ἐς τὸν Ἕβρον, ὁ δὲ ἐς θάλασσαν τὴν παρʼ Αἴνῳ πόλι.
Now the Tearos is said by those who dwell near it to be the best of all rivers, both in other respects which tend to healing and especially for curing diseases of the skin both in men and in horses: and its springs are thirty-eight in number, flowing all from the same rock, of which some are cold and others warm. The way to them is of equal length from the city of Heraion near Perinthos and from Apollonia upon the Euxine Sea, that is to say two days’ journey by each road. This Tearos runs into the river Contadesdos and the Contadesdos into the Agrianes and the Agrianes into the Hebros, which flows into the sea by the city of Ainos.
ἐπὶ τοῦτον ὦν τὸν ποταμὸν ἀπικόμενος ὁ Δαρεῖος ὡς ἐστρατοπεδεύσατο, ἡσθεὶς τῷ ποταμῷ στήλην ἔστησε καὶ ἐνθαῦτα, γράμματα ἐγγράψας λέγοντα τάδε.
Τεάρου ποταμοῦ κεφαλαὶ ὕδωρ ἄριστόν τε καὶ κάλλιστον παρέχονται πάντων ποταμῶν· καὶ ἐπʼ αὐτὰς ἀπίκετο ἐλαύνων ἐπὶ Σκύθας στρατὸν ἀνὴρ ἄριστος τε καὶ κάλλιστος πάντων ἀνθρώπων, Δαρεῖος ὁ Ὑστάσπεος, Περσέων τε καὶ πάσης τῆς ἠπείρου βασιλεύς. ταῦτα δὲ ἐνθαῦτα ἐγράφη.
Dareios then, having come to this river and having encamped there, was pleased with the river and set up a pillar there also, with an inscription as follows: “The head-springs of the river Tearos give the best and fairest water of all rivers; and to them came leading an army against the Scythians the best and fairest of all men, Dareios the son of Hystaspes, of the Persians and of all the Continent king.” These were the words which were there written.
Δαρεῖος δὲ ἐνθεῦτεν ὁρμηθεὶς ἀπίκετο ἐπʼ ἄλλον ποταμὸν τῷ οὔνομα Ἀρτησκός ἐστι, ὃς διὰ Ὀδρυσέων ῥέει. ἐπὶ τοῦτον δὴ τὸν ποταμὸν ἀπικόμενος ἐποίησε τοιόνδε· ἀποδέξας χωρίον τῇ στρατιῇ ἐκέλευε πάντα ἄνδρα λίθον ἕνα παρεξιόντα τιθέναι ἐς τὸ ἀποδεδεγμένον τοῦτο χωρίον. ὡς δὲ ταῦτα ἡ στρατιὴ ἐπετέλεσε, ἐνθαῦτα κολωνοὺς μεγάλους τῶν λίθων καταλιπὼν ἀπήλαυνε τὴν στρατιήν.
Dareios then set out from thence and came to another river whose name is Artescos, which flows through the land of the Odrysians. Having come to this river he did as follows:—he appointed a place for his army and bade every man as he passed out by it place one stone in this appointed place: and when the army had performed this, then he marched away his army leaving behind great mounds of these stones.
πρὶν δὲ ἀπικέσθαι ἐπὶ τὸν Ἴστρον, πρώτους αἱρέει Γέτας τοὺς ἀθανατίζοντας. οἱ μὲν γὰρ τὸν Σαλμυδησσὸν ἔχοντες Θρήικες καὶ ὑπὲρ Ἀπολλωνίης τε καὶ Μεσαμβρίης πόλιος οἰκημένοι, καλεύμενοι δὲ Κυρμιάναι καὶ Νιψαῖοι, ἀμαχητὶ σφέας αὐτοὺς παρέδοσαν Δαρείῳ· οἱ δὲ Γέται πρὸς ἀγνωμοσύνην τραπόμενοι αὐτίκα ἐδουλώθησαν, Θρηίκων ἐόντες ἀνδρηιότατοι καὶ δικαιότατοι.
But before he came to the Ister he conquered first the Getai, who believe in immortality: for the Thracians who occupy Salmydessos and are settled above the cities of Apollonian and Mesambria, called the Kyrmianai and the Nipsaioi, delivered themselves over to Dareios without fighting; but the Getai, who are the bravest and the most upright in their dealings of all the Thracians, having betaken themselves to obstinacy were forthwith subdued.
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