οἱ δὲ Ῥειτοὶ καλούμενοι ῥεῦμα μόνον παρέχονται ποταμῶν, ἐπεὶ τό γε ὕδωρ θάλασσά ἐστί σφισι· πείθοιτο δὲ ἄν τις καὶ ὡς ἀπὸ τοῦ Χαλκιδέων Εὐρίπου ῥέουσιν ὑπὸ τῆς γῆς ἐς θάλασσαν κοιλοτέραν ἐμπίπτοντες. λέγονται δὲ οἱ Ῥειτοὶ Κόρης ἱεροὶ καὶ Δήμητρος εἶναι, καὶ τοὺς ἰχθῦς ἐξ αὐτῶν τοῖς ἱερεῦσιν ἔστιν αἱρεῖν μόνοις. οὗτοι τὸ ἀρχαῖον, ὡς ἐγὼ πυνθάνομαι, πρὸς Ἀθηναίους τοὺς ἄλλους ὅροι τῆς γῆς Ἐλευσινίοις ἦσαν, καὶ διαβᾶσι τοὺς Ῥειτοὺς πρῶτος ᾤκει
Κρόκων, ἔνθα καὶ νῦν ἔτι βασίλεια καλεῖται Κρόκωνος. τοῦτον Ἀθηναῖοι τὸν Κρόκωνα Κελεοῦ θυγατρί συνοικῆσαι Σαισάρᾳ λέγουσι· λέγουσι δὲ οὐ πάντες, ἀλλʼ ὅσοι τοῦ δήμου τοῦ Σκαμβωνιδῶν εἰσιν· ἐγὼ δὲ Κρόκωνος μὲν ἀνευρεῖν τάφον οὐχ οἷός τε ἐγενόμην, τὸ δὲ Εὐμόλπου μνῆμα κατὰ ταὐτὰ Ἐλευσινίοις ἀπέφαινον καὶ Ἀθηναῖοι. τοῦτον τὸν Εὔμολπον ἀφικέσθαι λέγουσιν ἐκ Θρᾴκης Ποσειδῶνος παῖδα ὄντα καὶ Χιόνης· τὴν δὲ Χιόνην Βορέου θυγατέρα τοῦ ἀνέμου καὶ Ὠρειθυίας φασὶν εἶναι. Ὁμήρῳ δὲ ἐς μὲν τὸ γένος ἐστὶν οὐδὲν αὐτοῦ πεποιημένον, ἐπονομάζει δὲ ἀγήνορα ἐν τοῖς ἔπεσι τὸν Εὔμολπον.
γενομένης δὲ Ἐλευσινίοις μάχης πρὸς Ἀθηναίους ἀπέθανε μὲν Ἐρεχθεὺς Ἀθηναίων βασιλεύς, ἀπέθανε δὲ Ἰμμάραδος Εὐμόλπου· καταλύονται δὲ ἐπὶ τοῖσδε τὸν πόλεμον, ὡς Ἐλευσινίους ἐς τὰ ἄλλα Ἀθηναίων κατηκόους ὄντας ἰδίᾳ τελεῖν τὴν τελετήν. τὰ δὲ ἱερὰ τοῖν θεοῖν Εὔμολπος καὶ αἱ θυγατέρες δρῶσιν αἱ Κελεοῦ, καλοῦσι δὲ σφᾶς Πάμφως τε κατὰ ταὐτὰ καὶ Ὅμηρος Διογένειαν καὶ Παμμερόπην καὶ τρίτην Σαισάραν· τελευτήσαντος δὲ Εὐμόλπου Κήρυξ νεώτερος λείπεται τῶν παίδων, ὃν αὐτοὶ Κήρυκες θυγατρὸς Κέκροπος Ἀγλαύρου καὶ Ἑρμοῦ παῖδα εἶναι λέγουσιν, ἀλλʼ οὐκ Εὐμόλπου.
ἔστι δὲ Ἱπποθόωντος ἡρῷον, ἀφʼ οὗ τὴν φυλὴν ὀνομάζουσι, καὶ πλησίον Ζάρηκος. τοῦτον μαθεῖν παρὰ Ἀπόλλωνι μουσικήν φασιν, ἐγὼ δὲ ξένον μὲν ἀφικόμενον ἐς τὴν γῆν Λακεδαιμόνιόν τε εἶναι δοκῶ καὶ Ζάρακα ἐν τῇ Λακωνικῇ πόλιν ἀπὸ τούτου πρὸς θαλάσσῃ καλεῖσθαι· εἰ δέ τις Ζάρηξ ἐπιχώριος Ἀθηναίοις ἥρως, οὐδὲν ἐς αὐτὸν ἔχω λέγειν.
