Ἐπιδαύρου δὲ σταδίους ἑκατὸν ἀπέχει Ζάραξ, ἄλλως μὲν εὐλίμενον χωρίον, τῶν δὲ Ἐλευθερολακώνων μάλιστα τοῦτο ἐκτετρύχωται, ἐπεὶ καὶ Κλεώνυμος ὁ Κλεομένους τοῦ Ἀγησιπόλιδος μόνον τοῦτο τῶν Λακωνικῶν πολισμάτων ἐποίησεν ἀνάστατον· καί μοι τὰ ἐς τὸν Κλεώνυμον ἑτέρωθί ἐστιν εἰρημένα. ἐν Ζάρακι δὲ ἄλλο μὲν οὐδέν, πρὸς δὲ τοῦ λιμένος τῷ πέρατι Ἀπόλλωνος ναός ἐστι καὶ ἄγαλμα κιθάραν ἔχον.
προελθόντι δὲ ἀπὸ Ζάρακος παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν ἑκατόν που στάδια καὶ ἐπιστρέψαντι αὐτόθεν ἐς μεσόγαιαν καὶ ἐπαναβάντι σταδίους ὡς δέκα, Κυφάντων καλουμένων ἐρείπιά ἐστιν, ἐν δὲ αὐτοῖς σπήλαιον ἱερὸν Ἀσκληπιοῦ, λίθου δὲ τὸ ἄγαλμα. ἔστι δὲ καὶ ὕδατος ψυχροῦ κρουνὸς ἐκβάλλων ἐκ πέτρας· Ἀταλάντην θηρεύουσαν ἐνταῦθά φασιν, ὡς ἠνιᾶτο ὑπὸ δίψης, παῖσαι τῇ λόγχῃ τὴν πέτραν καὶ οὕτω ῥυῆναι τὸ ὕδωρ.
Βρασιαὶ δὲ ἐσχάτη μὲν ταύτῃ τῶν Ἐλευθερολακώνων πρὸς θαλάσσῃ ἐστί, Κυφάντων δὲ ἀπέχουσι πλοῦν σταδίων διακοσίων. οἱ δὲ ἄνθρωποι λέγουσιν οἱ ἐνταῦθα, οὐδέσιν ὁμολογοῦντες Ἑλλήνων, ὡς Σεμέλη τέκοι τὸν παῖδα ἐκ Διὸς καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ Κάδμου φωραθεῖσα ἐς λάρνακα αὐτὴ καὶ Διόνυσος ἐμβληθείη· καὶ τὴν λάρνακα ὑπὸ τοῦ κλύδωνος ἐκπεσεῖν φασιν ἐς τὴν σφετέραν, καὶ Σεμέλην μὲν—οὐ γὰρ αὐτὴν περιοῦσαν ἔτι εὑρεῖν—ἐπιφανῶς θάψαι, Διόνυσον δὲ ἀναθρέψαι λέγουσιν.
ἐπὶ τούτῳ δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ τὴν πόλιν, Ὀρειάτας ἐς ἐκεῖνο ὀνομαζομένην, μετονομασθῆναι Βρασιὰς ἐπὶ τῇ ἐκβολῇ τῇ ἐς τὴν γῆν τῆς λάρνακος· ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν τὰ ὑπὸ τοῦ κλύδωνος ἀπωθούμενα ἐς τὴν γῆν ἐκβεβράσθαι καλοῦσιν οἱ πολλοί. Βρασιᾶται δὲ καὶ τάδε ἐπιλέγουσιν, Ἰνώ σφισιν ἐς τὴν χώραν ἀφικέσθαι πλανωμένην, ἐλθοῦσαν δὲ ἐθελῆσαι τοῦ Διονύσου γενέσθαι τροφόν· καὶ ἀποφαίνουσι μὲν τὸ ἄντρον ἔνθα τὸν Διόνυσον ἔθρεψεν Ἰνώ, καλοῦσι δὲ καὶ τὸ πεδίον Διονύσου κῆπον.
ἱερὰ δὲ αὐτόθι τὸ μέν ἐστιν Ἀσκληπιοῦ, τὸ δὲ Ἀχιλλέως, καὶ ἑορτὴν κατὰ ἔτος ἄγουσιν Ἀχιλλεῖ. ἄκρα δέ ἐστιν ἐν ταῖς Βρασιαῖς μικρά, προέχουσα ἠρέμα ἐς τὴν θάλασσαν, καὶ ἐπʼ αὐτῇ χαλκοῖ ποδιαίων ἑστήκασιν οὐ μείζονες, πίλους ἐπὶ ταῖς κεφαλαῖς ἔχοντες, οὐκ οἶδα εἰ Διοσκούρους σφᾶς ἢ Κορύβαντας νομίζουσι· τρεῖς δʼ οὖν εἰσί, τέταρτον δὲ Ἀθηνᾶς ἄγαλμα.
