ἐνταῦθα Ἀθηνᾶ πεποίηται τὸν Σιληνὸν Μαρσύαν παίουσα, ὅτι δὴ τοὺς αὐλοὺς ἀνέλοιτο, ἐρρῖφθαι σφᾶς τῆς θεοῦ βουλομένης. —τούτων πέραν, ὧν εἴρηκα, ἐστὶν ἡ λεγομένη Θησέως μάχη πρὸς τὸν ταῦρον τὸν Μίνω καλούμενον, εἴτε ἀνὴρ εἴτε θηρίον ἦν ὁποῖον κεκράτηκεν ὁ λόγος· τέρατα γὰρ πολλῷ καὶ τοῦδε θαυμασιώτερα καὶ καθʼ ἡμᾶς ἔτικτον γυναῖκες.
κεῖται δὲ καὶ Φρίξος ὁ Ἀθάμαντος ἐξενηνεγμένος ἐς Κόλχους ὑπὸ τοῦ κριοῦ· θύσας δὲ αὐτὸν ὅτῳ δὴ θεῷ, ὡς δὲ εἰκάσαι τῷ Λαφυστίῳ καλουμένῳ παρὰ Ὀρχομενίοις, τοὺς μηροὺς κατὰ νόμον ἐκτεμὼν τὸν Ἑλλήνων ἐς αὐτοὺς καιομένους ὁρᾷ. κεῖνται δὲ ἑξῆς ἄλλαι τε εἰκόνες καὶ Ἡρακλέους· ἄγχει δέ, ὡς λόγος ἔχει, τοὺς δράκοντας. Ἀθηνᾶ τέ ἐστιν ἀνιοῦσα ἐκ τῆς κεφαλῆς τοῦ Διός. ἔστι δὲ καὶ ταῦρος ἀνάθημα τῆς βουλῆς τῆς ἐν Ἀρείῳ πάγῳ, ἐφʼ ὅτῳ δὴ ἀνέθηκεν ἡ βουλή·
πολλὰ δʼ ἄν τις ἐθέλων εἰκάζοι. λέλεκται δέ μοι καὶ πρότερον ὡς Ἀθηναίοις περισσότερόν τι ἢ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐς τὰ θεῖά ἐστι σπουδῆς· πρῶτοι μὲν γὰρ Ἀθηνᾶν ἐπωνόμασαν Ἐργάνην, πρῶτοι δʼ ἀκώλους Ἑρμᾶς ἀνέθεσαν, ὁμοῦ δέ σφισιν ἐν τῷ ναῷ †σπουδαίων δαίμων ἐστίν. ὅστις δὲ τὰ σὺν τέχνῃ πεποιημένα ἐπίπροσθε τίθεται τῶν ἐς ἀρχαιότητα ἡκόντων, καὶ τάδε ἔστιν οἱ θεάσασθαι. κράνος ἐστὶν ἐπικείμενος ἀνὴρ Κλεοίτου, καί οἱ τοὺς ὄνυχας ἀργυροῦς ἐνεποίησεν ὁ Κλεοίτας· ἔστι δὲ καὶ Γῆς ἄγαλμα ἱκετευούσης ὗσαί οἱ τὸν Δία, εἴτε αὐτοῖς ὄμβρου δεῆσαν Ἀθηναίοις εἴτε καὶ τοῖς πᾶσιν Ἕλλησι συμβὰς αὐχμός. ἐνταῦθα καὶ Τιμόθεος ὁ Κόνωνος καὶ αὐτὸς κεῖται Κόνων· Πρόκνην δὲ τὰ ἐς τὸν παῖδα βεβουλευμένην αὐτήν τε καὶ τὸν Ἴτυν ἀνέθηκεν Ἀλκαμένης. πεποίηται δὲ καὶ τὸ φυτὸν τῆς ἐλαίας Ἀθηνᾶ καὶ κῦμα ἀναφαίνων Ποσειδῶν·
καὶ Διός ἐστιν ἄγαλμα τό τε Λεωχάρους καὶ ὁ ὀνομαζόμενος Πολιεύς, ᾧ τὰ καθεστηκότα ἐς τὴν θυσίαν γράφων τὴν ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς λεγομένην αἰτίαν οὐ γράφω. τοῦ Διὸς τοῦ Πολιέως κριθὰς καταθέντες ἐπὶ τὸν βωμὸν μεμιγμένας πυροῖς οὐδεμίαν ἔχουσι φυλακήν· ὁ βοῦς δέ, ὃν ἐς τὴν θυσίαν ἑτοιμάσαντες φυλάσσουσιν, ἅπτεται τῶν σπερμάτων φοιτῶν ἐπὶ τὸν βωμόν. καλοῦσι δέ τινα τῶν ἱερέων βουφόνον, ὃς κτείνας τὸν βοῦν καὶ ταύτῃ τὸν πέλεκυν ῥίψας—οὕτω γάρ ἐστίν οἱ νόμος— οἴχεται φεύγων· οἱ δὲ ἅτε τὸν ἄνδρα ὃς ἔδρασε τὸ ἔργον οὐκ εἰδότες, ἐς δίκην ὑπάγουσι τὸν πέλεκυν. ταῦτα μὲν τρόπον τὸν εἰρημένον δρῶσιν· ἐς δὲ τὸν ναὸν ὃν Παρθενῶνα ὀνομάζουσιν, ἐς τοῦτον ἐσιοῦσιν
ὁπόσα ἐν τοῖς καλουμένοις ἀετοῖς κεῖται, πάντα ἐς τὴν Ἀθηνᾶς ἔχει γένεσιν, τὰ δὲ ὄπισθεν ἡ Ποσειδῶνος πρὸς Ἀθηνᾶν ἐστιν ἔρις ὑπὲρ τῆς γῆς· αὐτὸ δὲ ἔκ τε ἐλέφαντος τὸ ἄγαλμα καὶ χρυσοῦ πεποίηται. μέσῳ μὲν οὖν ἐπίκειταί οἱ τῷ κράνει Σφιγγὸς εἰκών—ἃ δὲ ἐς τὴν Σφίγγα λέγεται, γράψω προελθόντος ἐς τὰ Βοιώτιά μοι τοῦ λόγου—, καθʼ ἑκάτερον δὲ τοῦ κράνους γρῦπές εἰσιν ἐπειργασμένοι.
τούτους τοὺς γρῦπας ἐν τοῖς ἔπεσιν Ἀριστέας ὁ Προκοννήσιος μάχεσθαι περὶ τοῦ χρυσοῦ φησιν Ἀριμασποῖς τοῖς ὑπὲρ Ἰσσηδόνων· τὸν δὲ χρυσόν, ὃν φυλάσσουσιν οἱ γρῦπες, ἀνιέναι τὴν γῆν· εἶναι δὲ Ἀριμασποὺς μὲν ἄνδρας μονοφθάλμους πάντας ἐκ γενετῆς, γρῦπας δὲ θηρία λέουσιν εἰκασμένα, πτερὰ δὲ ἔχειν καὶ στόμα ἀετοῦ. καὶ γρυπῶν μὲν πέρι τοσαῦτα εἰρήσθω·
τὸ δὲ ἄγαλμα τῆς Ἀθηνᾶς ὀρθόν ἐστιν ἐν χιτῶνι ποδήρει καί οἱ κατὰ τὸ στέρνον ἡ κεφαλὴ Μεδούσης ἐλέφαντός ἐστιν ἐμπεποιημένη· καὶ Νίκην τε ὅσον τεσσάρων πηχῶν, ἐν δὲ τῇ χειρί δόρυ ἔχει, καί οἱ πρὸς τοῖς ποσὶν ἀσπίς τε κεῖται καὶ πλησίον τοῦ δόρατος δράκων ἐστίν· εἴη δʼ ἂν Ἐριχθόνιος οὗτος ὁ δράκων. ἔστι δὲ τῷ βάθρῳ τοῦ ἀγάλματος ἐπειργασμένη Πανδώρας γένεσις. πεποίηται δὲ Ἡσιόδῳ τε καὶ ἄλλοις ὡς ἡ Πανδώρα γένοιτο αὕτη γυνὴ πρώτη· πρὶν δὲ ἢ γενέσθαι Πανδώραν οὐκ ἦν πω γυναικῶν γένος. ἐνταῦθα εἰκόνα ἰδὼν οἶδα Ἀδριανοῦ βασιλέως μόνου, καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἔσοδον Ἰφικράτους ἀποδειξαμένου πολλά τε καὶ θαυμαστὰ ἔργα.
τοῦ ναοῦ δέ ἐστι πέραν Ἀπόλλων χαλκοῦς, καὶ τὸ ἄγαλμα λέγουσι Φειδίαν ποιῆσαι· Παρνόπιον δὲ καλοῦσιν, ὅτι σφίσι παρνόπων βλαπτόντων τὴν γῆν ἀποτρέψειν ὁ θεὸς εἶπεν ἐκ τῆς χώρας. καὶ ὅτι μὲν ἀπέτρεψεν ἴσασι, τρόπῳ δὲ οὐ λέγουσι ποίῳ. τρὶς δὲ αὐτὸς ἤδη πάρνοπας ἐκ Σιπύλου τοῦ ὄρους οὐ κατὰ ταὐτὰ οἶδα φθαρέντας, ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν ἐξέωσε βίαιος ἐμπεσὼν ἄνεμος, τοὺς δὲ ὕσαντος τοῦ θεοῦ καῦμα ἰσχυρὸν καθεῖλεν ἐπιλαβόν, οἱ δὲ αἰφνιδίῳ ῥίγει καταληφθέντες ἀπώλοντο.
Here Athena is represented striking Marsyas the Silenus, because he picked up the flutes when the goddess had meant that they should be thrown away.
Over against the works I have mentioned is the legendary fight of Theseus with the bull, which was called the bull of Minos, whether this bull was a man or, as the prevalent tradition has it, a beast ; for even in our own time women have given birth to much more marvellous monsters than this. Here, too, is Phrixus, son of Athamas, represented as he appeared after being carried away by the ram to the land of the Colchians: he has sacrificed the ram to some god, apparently to him whom the Orchomenians call Laphystian; and having cut off the thighs according to the Greek custom, he is looking at them burning. Among the statues which stand next in order is one of Hercules strangling the serpents according to the story; and one of Athena rising from the head of Zeus. There is also a bull set up by the Council of the Areopagus for some reason or other: one might make many guesses on the subject if one chose to do so. 3. I observed before that the zeal of the Athenians in matters of religion exceeds that of all other peoples. Thus they were the first to give Athena the surname of the Worker, and to make images of Hermes without limbs; . . . and in the temple with them is a Spirit of the Zealous. He who prefers the products of art to mere antiquities should observe the following :—There is a man wearing a helmet, a work of Cleoetas, who has inwrought the man’s nails of silver. There is also an image of Earth praying Zeus to rain on her, either because the Athenians themselves needed rain, or because there was a drought all over Greece. Here also is a statue of Timotheus, son of Conon, and a statue of Conon himself. A group representing Procne and Itys, at the time when Procne has taken her resolution against the boy, was dedicated by Alcamenes; and Athena is represented exhibiting the olive plant, and Poseidon exhibiting the wave.
There is also an image of Zeus made by Leochares, and another of Zeus surnamed Polieus (‘urban’). I will describe the customary mode of sacrificing to the latter, but without giving the reason assigned for it. They set barley mixed with wheat on the altar of Zeus Polieus, and keep no watch; and the ox which they keep in readiness for the sacrifice goes up to the altar and eats of the grain. They call one of the priests the Ox-slayer, and here he throws away the axe (for such is the custom), and flees away ; and they, as if they did not know the man who did the deed, bring the axe to trial. Such is their mode of procedure.
All the figures in the gable over the entrance to the temple called the Parthenon relate to the birth of Athena. The back gable contains the strife of Poseidon with Athena for the possession of the land. The image itself is made of ivory and gold. Its helmet is surmounted in the middle by a figure of a sphinx (I will tell the story of the sphinx when I come to treat of Boeotia), and on either side of the helmet are griffins wrought in relief.
Aristeas of Proconnesus says in his poem that these griffins fight for the gold with the Arimaspians who dwell beyond the Issedonians, and that the gold which the griffins guard is produced by the earth. He says, too, that the Arimaspians are all one-eyed men from birth, and that the griffins are beasts like lions, but with the wings and beak of an eagle. So much for the griffins.
The image of Athena stands upright, clad in a garment that reaches to her feet: on her breast is the head of Medusa wrought in ivory. She holds a Victory about four cubits high, and in the other hand a spear. At her feet lies a shield, and near the spear is a serpent, which may be Erichthonius. On the pedestal of the image is wrought in relief the birth of Pandora. Hesiod and other poets have told how this Pandora was the first woman, and how before the birth of Pandora womankind as yet was not. The only statue I saw there was that of the Emperor Hadrian; and at the entrance there is a statue of Iphicrates, who did many marvellous deeds.
Over against the temple is a bronze Apollo: they say the image was made by Phidias. They call it Locust Apollo, because, when locusts blasted the land, the god said he would drive them out of the country. And they know that he drove them out, but how he did it they do not say. I have myself known locusts to disappear from Mount Sipylus three several times in different ways. Once they were swept away by a storm that broke over them: once they were destroyed by intense heat following after rain; and once they were caught in a sudden cold and perished. All this I have seen happen to them.
Cite This Text