—ῥεῖ δὲ Κηφισὸς πρὸς Ἐλευσῖνι βιαιότερον παρεχόμενος τοῦ προτέρου ῥεῦμα· καὶ παρʼ αὐτῷ καλοῦσιν Ἐρινεόν, λέγοντες τὸν Πλούτωνα ὅτε ἥρπασε τὴν Κόρην καταβῆναι ταύτῃ. πρὸς τούτῳ τῷ Κηφισῷ λῃστὴν Πολυπήμονα ὄνομα, Προκρούστην δὲ ἐπίκλησιν, Θησεὺς ἀπέκτεινεν.
Ἐλευσινίοις δὲ ἔστι μὲν Τριπτολέμου ναός, ἔστι δὲ Προπυλαίας Ἀρτέμιδος καὶ Ποσειδῶνος Πατρός, φρέαρ τε καλούμενον Καλλίχορον, ἔνθα πρῶτον Ἐλευσινίων αἱ γυναῖκες χορὸν ἔστησαν καὶ ᾖσαν ἐς τὴν θεόν. τὸ δὲ πεδίον τὸ Ῥάριον σπαρῆναι πρῶτον λέγουσι καὶ πρῶτον αὐξῆσαι καρπούς, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο οὐλαῖς ἐξ αὐτοῦ χρῆσθαί σφισι καὶ ποιεῖσθαι πέμματα ἐς τὰς θυσίας καθέστηκεν. ἐνταῦθα ἅλως καλουμένη Τριπτολέμου καὶ βωμὸς δείκνυται·
τὰ δὲ ἐντὸς τοῦ τείχους τοῦ ἱεροῦ τό τε ὄνειρον ἀπεῖπε γράφειν, καὶ τοῖς οὐ τελεσθεῖσιν, ὁπόσων θέας εἴργονται, δῆλα δήπου μηδὲ πυθέσθαι μετεῖναί σφισιν. Ἐλευσῖνα δὲ ἥρωα, ἀφʼ οὗ τὴν πόλιν ὀνομάζουσιν, οἱ μὲν Ἑρμοῦ παῖδα εἶναι καὶ Δαείρας Ὠκεανοῦ θυγατρὸς λέγουσι, τοῖς δέ ἐστι πεποιημένα Ὤγυγον εἶναι πατέρα Ἐλευσῖνι· οἱ γὰρ ἀρχαῖοι τῶν λόγων ἅτε οὐ προσόντων σφίσιν ἐπῶν ἄλλα τε πλάσασθαι δεδώκασι καὶ μάλιστα ἐς τὰ γένη τῶν ἡρώων.
ἐκ δὲ Ἐλευσῖνος τραπομένοις ἐπὶ Βοιωτῶν, ἐστὶν ὅμορος Ἀθηναίοις ἡ Πλαταιίς. πρότερον μὲν γὰρ Ἐλευθερεῦσιν ὅροι πρὸς τὴν Ἀττικὴν ἦσαν· προσχωρησάντων δὲ Ἀθηναίοις τούτων, οὕτως ἤδη Βοιωτίας ὁ Κιθαιρών ἐστιν ὅρος. προσεχώρησαν δὲ Ἐλευθερεῖς οὐ πολέμῳ βιασθέντες, ἀλλὰ πολιτείας τε ἐπιθυμήσαντες παρὰ Ἀθηναίων καὶ κατʼ ἔχθος τὸ Θηβαίων. ἐν τούτῳ τῷ πεδίῳ ναός ἐστι Διονύσου, καὶ τὸ ξόανον ἐντεῦθεν Ἀθηναίοις ἐκομίσθη τὸ ἀρχαῖον· τὸ δὲ ἐν Ἐλευθεραῖς τὸ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν ἐς μίμησιν ἐκείνου πεποίηται.
