οὐ πόρρω δὲ τῆς Ὀρθίας ἐστὶν Εἰλειθυίας ἱερόν· οἰκοδομῆσαι δέ φασιν αὐτὸ καὶ Εἰλείθυιαν νομίσαι θεὸν γενομένου σφίσιν ἐκ Δελφῶν μαντεύματος. Λακεδαιμονίοις δὲ ἀκρόπολις μὲν ἐς ὕψος περιφανὲς ἐξίσχουσα οὐκ ἔστι, καθὰ δὴ Θηβαίοις τε ἡ Καδμεία καὶ ἡ Λάρισα Ἀργείοις· ὄντων δὲ ἐν τῇ πόλει λόφων καὶ ἄλλων, τὸ μάλιστα ἐς μετέωρον ἀνῆκον ὀνομάζουσιν ἀκρόπολιν.
ἐνταῦθα Ἀθηνᾶς ἱερὸν πεποίηται Πολιούχου καλουμένης καὶ Χαλκιοίκου τῆς αὐτῆς. τοῦ δὲ ἱεροῦ τῆς κατασκευῆς Τυνδάρεως καθὰ λέγουσιν ἤρξατο· ἀποθανόντος δὲ ἐκείνου δεύτερα οἱ παῖδες ἐξεργάσασθαι τὸ οἰκοδόμημα ἤθελον, ἀφορμὴ δέ σφισιν ἔμελλε τὰ ἐξ Ἀφιδναίων ἔσεσθαι λάφυρα. προαπολιπόντων δὲ καὶ τούτων, Λακεδαιμόνιοι πολλοῖς ἔτεσιν ὕστερον τόν τε ναὸν ὁμοίως καὶ τὸ ἄγαλμα ἐποιήσαντο Ἀθηνᾶς χαλκοῦν· Γιτιάδας δὲ εἰργάσατο ἀνὴρ ἐπιχώριος. ἐποίησε δὲ καὶ ᾄσματα Δώρια ὁ Γιτιάδας ἄλλα τε καὶ ὕμνον ἐς τὴν θεόν.
ἐπείργασται δὲ τῷ χαλκῷ πολλὰ μὲν τῶν ἄθλων Ἡρακλέους, πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ὧν ἐθελοντὴς κατώρθωσε, Τυνδάρεω δὲ τῶν παίδων ἄλλα τε καὶ ἡ τῶν Λευκίππου θυγατέρων ἁρπαγή· καὶ Ἥφαιστος τὴν μητέρα ἐστὶν ἀπολύων τῶν δεσμῶν. ἐδήλωσα δὲ καὶ ταῦτα, ὁποῖα λέγεται, πρότερον ἔτι ἐν τῇ Ἀτθίδι συγγραφῇ. Περσεῖ δʼ ἐς Λιβύην καὶ ἐπὶ Μέδουσαν ὡρμημένῳ διδοῦσαι νύμφαι δῶρά εἰσι κυνῆν καὶ τὰ ὑποδήματα, ὑφʼ ὧν οἰσθήσεσθαι διὰ τοῦ ἀέρος ἔμελλεν. ἐπείργασται δὲ καὶ τὰ ἐς τὴν Ἀθηνᾶς γένεσιν καὶ Ἀμφιτρίτη καὶ Ποσειδῶν, ἃ δὴ μέγιστα καὶ μάλιστα ἦν ἐμοὶ δοκεῖν θέας ἄξια.
ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἕτερον αὐτόθι Ἀθηνᾶς Ἐργάνης ἱερόν. ἐς δὲ τὴν πρὸς μεσημβρίαν ἰόντι στοὰν Κοσμητᾶ τε ἐπίκλησιν Διὸς ναὸς καὶ Τυνδάρεω πρὸ αὐτοῦ μνῆμά ἐστιν· ἡ δὲ πρὸς δυσμὰς ἔχει τῶν στοῶν ἀετούς τε δύο τοὺς ὄρνιθας καὶ ἴσας ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς Νίκας, Λυσάνδρου μὲν ἀνάθημα, τῶν δὲ ἔργων ὑπόμνημα ἀμφοτέρων, τοῦ τε περὶ Ἔφεσον, ὅτε Ἀντίοχον τὸν Ἀλκιβιάδου κυβερνήτην καὶ Ἀθηναίων τριήρεις ἐνίκησε, καὶ ὕστερον ἐν Αἰγὸς ποταμοῖς καθεῖλεν Ἀθηναίων τὸ ναυτικόν.
