πρὸς δὲ τῷ Πλατανιστᾷ καὶ Κυνίσκας ἐστὶν ἡρῷον, θυγατρὸς Ἀρχιδάμου βασιλεύοντος Σπαρτιατῶν· πρώτη δὲ ἱπποτρόφησε γυναικῶν καὶ Ὀλυμπίασι πρώτη νίκην ἀνείλετο ἅρματι. ἔστι δὲ τῆς στοᾶς, ἣ παρὰ τὸν Πλατανιστᾶν πεποίηται, ταύτης ὄπισθεν ἡρῷα, τὸ μὲν Ἀλκίμου, τὸ δὲ Ἐναρσφόρου καὶ ἀφεστηκὸς οὐ πολὺ Δορκέως, τὸ δὲ ἐπὶ τούτῳ Σεβροῦ· παῖδας δὲ Ἱπποκόωντος εἶναι λέγουσιν.
ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ Δορκέως κρήνην τὴν πλησίον τοῦ ἡρῴου Δορκείαν, τὸ δὲ χωρίον τὸ Σέβριον καλοῦσιν ἀπὸ τοῦ Σεβροῦ. τοῦ Σεβρίου δέ ἐστιν ἐν δεξιᾷ μνῆμα Ἀλκμᾶνος, ᾧ ποιήσαντι ᾄσματα οὐδὲν ἐς ἡδονὴν αὐτῶν ἐλυμήνατο τῶν Λακώνων ἡ γλῶσσα, ἥκιστα παρεχομένη τὸ εὔφωνον.
Ἑλένης δὲ ἱερὰ καὶ Ἡρακλέους, τῆς μὲν πλησίον τοῦ τάφου τοῦ Ἀλκμᾶνος, τῷ δὲ ἐγγυτάτω τοῦ τείχους, ἐν αὐτῷ δὲ ἄγαλμα Ἡρακλέους ἐστὶν ὡπλισμένον· τὸ δὲ σχῆμα τοῦ ἀγάλματος διὰ τὴν πρὸς Ἱπποκόωντα καὶ τοὺς παῖδας μάχην γενέσθαι λέγουσι. τὸ δὲ ἔχθος Ἡρακλεῖ φασιν ἐς οἶκον ὑπάρξαι τὸν Ἱπποκόωντος, ὅτι μετὰ τὸν Ἰφίτου θάνατον καθαρσίων ἕνεκα ἐλθόντα αὐτὸν ἐν Σπάρτῃ ἀπηξίωσαν καθῆραι·
προσεγένετο δὲ ἐς τοῦ πολέμου τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ ἄλλο τοιόνδε. Οἰωνὸς ἡλικίαν μὲν μειράκιον, ἀνεψιὸς δὲ Ἡρακλεῖ—Λικυμνίου γὰρ παῖς ἦν τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ τοῦ Ἀλκμήνης—ἀφίκετο ἐς Σπάρτην ἅμα Ἡρακλεῖ· περιιόντι δὲ καὶ θεωμένῳ τὴν πόλιν, ὡς ἐγίνετο κατὰ τοῦ Ἱπποκόωντος τὴν οἰκίαν, ἐνταῦθά οἱ κύων ἐπεφέρετο οἰκουρός. ὁ δὲ τυγχάνει τε ἀφεὶς λίθον ὁ Οἰωνὸς καὶ καταβάλλει τὴν κύνα· ἐπεκθέουσιν οὖν τοῦ Ἱπποκόωντος οἱ παῖδες καὶ ῥοπάλοις τύπτοντες κατεργάζονται τὸν Οἰωνόν.
τοῦτο Ἡρακλέα μάλιστα ἐξηγρίωσεν ἐς Ἱπποκόωντα καὶ τοὺς παῖδας· αὐτίκα δὲ ὡς ὀργῆς εἶχε χωρεῖ σφισιν ἐς μάχην. τότε μὲν δὴ τιτρώσκεται καὶ λαθὼν ἀπεχώρησεν· ὕστερον δὲ ἐξεγένετό οἱ στρατεύσαντι ἐς Σπάρτην τιμωρήσασθαι μὲν Ἱπποκόωντα, τιμωρήσασθαι δὲ καὶ τοὺς παῖδας τοῦ Οἰωνοῦ φόνου. τὸ δὲ μνῆμα τῷ Οἰωνῷ πεποίηται παρὰ τὸ Ἡρακλεῖον.
ἰόντι δὲ ἐκ τοῦ Δρόμου πρὸς ἀνίσχοντα ἥλιον ἀτραπός ἐστιν ἐν δεξιᾷ καὶ Ἀθηνᾶς Ἀξιοποίνου καλουμένης ἱερόν. ὡς γὰρ δὴ ἀμυνόμενος Ἡρακλῆς Ἱπποκόωντα καὶ τοὺς παῖδας μετῆλθε κατʼ ἀξίαν ὧν προυπῆρξεν, ἱερὸν Ἀθηνᾶς ἱδρύεται, Ἀξιοποίνου δὲ ἐπίκλησιν, ὅτι τὰς τιμωρίας οἱ παλαιοὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὠνόμαζον ποινάς. ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἄλλο ἱερὸν Ἀθηνᾶς ἰόντι ἑτέραν ὁδὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ Δρόμου· Θήραν δὲ ἀναθεῖναι τὸν Αὐτεσίωνος τοῦ Τισαμενοῦ τοῦ Θερσάνδρου φασίν, ἡνίκα ἀποικίαν ἔστελλεν ἐπὶ τὴν νῆσον ἣ νῦν ἀπὸ Θήρα τούτου τὸ ὄνομα ἔσχηκε, τὸ δὲ ἀρχαῖον ἐκαλεῖτο Καλλίστη.
πλησίον δέ ἐστιν Ἱπποσθένους ναός, ᾧ γεγόνασιν αἱ πολλαὶ νῖκαι πάλης· σέβουσι δὲ ἐκ μαντεύματος τὸν Ἱπποσθένην ἅτε Ποσειδῶνι τιμὰς νέμοντες. τοῦ ναοῦ δὲ ἀπαντικρὺ πέδας ἐστὶν ἔχων Ἐνυάλιος, ἄγαλμα ἀρχαῖον. γνώμη δὲ Λακεδαιμονίων τε ἐς τοῦτό ἐστιν ἄγαλμα καὶ Ἀθηναίων ἐς τὴν Ἄπτερον καλουμένην Νίκην, τῶν μὲν οὔποτε τὸν Ἐνυάλιον φεύγοντα οἰχήσεσθαί σφισιν ἐνεχόμενον ταῖς πέδαις, Ἀθηναίων δὲ τὴν Νίκην αὐτόθι ἀεὶ μενεῖν οὐκ ὄντων πτερῶν. τόνδε μέν εἰσιν αἱ πόλεις αὗται τὰ ξόανα τὸν τρόπον ἱδρυμέναι καὶ ἐπὶ δόξῃ τοιαύτῃ·
ἐν Σπάρτῃ δὲ λέσχη τέ ἐστι καλουμένη Ποικίλη καὶ ἡρῷα πρὸς αὐτῇ Κάδμου τοῦ Ἀγήνορος τῶν τε ἀπογόνων, Οἰολύκου τοῦ Θήρα καὶ Αἰγέως τοῦ Οἰολύκου. ποιῆσαι δὲ τὰ ἡρῷα λέγουσι Μαῖσιν καὶ Λαίαν τε καὶ Εὐρώπαν, εἶναι δὲ αὐτοὺς Ὑραίου παῖδας τοῦ Αἰγέως. ἐποίησαν δὲ καὶ τῷ Ἀμφιλόχῳ τὸ ἡρῷον, ὅτι σφίσιν ὁ πρόγονος Τισαμενὸς μητρὸς ἦν Δημωνάσσης, ἀδελφῆς Ἀμφιλόχου.