τὰ δὲ ἐν δεξιᾷ Γυθίου Λᾶς ἐστι, θαλάσσης μὲν δέκα στάδια, Γυθίου δὲ τεσσαράκοντα ἀπέχουσα. ᾤκισται δὲ νῦν μὲν Ἰλίου καλουμένου καὶ Ἀσίας καὶ Κνακαδίου, τῶν ὀρῶν τούτων τὸ μεταξὺ ἐπέχουσα, πρότερον δὲ τῆς Ἀσίας τοῦ ὄρους ἔκειτο ἐπὶ τῇ κορυφῇ· καὶ νῦν ἔτι τῆς πόλεώς ἐστι τῆς ἀρχαίας ἐρείπια καὶ πρὸ τῶν τειχῶν ἄγαλμα Ἡρακλέους καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν Μακεδόνων τρόπαιον, οἳ μοῖρα τῆς Φιλίππου στρατιᾶς ἦσαν, ἡνίκα ἐς τὴν Λακωνικὴν ἐσέβαλεν, ἀποτραπόμενοι δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν ἄλλων τὰ παραθαλάσσια ἐλεηλάτουν τῆς χώρας.
ἔστι δὲ ἐν τοῖς ἐρειπίοις ναὸς Ἀθηνᾶς ἐπίκλησιν Ἀσίας, ποιῆσαι δὲ Πολυδεύκην καὶ Κάστορά φασιν ἀνασωθέντας ἐκ Κόλχων· εἶναι γὰρ καὶ Κόλχοις Ἀθηνᾶς Ἀσίας ἱερόν. μετασχόντας μὲν οὖν οἶδα Ἰάσονι τοῦ στόλου τοὺς Τυνδάρεω παῖδας· ὅτι δὲ Ἀθηνᾶν Ἀσίαν τιμῶσιν οἱ Κόλχοι, παρὰ Λακεδαιμονίων ἀκούσας γράφω. τῆς δὲ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν οἰκουμένης πόλεως κρήνη τέ ἐστι πλησίον διὰ τὴν χρόαν τοῦ ὕδατος καλουμένη Γαλακὼ καὶ πρὸς τῇ κρήνῃ γυμνάσιον· Ἑρμοῦ δὲ ἕστηκεν ἄγαλμα ἀρχαῖον.
τῶν δὲ ὀρῶν ἐπὶ μὲν τοῦ Ἰλίου Διονύσου τέ ἐστι καὶ ἐπʼ ἄκρας τῆς κορυφῆς Ἀσκληπιοῦ ναός, πρὸς δὲ τῷ Κνακαδίῳ Κάρνειος καλούμενος Ἀπόλλων. ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ Καρνείου σταδίους προελθόντι ὡς τριάκοντα, ἔστιν ἐν χωρίῳ Ὕψοις ἐν ὅροις ἤδη Σπαρτιατῶν ἱερὸν Ἀσκληπιοῦ καὶ Ἀρτέμιδος ἐπίκλησιν Δαφναίας.
πρὸς θαλάσσῃ δὲ ἐπὶ ἄκρας ναός ἐστι Δικτύννης Ἀρτέμιδος, καί οἱ κατὰ ἔτος ἕκαστον ἑορτὴν ἄγουσι. ταύτης δὲ ἐν ἀριστερᾷ τῆς ἄκρας ποταμὸς ἐκδίδωσιν ἐς θάλασσαν Σμῆνος, ὕδωρ πιεῖν ἡδὺ εἴπερ ἄλλος τις παρασχόμενος ποταμός· ἔχει δὲ ἐν τῷ ὄρει τῷ Ταϋγέτῳ τὰς πηγάς, ἀπέχει δὲ τῆς πόλεως σταδίους οὐ πλέον πέντε.
ἐν δὲ Ἀραΐνῳ καλουμένῳ χωρίῳ τάφος Λᾶ καὶ ἀνδριὰς ἐπὶ τῷ μνήματι ἔπεστι. τοῦτον τὸν Λᾶν οἰκιστὴν εἶναι λέγουσιν οἱ ταύτῃ, καὶ ἀποθανεῖν φασιν ὑπὸ Ἀχιλλέως, Ἀχιλλέα δὲ κατᾶραί σφισιν ἐς τὴν χώραν Ἑλένην παρὰ Τυνδάρεω γυναῖκα αἰτοῦντα. λέγοντι δὲ ἐπʼ ἀληθείᾳ Πάτροκλός ἐστιν ὁ τὸν Λᾶν ἀποκτείνας· οὗτος γὰρ καὶ ὁ μνηστευσάμενός ἐστιν Ἑλένην. καὶ ὅτι μὲν τῶν Ἑλένης μνηστήρων Ἀχιλλεὺς οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν Καταλόγῳ γυναικῶν, μηδὲν τοῦτο ἔστω τεκμήριον οὐκ αἰτῆσαι Ἑλένην αὐτόν·
Ὅμηρος δὲ ἔγραψε μὲν τῆς ποιήσεως ἀρχόμενος ὡς Ἀχιλλεὺς χαριζόμενος τοῖς Ἀτρέως παισὶ καὶ οὐκ ἐνεχόμενος τοῖς ὅρκοις τοῖς Τυνδάρεω παραγένοιτο ἐς Τροίαν, ἐποίησε δὲ ἐν ἄθλοις λέγοντα Ἀντίλοχον ὡς Ὀδυσσεὺς πρεσβύτερός ἐστιν αὐτοῦ γενεᾷ, τὸν δὲ Ὀδυσσέα πρὸς Ἀλκίνουν περὶ τῶν ἐν Ἅιδου καὶ ἄλλα διηγούμενον καὶ ὅτι Θησέα ἰδεῖν ἐθελήσαι καὶ Πειρίθουν προτέρους ἄνδρας ἢ καθʼ ἡλικίαν τὴν αὑτοῦ· Θησέα δὲ ἴσμεν ἁρπάσαντα Ἑλένην. οὕτως οὐδὲ ἐγχωροῦν ἐστιν ἀρχὴν Ἑλένης μνηστῆρα Ἀχιλλέα γενέσθαι.
