κατὰ δὲ τὴν ὁδὸν τὴν εὐθεῖαν διαβάντι τὸν Ἄνιγρον καὶ ἰόντι ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν, ἔστιν οὐ μετὰ πολὺ ἐν δεξιᾷ τῆς ὁδοῦ χωρίον τε ὑψηλὸν καὶ πόλις Σαμία ἐπʼ αὐτοῦ . ταύτῃ Πολυσπέρχοντά φασιν ἄνδρα Αἰτωλὸν ἐπιτειχίσματι ἐπὶ τοὺς Ἀρκάδας χρήσασθαι.
τὰ δὲ ἐρείπια τὰ Ἀρήνης σαφῶς μὲν οὔτε Μεσσηνίων εἶχεν οὐδεὶς οὔτε Ἠλείων ἀποφῆναί μοι· διάφορα δὲ ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς καὶ οὐ κατὰ ταὐτὰ πάρεστι τοῖς ἐθέλουσιν εἰκάζειν, πιθανώτατα δὲ ἐφαίνοντό μοι λέγειν οἱ τὸ Σαμικὸν τὰ παλαιότερα ἔτι καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ τῶν ἡρώων Ἀρήνην καλεῖσθαι νομίζοντες. οὗτοι δὲ καὶ ἔπη τῶν ἐν Ἰλιάδι ἔλεγον· ἔστι δέ τις ποταμὸς Μινυήιος εἰς ἅλα βάλλων / ἐγγύθεν Ἀρήνης. /
τὰ δὲ ἐρείπια ταῦτα πλησιαίτατά ἐστι τοῦ Ἀνίγρου. καὶ Ἀρήνην μὲν ἀμφισβητοίης ἂν μὴ ὀνομασθῆναι τὸ Σαμικόν, τῷ δὲ ποταμῷ Ἀνίγρῳ Μινυήιον τὸ ὄνομα εἶναι τὸ ἀρχαῖον ὡμολογήκασιν οἱ Ἀρκάδες. ὅρον δὲ Ἠλείοις πρὸς τὴν Μεσσηνίαν τῆς Νέδας τὰ ἐπὶ θαλάσσῃ γενέσθαι τις πείθοιτο ἂν ὁμοῦ τῇ ἐς Πελοπόννησον Ἡρακλειδῶν καθόδῳ.
μετὰ δὲ τὸν Ἄνιγρον ὁδεύσαντι ἐπὶ μακρότερον διὰ χωρίου τὰ πλείονα ὑποψάμμου καὶ ἔχοντος δένδρα πίτυς ἀγρίας, ὀπίσω ἐς ἀριστερὰ Σκιλλοῦντος ὄψει ἐρείπια. τῶν μὲν δὴ πόλεων ἦν τῶν ἐν τῇ Τριφυλίᾳ καὶ Σκιλλοῦς· ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ πολέμου τοῦ Πισαίων πρὸς Ἠλείους ἐπίκουροί τε Πισαίων οἱ Σκιλλούντιοι καὶ διάφοροι τοῖς Ἠλείοις ἦσαν ἐκ τοῦ φανεροῦ, καὶ σφᾶς οἱ Ἠλεῖοι τούτων ἕνεκα ἐποίησαν ἀναστάτους.
Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ ὕστερον Σκιλλοῦντα ἀποτεμόμενοι τῆς Ἠλείας Ξενοφῶντι ἔδοσαν τῷ Γρύλου, φυγάδι ἤδη γεγονότι ἐξ Ἀθηνῶν. ἐδιώχθη δὲ ὁ Ξενοφῶν ὑπὸ Ἀθηναίων ὡς ἐπὶ βασιλέα τῶν Περσῶν σφίσιν εὔνουν ὄντα στρατείας μετασχὼν Κύρῳ πολεμιωτάτῳ τοῦ δήμου· καθήμενος γὰρ ἐν Σάρδεσιν ὁ Κῦρος Λυσάνδρῳ τῷ Ἀριστοκρίτου καὶ Λακεδαιμονίοις χρήματα ἀνήλισκεν ἐς τὰς ναῦς. ἀντὶ τούτων μὲν Ξενοφῶντι ἐγένετο φυγή, κατοικήσας δὲ ἐν Σκιλλοῦντι τέμενός τε καὶ ἱερὸν καὶ ναὸν Ἀρτέμιδι ᾠκοδομήσατο Ἐφεσίᾳ.
παρέχεται δὲ ὁ Σκιλλοῦς καὶ ἄγρας θηρίων, ὑῶν τε ἀγρίων καὶ ἐλάφων· καὶ τὴν γῆν τὴν Σκιλλουντίαν Σελινοῦς ποταμὸς διέξεισιν. οἱ δὲ Ἠλείων ἐξηγηταὶ κομίσασθαί τε αὖθις Σκιλλοῦντα Ἠλείους ἔλεγον, καὶ Ξενοφῶντα, ὅτι ἔλαβε παρὰ Λακεδαιμονίων τὴν γῆν, κριθῆναι μὲν ἐν τῇ Ὀλυμπικῇ βουλῇ, τυχόντα δὲ παρὰ Ἠλείων συγγνώμης ἀδεῶς ἐν Σκιλλοῦντι οἰκῆσαι. καὶ δὴ καὶ ὀλίγον ἀπωτέρω τοῦ ἱεροῦ μνῆμά τε ἐδείκνυτο καὶ τῆς Πεντελῆσίν ἐστι λιθοτομίας εἰκὼν ἐπὶ τῷ τάφῳ· εἶναι δὲ αὐτὸ Ξενοφῶντος λέγουσιν οἱ προσοικοῦντες.
κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν ὁδόν, πρὶν ἢ διαβῆναι τὸν Ἀλφειόν, ἔστιν ὄρος ἐκ Σκιλλοῦντος ἐρχομένῳ πέτραις ὑψηλαῖς ἀπότομον· ὀνομάζεται δὲ Τυπαῖον τὸ ὄρος. κατὰ τούτου τὰς γυναῖκας Ἠλείοις ἐστὶν ὠθεῖν νόμος, ἢν φωραθῶσιν ἐς τὸν ἀγῶνα ἐλθοῦσαι τὸν Ὀλυμπικὸν ἢ καὶ ὅλως ἐν ταῖς ἀπειρημέναις σφίσιν ἡμέραις διαβᾶσαι τὸν Ἀλφειόν. οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ ἁλῶναι λέγουσιν οὐδεμίαν, ὅτι μὴ Καλλιπάτειραν μόνην· εἰσὶ δὲ οἳ τὴν αὐτὴν ταύτην Φερενίκην καὶ οὐ Καλλιπάτειραν καλοῦσιν.
αὕτη προαποθανόντος αὐτῇ τοῦ ἀνδρός, ἐξεικάσασα αὑτὴν τὰ πάντα ἀνδρὶ γυμναστῇ, ἤγαγεν ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν τὸν υἱὸν μαχούμενον· νικῶντος δὲ τοῦ Πεισιρόδου, τὸ ἔρυμα ἐν ᾧ τοὺς γυμναστὰς ἔχουσιν ἀπειλημμένους, τοῦτο ὑπερπηδῶσα ἡ Καλλιπάτειρα ἐγυμνώθη. φωραθείσης δὲ ὅτι εἴη γυνή, ταύτην ἀφιᾶσιν ἀζήμιον καὶ τῷ πατρὶ καὶ ἀδελφοῖς αὐτῆς καὶ τῷ παιδὶ αἰδῶ νέμοντες—ὑπῆρχον δὴ ἅπασιν αὐτοῖς Ὀλυμπικαὶ νῖκαι—, ἐποίησαν δὲ νόμον ἐς τὸ ἔπειτα ἐπὶ τοῖς γυμνασταῖς γυμνοὺς σφᾶς ἐς τὸν ἀγῶνα ἐσέρχεσθαι.
Crossing the Anigrus and following the straight road that leads to Olympia, you soon see on the right of the road a high place and a city Samia standing on it. This city is said to have been used by Polysperchon, an Aetolian, as a stronghold from which to annoy the Arcadians.
None of the Messenians or Eleans could point out to me with certainty the ruins of Arene. The subject is one on which those who choose to do so may indulge in a variety of conjectures. The most plausible account seemed to me to be that in ancient times and in the heroic age Samicum was called Arene. Those who gave this explanation quoted the verses in the Iliad ; — There is a river Minyeius falling into the sea Fast by Arene. These ruins are very near to the Anigrus. And though it may be questioned whether Samicum was once called Arene, the Arcadians are agreed that the ancient name of the river Anigrus was Minyeius. We may suppose that the Neda, where it approaches the sea, became the boundary of Elis on the side of Messenia at the time when the Heraclids returned to Peloponnese. 3. Leaving the Anigrus behind and journeying for some distance through a sandy district where wild pine-trees grow, you will see behind you on the left the ruins of Scillus. Scillus was another of the cities in Triphylia; but in the war of the Pisans against the Eleans, the people of Scillus were allies of the Pisans and open enemies of the Eleans, and therefore the Eleans destroyed their city. 4. The Lacedaemonians afterwards severed Scillus from Elis and gave it to Xenophon, son of Grylus, then an exile from Athens. Xenophon was banished by the Athenians for joining Cyrus, the deadly foe of the Athenian democracy, in a campaign against the Persian king, who was a friend of Athens. For while Cyrus resided at Sardes, he supplied Lysander, son of Aristocritus, and the Lacedaemonians with money to be spent on their fleet. Therefore Xenophon was banished. He settled in Scillus, and had a sacred precinct and a temple built in honour of Ephesian Artemis. Scillus contains game, to wit, wild boars and deer; and the river Selinus flows through the district. The Elean guides said that the Eleans recovered Scillus, and that Xenophon was tried before the Olympic Council for receiving the land from the Lacedaemonians, but being pardoned by the Eleans he dwelt securely in Scillus. Moreover, a little way from the sanctuary a tomb was shown, with a statue of Pentelic marble on the grave. The neighbours say it is the tomb of Xenophon. 5. On the road to Olympia, before you cross the Alpheus, there is a precipitous mountain with lofty cliffs as you come from Scillus. The mountain is named Typaeum. It is a law of Elis to cast down from this mountain any women who shall be found to have come to the Olympic games, or even to have crossed the Alpheus on the forbidden days. They say, however, that no woman was ever caught doing so save only Callipatira, or Pherenice, as she is called by others. Her husband being dead, she disguised herself completely as a trainer, and brought her son Pisirodus to Olympia to compete in the games. Pisirodus being victorious, Callipatira leaped over the barrier within which the trainers are enclosed, and in doing so exposed her person. Though her sex was thus discovered, they let her go free out of respect for her father, her brothers, and her son, all of whom had gained Olympic victories. But they made a law that for the future trainers must enter the lists naked.
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