μόνοις δὲ Ἑλλήνων Λακεδαιμονίοις καθέστηκεν Ἥραν ἐπονομάζειν Αἰγοφάγον καὶ αἶγας τῇ θεῷ θύειν. Ἡρακλέα δὲ λέγουσιν ἱδρύσασθαι τὸ ἱερὸν καὶ αἶγας θῦσαι πρῶτον, ὅτι μαχομένῳ οἱ πρὸς Ἱπποκόωντα καὶ τοὺς παῖδας οὐδὲν ἐκ τῆς Ἥρας ἀπήντησεν ἐμπόδιον, ὥσπερ γε ἐπὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἐδόξαζεν ἐναντιοῦσθαί οἱ τὴν θεόν· αἶγας δὲ αὐτὸν θῦσαί φασιν ἱερείων ἀπορήσαντα ἀλλοίων.
τοῦ θεάτρου δὲ οὐ πόρρω Ποσειδῶνός τε ἱερόν ἐστι Γενεθλίου καὶ ἡρῷα Κλεοδαίου τοῦ Ὕλλου καὶ Οἰβάλου. τῶν δὲ Ἀσκληπιείων τὸ ἐπιφανέστατον πεποίηταί σφισι πρὸς τοῖς Βοωνήτοις, ἐν ἀριστερᾷ δὲ ἡρῷον Τηλέκλου· τούτου δὲ καὶ ὕστερον ποιήσομαι μνήμην ἐν τῇ Μεσσηνίᾳ συγγραφῇ. προελθοῦσι δὲ οὐ πολὺ λόφος ἐστὶν οὐ μέγας, ἐπὶ δὲ αὐτῷ ναὸς ἀρχαῖος καὶ Ἀφροδίτης ξόανον ὡπλισμένης. ναῶν δὲ ὧν οἶδα μόνῳ τούτῳ καὶ ὑπερῷον ἄλλο ἐπῳκοδόμηται Μορφοῦς ἱερόν.
ἐπίκλησις μὲν δὴ τῆς Ἀφροδίτης ἐστὶν ἡ Μορφώ, κάθηται δὲ καλύπτραν τε ἔχουσα καὶ πέδας περὶ τοῖς ποσί· περιθεῖναι δέ οἱ Τυνδάρεων τὰς πέδας φασὶν ἀφομοιοῦντα τοῖς δεσμοῖς τὸ ἐς τοὺς συνοικοῦντας τῶν γυναικῶν βέβαιον. τὸν γὰρ δὴ ἕτερον λόγον, ὡς τὴν θεὸν πέδαις ἐτιμωρεῖτο ὁ Τυνδάρεως, γενέσθαι ταῖς θυγατράσιν ἐξ Ἀφροδίτης ἡγούμενος τὰ ὀνείδη, τοῦτον οὐδὲ ἀρχὴν προσίεμαι· ἦν γὰρ δὴ παντάπασιν εὔηθες κέδρου ποιησάμενον ζῴδιον καὶ ὄνομα Ἀφροδίτην θέμενον ἐλπίζειν ἀμύνεσθαι τὴν θεόν.
At Plane-tree Grove is a shrine of the heroine Cynisca, daughter of Archidamus, king of Sparta. She was the first woman who bred horses and gained a chariot victory at Olympia.
Behind the colonnade which is built beside Plane-tree Grove there are shrines of heroes: one of Alcimus, another of Enaraephorus, and not far off one of Dorceus, and next to it one of Sebrus: these are said to have been sons of Hippocoon. From Dorceus the fountain near his shrine gets its name of Dorcea, and the place Sebrium is called after Sebrus. On the right of Sebrium is the tomb of Alcman, the sweetness of whose songs was not impaired by the Laconian dialect, the least musical of languages.
