παγκρατιαστοῦ δὲ ἀνδρὸς τὸν μὲν ἀνδριάντα εἰργάσατο Λύσιππος· ὁ δὲ ἀνὴρ οὗτος ἀνείλετο ἐπὶ παγκρατίῳ νίκην τῶν ἄλλων τε Ἀκαρνάνων καὶ τῶν ἐξ αὐτῆς Στράτου πρῶτος Ξενάρκης τε ἐκαλεῖτο Φιλανδρίδου. Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ ἄρα μετὰ τὴν ἐπιστρατείαν τοῦ Μήδου διετέθησαν πάντων φιλοτιμότατα Ἑλλήνων πρὸς ἵππων τροφάς. χωρὶς γὰρ ἢ ὅσους αὐτῶν κατέλεξα ἤδη, τοσοίδε ἄλλοι τῶν ἐκ Σπάρτης ἱπποτρόφων μετὰ τὴν εἰκόνα ἀνάκεινται τοῦ Ἀκαρνᾶνος ἀθλητοῦ, Ξενάρκης καὶ Λυκῖνος Ἀρκεσίλαός τε καὶ ὁ παῖς τοῦ Ἀρκεσιλάου Λίχας.
Ξενάρκει μὲν δὴ καὶ ἐν Δελφοῖς καὶ ἐν Ἄργει τε ὑπῆρξε καὶ ἐν Κορίνθῳ προσανελέσθαι νίκας· Λυκῖνος δὲ ἀγαγὼν ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν πώλους, καὶ οὐ δοκιμασθέντος ἑνὸς ἐξ αὐτῶν, καθῆκεν ἐς τῶν ἵππων τὸν δρόμον τῶν τελείων τοὺς πώλους καὶ ἐνίκα διʼ αὐτῶν, ἀνέθηκε δὲ καὶ ἀνδριάντας δύο ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν, Μύρωνος τοῦ Ἀθηναίου ποιήματα. τῷ δὲ Ἀρκεσιλάῳ καὶ Λίχᾳ τῷ παιδί, τῷ μὲν αὐτῶν γεγόνασι δύο Ὀλυμπικαὶ νῖκαι, Λίχας δὲ εἰργομένων τηνικαῦτα τοῦ ἀγῶνος Λακεδαιμονίων καθῆκεν ἐπὶ ὀνόματι τοῦ Θηβαίων δήμου τὸ ἅρμα, τὸν δὲ ἡνίοχον νικήσαντα ἀνέδησεν αὐτὸς ταινίᾳ· καὶ ἐπὶ τούτῳ μαστιγοῦσιν αὐτὸν οἱ Ἑλλανοδίκαι, καὶ διὰ τὸν Λίχαν τοῦτον ἡ κατὰ
Ἆγιν βασιλέα ἐπιστρατεία Λακεδαιμονίων ἐγένετο ἐπὶ Ἠλείους καὶ ἐντὸς τῆς Ἄλτεως μάχη. καταπαυσθέντος δὲ τοῦ πολέμου τὴν μὲν εἰκόνα ἐνταῦθα ἔστησε, τὰ δὲ Ἠλείων ἐς τοὺς Ὀλυμπιονίκας γράμματα οὐ Λίχαν, Θηβαίων δὲ τὸν δῆμον ἔχει νενικηκότα.
τοῦ δὲ Λίχα πλησίον μάντις ἕστηκεν Ἠλεῖος Θρασύβουλος Αἰνέου τῶν Ἰαμιδῶν, ὃς καὶ Μαντινεῦσιν ἐμαντεύσατο ἐναντία Λακεδαιμονίων καὶ Ἄγιδος τοῦ Εὐδαμίδου βασιλέως· ἃ δὴ καὶ ἐς πλέον ἐν τῷ λόγῳ τῷ ἐς Ἀρκάδας ἐπέξειμι. τοῦ Θρασυβούλου δὲ τῇ εἰκόνι γαλεώτης πρὸς τὸν ὦμον προσέρπων ἐστὶ τὸν δεξιόν, καὶ κύων ἱερεῖον δὴ παρʼ αὐτῷ κεῖται διατετμημένος τε δίχα καὶ φαίνων τὸ ἧπαρ.
μαντικὴ δὲ ἡ μὲν διʼ ἐρίφων καὶ ἀρνῶν τε καὶ μόσχων ἐκ παλαιοῦ δήλη καθεστῶσά ἐστιν ἀνθρώποις, Κύπριοι δὲ ὡς καὶ ὑσὶν ἐπεξευρόντες ἔστι μαντεύεσθαι, κυσὶ δὲ οὐδένες ἐπί γε μαντικῆς νομίζουσιν οὐδὲν χρᾶσθαι· ἔοικεν οὖν ἰδίαν τινὰ ὁ Θρασύβουλος ἐπὶ σπλάγχνων μαντικὴν κυνείων καταστήσασθαι. οἱ δʼ Ἰαμίδαι καλούμενοι μάντεις γεγόνασιν ἀπὸ Ἰάμου· τὸν δὲ εἶναι παῖδα Ἀπόλλωνος καὶ λαβεῖν μαντικήν φησιν ἐν ᾄσματι Πίνδαρος.
παρὰ δὲ τοῦ Θρασυβούλου τὴν εἰκόνα Τιμοσθένης τε Ἠλεῖος ἕστηκε σταδίου νίκην ἐν παισὶν εἰληφὼς καὶ Μιλήσιος Ἀντίπατρος Κλεινοπάτρου παῖδας κατειργασμένος πύκτας. Συρακοσίων δὲ ἄνδρες, ἄγοντες ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν παρὰ Διονυσίου θυσίαν, τὸν πατέρα τοῦ Ἀντιπάτρου χρήμασιν ἀναπείθουσιν ἀναγορευθῆναί οἱ τὸν παῖδα ἐκ Συρακουσῶν· Ἀντίπατρος δὲ ἐν οὐδενὶ τοῦ τυράννου τὰ δῶρα ἡγούμενος ἀνεῖπεν αὑτὸν Μιλήσιον καὶ ἀνέγραψε τῇ εἰκόνι ὡς γένος τε εἴη Μιλήσιος καὶ Ἰώνων ἀναθείη πρῶτος ἐς Ὀλυμπίαν εἰκόνα.
τούτου μὲν δὴ Πολύκλειτος τὸν ