ἰοῦσι δὲ πρὸς τὴν στοάν, ἣν Ποικίλην ὀνομάζουσιν ἀπὸ τῶν γραφῶν, ἔστιν Ἑρμῆς χαλκοῦς καλούμενος Ἀγοραῖος καὶ πύλη πλησίον· ἔπεστι δέ οἱ τρόπαιον Ἀθηναίων ἱππομαχίᾳ κρατησάντων Πλείσταρχον, ὃς τῆς ἵππου Κασσάνδρου καὶ τοῦ ξενικοῦ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀδελφὸς ὢν ἐπετέτραπτο. αὕτη δὲ ἡ στοὰ πρῶτα μὲν Ἀθηναίους ἔχει τεταγμένους ἐν Οἰνόῃ τῆς Ἀργεία; ἐναντία Λακεδαιμονίων· γέγραπται δὲ οὐκ ἐς ἀκμὴν ἀγῶνος οὐδὲ τολμημάτων ἐς ἐπίδειξιν τὸ ἔργον ἤδη προῆκον, ἀλλὰ ἀρχομένη τε ἡ μάχη καὶ ἐς χεῖρας ἔτι συνιόντες.
ἐν δὲ τῷ μέσῳ τῶν τοίχων Ἀθηναῖοι καὶ Θησεὺς Ἀμαζόσι μάχονται. μόναις δὲ ἄρα ταῖς γυναιξὶν οὐκ ἀφῄρει τὰ πταίσματα τὸ ἐς τοὺς κινδύνους ἀφειδές, εἴ γε Θεμισκύρας τε ἁλούσης ὑπὸ Ἡρακλέους καὶ ὕστερον φθαρείσης σφίσι τῆς στρατιᾶς, ἣν ἐπʼ Ἀθήνας ἔστειλαν, ὅμως ἐς Τροίαν ἦλθον Ἀθηναίοις τε αὐτοῖς μαχούμεναι καὶ τοῖς πᾶσιν Ἕλλησιν. ἐπὶ δὲ ταῖς Ἀμαζόσιν Ἕλληνές εἰσιν ᾑρηκότες Ἴλιον καὶ οἱ βασιλεῖς ἠθροισμένοι διὰ τὸ Αἴαντος ἐς Κασσάνδραν τόλμημα· καὶ αὐτὸν ἡ γραφὴ τὸν Αἴαντα ἔχει καὶ γυναῖκας τῶν αἰχμαλώτων ἄλλας τε καὶ Κασσάνδραν.
τελευταῖον δὲ τῆς γραφῆς εἰσιν οἱ μαχεσάμενοι Μαραθῶνι· Βοιωτῶν δὲ οἱ Πλάταιαν ἔχοντες καὶ ὅσον ἦν Ἀττικὸν ἴασιν ἐς χεῖρας τοῖς βαρβάροις. καὶ ταύτῃ μέν ἐστιν ἴσα τὰ παρʼ ἀμφοτέρων ἐς τὸ ἔργον· τὸ δὲ ἔσω τῆς μάχης φεύγοντές εἰσιν οἱ βάρβαροι καὶ ἐς τὸ ἕλος ὠθοῦντες ἀλλήλους, ἔσχαται δὲ τῆς γραφῆς νῆές τε αἱ Φοίνισσαι καὶ τῶν βαρβάρων τοὺς ἐσπίπτοντας ἐς ταύτας φονεύοντες οἱ Ἕλληνες. ἐνταῦθα καὶ Μαραθὼν γεγραμμένος ἐστὶν ἥρως, ἀφʼ οὗ τὸ πεδίον ὠνόμασται, καὶ Θησεὺς ἀνιόντι ἐκ γῆς εἰκασμένος Ἀθηνᾶ τε καὶ Ἡρακλῆς· Μαραθωνίοις γάρ, ὡς αὐτοὶ λέγουσιν, Ἡρακλῆς ἐνομίσθη θεὸς πρώτοις. τῶν μαχομένων δὲ δῆλοι μάλιστά εἰσιν ἐν τῇ γραφῇ Καλλίμαχός τε, ὃς Ἀθηναίοις πολεμαρχεῖν ᾕρητο, καὶ Μιλτιάδης τῶν στρατηγούντων, ἥρως τε Ἔχετλος καλούμενος, οὗ καὶ ὕστερον ποιήσομαι μνήμην.
ἐνταῦθα ἀσπίδες κεῖνται χαλκαῖ, καὶ ταῖς μέν ἐστιν ἐπίγραμμα ἀπὸ Σκιωναίων καὶ τῶν ἐπικούρων εἶναι, τὰς δὲ ἐπαληλιμμένας πίσσῃ, μὴ σφᾶς ὅ τε χρόνος λυμήνηται καὶ ὁ ἰός, Λακεδαιμονίων εἶναι λέγεται τῶν ἁλόντων ἐν τῇ Σφακτηρίᾳ νήσῳ.
On the way to the colonnade, which from its paintings they call the Painted Colonnade, there is a bronze Hermes, surnamed Hermes of the Market, and near it a gate. On this gate there is a trophy of a victory gained by the Athenian cavalry over Plistarchus, who commanded the cavalry and the mercenary troops of his brother Cassander.
The first painting in this colonnade represents the Athenians arrayed against the Lacedaemonians at Oenoe in Argolis: the painter has not depicted the heat of battle, when doughty deeds are done: the fight is just beginning, the combatants are still advancing to the encounter. On the middle wall are Theseus and the Athenians fighting the Amazons. It would appear that the intrepidity of the Amazons alone was not abated by reverses ; for though Themiscyra was taken by Hercules, and though afterwards the army which they sent against Athens was destroyed, nevertheless they came to Troy to fight the Athenians and all the Greeks.
Next after the Amazons is a picture of the Greeks after their conquest of Ilium: the kings are gathered together to consult on the outrage offered by Ajax to Cassandra: Ajax himself appears in the picture, also Cassandra and other captive women.
The last painting depicts the combatants at Marathon: the Boeotians of Plataea and all the men of Attica are closing with the barbarians. In this part of the picture the combatants are evenly matched ; but farther on the barbarians are fleeing and pushing each other into the marsh. At the extremity of the picture are the Phoenician ships and the Greeks slaughtering the barbarians who are rushing into the ships. Here, too, are depicted the hero Marathon, after whom the plain was named ; Theseus, seeming to rise out of the earth; and Athena and Hercules; for the people of Marathon, according to their own account, were the first to regard Hercules as a god. Of the combatants the most conspicuous in the painting are Callimachus, who had been chosen to command the Athenians ; Miltiades, one of the generals ; and a hero called Echetlus, of whom I shall afterwards make mention again. 5. In this colonnade are some bronze shields, on some of which there is an inscription stating that they were taken from the Scionians and their allies; but those shields which are smeared with pitch to preserve them from the injurious effects of time and rust, are said to be the shields of the Lacedaemonians who were taken in the island of Sphacteria.
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