ἐν ἀριστερᾷ δὲ τῆς Χαλκιοίκου Μουσῶν ἱδρύσαντο ἱερόν, ὅτι οἱ Λακεδαιμόνιοι τὰς ἐξόδους ἐπὶ τὰς μάχας οὐ μετὰ σαλπίγγων ἐποιοῦντο ἀλλὰ πρός τε αὐλῶν μέλη καὶ ὑπὸ λύρας καὶ κιθάρας κρούσμασιν. ὄπισθεν δὲ τῆς Χαλκιοίκου ναός ἐστιν Ἀφροδίτης Ἀρείας· τὰ δὲ ξόανα ἀρχαῖα εἴπερ τι ἄλλο ἐν Ἕλλησιν.
τῆς Χαλκιοίκου δὲ ἐν δεξιᾷ Διὸς ἄγαλμα Ὑπάτου πεποίηται, παλαιότατον πάντων ὁπόσα ἐστὶ χαλκοῦ· διʼ ὅλου γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν εἰργασμένον, ἐληλασμένου δὲ ἰδίᾳ τῶν μερῶν καθʼ αὑτὸ ἑκάστου συνήρμοσταί τε πρὸς ἄλληλα καὶ ἧλοι συνέχουσιν αὐτὰ μὴ διαλυθῆναι. Κλέαρχον δὲ ἄνδρα Ῥηγῖνον τὸ ἄγαλμα ποιῆσαι λέγουσιν, ὃν Διποίνου καὶ Σκύλλιδος, οἱ δὲ αὐτοῦ Δαιδάλου φασὶν εἶναι μαθητήν. πρὸς δὲ τῷ Σκηνώματι ὀνομαζομένῳ γυναικός ἐστιν εἰκών, Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ Εὐρυλεωνίδα λέγουσιν εἶναι· νίκην δὲ ἵππων συνωρίδι ἀνείλετο Ὀλυμπικήν.
παρὰ δὲ τῆς Χαλκιοίκου τὸν βωμὸν ἑστήκασι δύο εἰκόνες Παυσανίου τοῦ περὶ Πλάταιαν ἡγησαμένου. τὰ δὲ ἐς αὐτὸν ὁποῖα ἐγένετο εἰδόσιν οὐ διηγήσομαι· τὰ γὰρ τοῖς πρότερον συγγραφέντα ἐπʼ ἀκριβὲς ἀποχρῶντα ἦν· ἐπεξελθεῖν δέ σφισιν ἀρκέσομαι. ἤκουσα δὲ ἀνδρὸς Βυζαντίου Παυσανίαν φωραθῆναί τε ἐφʼ οἷς ἐβουλεύετο καὶ μόνον τῶν ἱκετευσάντων τὴν Χαλκίοικον ἁμαρτεῖν ἀδείας κατʼ ἄλλο μὲν οὐδέν, φόνου δὲ ἄγος ἐκνίψασθαι μὴ δυνηθέντα.
ὡς γὰρ δὴ διέτριβε περὶ Ἑλλήσποντον ναυσὶ τῶν τε ἄλλων Ἑλλήνων καὶ αὐτῶν Λακεδαιμονίων, παρθένου Βυζαντίας ἐπεθύμησε· καὶ αὐτίκα νυκτὸς ἀρχομένης τὴν Κλεονίκην—τοῦτο γὰρ ὄνομα ἦν τῇ κόρῃ—κομίζουσιν οἷς ἐπετέτακτο. ἐν τούτῳ δὲ ὑπνωμένον τὸν Παυσανίαν ἐπήγειρεν ὁ ψόφος· ἰοῦσα γὰρ παρʼ αὐτὸν τὸν καιόμενον λύχνον κατέβαλεν ἄκουσα. ἅτε δὲ ὁ Παυσανίας συνειδὼς αὑτῷ προδιδόντι τὴν Ἑλλάδα καὶ διʼ αὐτὸ ἐχόμενος ταραχῇ τε ἀεὶ καὶ δείματι, ἐξέστη καὶ τότε καὶ τὴν παῖδα τῷ ἀκινάκῃ παίει.
τοῦτο τὸ ἄγος οὐκ ἐξεγένετο ἀποφυγεῖν Παυσανίᾳ, καθάρσια παντοῖα καὶ ἱκεσίας δεξαμένῳ Διὸς Φυξίου καὶ δὴ ἐς Φιγαλίαν ἐλθόντι τὴν Ἀρκάδων παρὰ τοὺς ψυχαγωγούς· δίκην δὲ ἣν εἰκὸς ἦν Κλεονίκῃ τε ἀπέδωκε καὶ τῷ θεῷ. Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ ἐκτελοῦντες πρόσταγμα ἐκ Δελφῶν τάς τε εἰκόνας ἐποιήσαντο τὰς χαλκᾶς καὶ δαίμονα τιμῶσιν Ἐπιδώτην, τὸ ἐπὶ Παυσανίᾳ τοῦ Ἱκεσίου μήνιμα ἀποτρέπειν τὸν Ἐπιδώτην λέγοντες τοῦτον.