There are sanctuaries of Helen and Hercules. That of Helen is near the grave of Alcman: that of Hercules is close to the city wall, and in it is an armed image of Hercules; the attitude of the image is said to have been suggested by the fight with Hippocoon and his sons. The hatred of Hercules for the house of Hippocoon is said to have originated in this, that when he came to Sparta to be purified after the murder of Iphitus they refused to purify him. The following circumstance also helped to kindle the feud. A boy named Oeonus, a cousin of Hercules (for he was a son of Licymnius, the brother of Alcmena), came to Sparta with Hercules. The lad was going about looking at the town, and had come opposite the house of Hippocoon, when a watch-dog flew at him. Oeonus threw a stone at the dog and knocked him over. So the sons of Hippocoon rushed out and despatched Oeonus with their clubs. This goaded Hercules to fury against Hippocoon and his sons; and, in the heat of passion, he attacked them at once. But he was wounded and slunk away. However, afterwards he marched against Sparta and succeeded in punishing Hippocoon and his sons for the murder of Oeonus. The tomb of Oeonus stands beside the sanctuary of Hercules. 4. Going from the Course eastward you have on the right a path and a sanctuary of Athena, called Athena Serve-them-right. For when Hercules meted out to Hippocoon and his sons the punishment which their wanton aggression had deserved, he founded a sanctuary of Athena with the surname of Serve- them-right (Axiopoinos), because the ancients called punishments poinai. There is also another sanctuary of Athena to which a different road leads from the Course. It is said to have been dedicated by Theras, son of Autesion, son of Tisamenus, son of Thersander, when he was on the point of leading a colony to the island which is now called after him, but which of old was known as Calliste.
Near it is a temple of Hipposthenes, who won so many victories in wrestling. They worship him in obedience to an oracle, paying honours to him as to Poseidon. Opposite this temple is an ancient image of Enyalius in fetters. The notion of the Lacedaemonians about this image is that, being held fast by the fetters, Enyalius will never run away from them; just as the Athenians have a notion about the Victory called Wingless, that she will always stay where she is because she has no wings. That is why Athens and Sparta have set up these wooden images after this fashion.
In Sparta there is a club-room called the Painted Club-room. Beside it there are shrines of heroes, to wit, of Cadmus, son of Agenor, and of his descendants Oeolycus, son of Theras, and Aegeus, son of Oeolycus. They say that the shrines were made by Maesis, Laeas, and Europas, who were sons of Hyraeus, son of Aegeus. They also made the shrine to the hero Amphilochus because their ancestor Tisamenus was a son of Demonassa, sister of Amphilochus.
The Lacedaemonians are the only Greeks who surname Hera Goat-eating, and sacrifice goats to the goddess. They say that Hercules founded the sanctuary and was the first to sacrifice goats, because in the fight with Hippocoon and his sons he had not been hampered by Hera, who had thwarted him, as he fancied, in all his other adventures. And the reason why he sacrificed goats was, they say, because he had no other victims to offer. Not far from the theatre is a sanctuary of Poseidon Genethlius (‘of the race or family’), and shrines of two heroes, Cleodaeus, son of Hyllus, and Oebalus. The most famous of the Spartan sanctuaries of Aesculapius is near the Booneta, and to the left is a shrine of the hero Teleclus. I shall mention him hereafter in treating of Messenia.
A little way farther on is a small hill, on which is an ancient temple with a wooden image of armed Aphrodite. This is the only temple I know that has an upper story: the upper story is sacred to Morpho. Morpho is a surname of Aphrodite: she is seated wearing a veil and with fetters on her feet. They say that Tyndareus put the fetters on her, meaning to symbolise by these bonds the fidelity of women to their husbands. The other explanation, that Tyndareus punished the goddess with fetters because he thought it was she who had brought his daughters to shame, is one that I cannot accept for a moment. It would have been too silly to imagine that by making a cedar-wood doll and dubbing it Aphrodite, he could punish the goddess.
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