ἀπωτέρω δὲ ὀλίγον σπήλαιόν ἐστιν οὐ μέγα, καὶ παρʼ αὐτὸ ὕδατος πηγὴ ψυχροῦ· λέγεται δὲ ἐς μὲν τὸ σπήλαιον ὡς Ἀντιόπη τεκοῦσα κατάθοιτο ἐς αὐτὸ τοὺς παῖδας, περὶ δὲ τῆς πηγῆς τὸν ποιμένα εὑρόντα τοὺς παῖδας ἐνταῦθα σφᾶς λοῦσαι πρῶτον ἀπολύσαντα τῶν σπαργάνων. Ἐλευθερῶν δὲ ἦν μὲν ἔτι τοῦ τείχους, ἦν δὲ καὶ οἰκιῶν ἐρείπια· δήλη δὲ τούτοις ἐστὶ πόλις ὀλίγον ὑπὲρ τοῦ πεδίου πρὸς τῷ Κιθαιρῶνι οἰκισθεῖσα.
What are called the Rhiti only resemble rivers in that they flow, for their water is salt. One might suppose that they flow under ground from the Chalcidian Euripus, falling into a lower sea. The Rhiti are said to be sacred to the Maid and Demeter; and the priests alone are allowed to catch the fish in them. The Rhiti were of old, as I am apprised, the boundary between the Eleusinians and the rest of the Athenians.
Across the Rhiti the first dweller was Crocon, at the place which is still called the palace of Crocon. The Athenians say that this Crocon married Saesara, daughter of Celeus ; not all of them, however, say so, but only those who are of the township of Scambonidae. I could not find the grave of Crocon, but Eleusinians and Athenians agreed in pointing out the tomb of Eumolpus.
They say that this Eumolpus came from Thrace, and that he was a son of Poseidon and Chione, who is said to have been a daughter of the North Wind and Orithyia. Homer says nothing of the lineage of Eumolpus, but in his verses calls him ‘manly.’ In a battle between the Eleusinians and the Athenians, there fell Erechtheus, king of Athens, and Immaradus, son of Eumolpus ; and peace was made on these terms: the Eleusinians were to perform the mysteries by themselves, but were in all other respects to be subject to the Athenians. The sacred rites of the two goddesses were celebrated by Eumolpus and the daughters of Celeus: Pamphos and Homer agree in calling these damsels Diogenia, Pammerope, and Saesara. On Eumolpus’ death, Ceryx, the younger of his sons, was left. But the Ceryces themselves say that Ceryx was a son of Hermes by Aglaurus, daughter of Cecrops, and not a son of Eumolpus.
There is a shrine of the hero Hippothoon, after whom they name the tribe; and hard by is a shrine of the hero Zarex. They say that this Zarex learned music from Apollo. I believe that he was a Lacedaemonian, and came as a stranger into the country, and that the city of Zarax, on the sea-coast of Laconia, is called after him. If the Athenians have a native hero Zarex, I know nothing about him.
At Eleusis flows the Cephisus, a more impetuous stream than the Cephisus mentioned before. Beside it is a place which they call Erineus. They say that Pluto, when he carried off the Maid, descended here. At this Cephisus a robber named Polypemon, and surnamed Procrustes, was slain by Theseus.
The Eleusinians have a temple of Triptolemus, and another of Artemis of the Portal and of Father Poseidon, and a well called Callichorum, where the Eleusinian women first danced and sang in honour of the goddess. They say that the Rarian plain was the first to be sown and the first to bear crops, and therefore it is their custom to take the sacrificial barley and to make the cakes for the sacrifices out of its produce. Here is shown what is called the threshing-floor of Triptolemus and the altar. But my dream forbade me to describe what is within the wall of the sanctuary ; and surely it is clear that the uninitiated may not lawfully hear of that from the sight of which they are debarred.
The hero Eleusis, after whom they name the city, is said by some to be a son of Hermes and of Daira, daughter of Ocean; but others have made him the son of Ogygus. For the old legends, being unencumbered by genealogies, left free scope for fiction, especially in the pedigrees of heroes.
Beyond Eleusis, in the direction of Boeotia, the Athenian territory marches with the Plataean. Formerly Eleutherae was the limit of Boeotia on the side of Attica; but when the Eleutherians cast in their lot with Athens, Cithaeron became the boundary of Boeotia. The accession of Eleutherae to Athens was the result, not of conquest, but partly of a desire to share the Athenian citizenship, and partly of a hatred of Thebes. In this plain there is a temple of Dionysus: it was from here that the old wooden image was brought to Athens: the image now in Eleutherae is a copy of it.
A little farther off is a cave of no great size, and beside it is a spring of cold water. It is said that when Antiope had brought forth, she placed the babes in the cave; and that the shepherd, finding the babes at the spring, stript them of their swaddling clothes, and washed them here for the first time. Ruins of the town-wall of Eleutherae and of the houses still exist. From these remains it is clear that the city was built a little above the plain beside Mount Cithaeron.
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