Not far from the sanctuary of Orthia is a sanctuary of Ilithyia. They say that they built it and recognised Ilithyia as a goddess in obedience to an oracle they received from Delphi.
The Lacedaemonians have not an acropolis rising to a conspicuous height like the Cadmea at Thebes and the Larisa at Argos ; but there are several hills in the city, and the highest of them they name the acropolis.
Here there is a sanctuary of Athena, who is surnamed both Protectress of the City and She of the Brazen House. The construction of the sanctuary was begun, they say, by Tyndareus. After his death his children wished to complete the edifice, and the spoils of Aphidna were destined to furnish the means of carrying it on. But they also left it unfinished, and many years elapsed before the Lacedaemonians had it completed, both the temple and the image of Athena being made of bronze. The artist was Gitiadas, a native of Laconia. He also composed some Doric songs, including a hymn to the goddess. On the bronze are wrought in relief many both of the labours of Hercules, and of the tasks which he voluntarily achieved ; also some of the deeds of the sons of Tyndareus, particularly the rape of the daughters of Leucippus. Hephaestus, too, is portrayed unloosing his mother from her bonds (I narrated this legend in my account of Attica). Perseus, too, is seen setting out for Libya to attack Medusa : the nymphs are giving him the cap and the shoes which were to bear him through the air. The reliefs include also Amphitrite, Poseidon, and the birth of Athena. These last are the largest, and, in my opinion, the best worth seeing.
There is also another sanctuary of Athena here: it is the sanctuary of Athena the Worker. Near the southern colonnade is a temple of Zeus surnamed Orderer, and in front of the temple is the tomb of Tyndareus. The western colonnade has two eagles with two Victories upon them. These were dedicated by Lysander to commemorate his two battles, the battle of Ephesus, in which he beat the Athenian galleys under Antiochus, pilot of Alcibiades, and the later battle of Aegospotami, in which he destroyed the navy of Athens.
On the left of the sanctuary of Athena of the Brazen House they founded a sanctuary of the Muses, because the Lacedaemonians used to march out to battle, not with trumpets blowing, but to the melody of flutes and the harping of lyres and lutes. Behind the sanctuary of Athena of the Brazen House is a temple of Warlike Aphrodite: the wooden images here are as ancient as any in Greece.
On the right of the sanctuary of Athena of the Brazen House is an image of Supreme Zeus, which is the oldest bronze image in existence. For it is not made in one piece, but the parts have been hammered separately, then fitted to each other, and fastened with nails to keep them together. They say that the image was made by Clearchus of Rhegium; some say that Clearchus was a pupil of Dipoenus and Scyllis, others say that he was a pupil of Daedalus himself. Near what is called the Scenoma (‘tent’) is a statue of a woman: the Lacedaemonians say that it represents Euryleonis who won an Olympic victory with a two-horse chariot.
Beside the altar of the Goddess of the Brazen House stand two statues of Pausanias, who commanded at Plataea. His history is well known, and I will not repeat it: the accurate narratives of previous writers are sufficient. I will content myself with supplementing their accounts by what I heard from a man of Byzantium. He said that the cause why the intrigues of Pausanias were detected, and why he alone failed to find protection in the sanctuary of the Goddess of the Brazen House, was simply that he was sullied with an indelible stain of blood.
For when he was at the Hellespont with the allied fleet, he took a fancy for a Byzantine maiden ; and at nightfall Cleonice, for that was the girl’s name, was brought to him by the men to whom his orders had been given. Pausanias, who had meantime been slumbering, was wakened by the noise ; for in approaching him the girl had accidentally upset the light. Now, conscious as he was that he was betraying Greece, Pausanias was haunted by an ever-present sense of uneasiness and alarm. So he started up and stabbed the girl with his sword. This guilt Pausanias was never able to expiate. He tried all sorts of purifications, he offered supplications to Zeus, God of Flight, and he had recourse to the wizards at Phigalia in Arcadia. But all in vain. He paid to Cleonice and the god the penalty of his crime. And at the bidding of the Delphic oracle the Lacedaemonians caused the bronze statues to be made; and they revere a spirit called Epidotes, because they say he averts the wrath which the God of Suppliants cherishes at their treatment of Pausanias.
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