A hundred furlongs from Epidaurus is Zarax, a place with a good harbour; but of all the towns of the Free Laconians this is most decayed, for it was the only town in Laconia which was destroyed by Cleonymus, son of Cleomenes, son of Agesipolis. The history of Cleonymus has been given by me elsewhere. There is nothing in Zarax but a temple of Apollo at the end of the harbour with an image holding a lute.
Going on from Zarax beside the sea for about a hundred furlongs, and then turning inland, and going up country for about ten furlongs, you come to the ruins of Cyphanta. Amongst the ruins is a grotto sacred to Aesculapius: the image is of stone. There is also a spring of cold water gushing from a rock. They say that Atalanta was hunting here, and that, being tormented with thirst, she struck the rock with her spear, and so the water flowed out.
Brasiae is the farthest seaside town of the Free Laconians in this direction : it is two hundred furlongs from Cyphanta by sea. The people here say, though nobody else agrees with them, that Semele had a son by Zeus, that being detected by Cadmus she and her infant Dionysus were put into a chest, and that the chest drifted to their shore. Semele, they say, was dead when they found her, so they buried her splendidly ; but Dionysus they brought up. Hence the name of their town, which had been Oreatae before, was changed to Brasiae, because the chest was washed ashore. And of waifs cast up by the sea it is still commonly said that they […]. The people of Brasiae say, too, that in her wanderings Ino came to their country, and desired to be nurse to Dionysus. And they show the cavern where Ino nursed Dionysus, and they call the plain the Garden of Dionysus.
There is here a sanctuary of Aesculapius and one of Achilles, and they hold a festival of Achilles every year. There is a small headland at Brasiae, jutting gently into the sea, and on it stand bronze figures not more than a foot high, with caps on their heads. Whether the people suppose them to be the Dioscuri or the Corybantes I do not know. Anyhow there are three of them; and an image of Athena makes four. 5. On the right of Gythium is Las, distant ten furlongs from the sea and forty from Gythium. The town is now built between the mountains of Ilium, Asia, and Cnacadium, but it used to stand on the top of Mount Asia. There are still some ruins of the old town, and in front of the walls an image of Hercules, and a trophy of victory over the Macedonians. These Macedonians were part of the army with which Philip invaded Laconia: they had straggled from the main body and were harrying the coast. Amongst the ruins is a temple of Athena surnamed Asia: they say that it was made by Pollux and Castor when they came safe back from Colchis, and that there is a sanctuary of Athena Asia in Colchis also. I know that the sons of Tyndareus went on the voyage with Jason; but that the Colchians worship Athena Asia is a statement that I give on the authority of the people of Las, from whom I had it. Near the modern town is a fountain called Galaco (‘milky’) from the colour of the water, and beside the fountain is a gymnasium. There stands also an ancient image of Hermes. On Mount Ilium is a temple of Dionysus, and on the very summit a temple of Aesculapius. At Mount Cnacadium is a sanctuary of Carnean Apollo.
If you go on about thirty furlongs from the sanctuary of Carnean Apollo, you come to a place Hypsa on the Spartan border, where there is a sanctuary of Aesculapius and of Artemis surnamed Daphnaea (‘she of the laurel’). By the sea there is a temple of Artemis Dictynna (‘goddess of nets’) on a cape, and they hold a yearly festival in her honour. To the left of this cape the river Smenus falls into the sea, and the water of the river is sweet to drink, none sweeter. Its sources are in Mount Taygetus, and its distance from Las is not more than five furlongs.
In a place called Arainum there is the grave of Las, with a statue over the tomb. The people here say that this Las was their founder and was slain by Achilles, who landed in their country to ask Helen in marriage from Tyndareus. But to tell the truth, it was Patroclus that killed Las; for it was Patroclus who wooed Helen. To prove that Achilles did not ask Helen in marriage I will not adduce the fact that he is not mentioned among the wooers of Helen in the Catalogue of Women. But at the beginning of his poem Homer says that Achilles went to Troy to please the sons of Atreus, and not because he was bound by the oaths exacted by Tyndareus; and again, in the description of the games Homer represents Antilochus as saying that Ulysses is a generation older than himself, and he represents Ulysses as telling Alcinous in his account of hell that he had wished to see Theseus and Pirithous, men of a former generation ; and we know that Theseus carried off Helen. So it is a sheer impossibility that Achilles can have been a suitor of Helen.
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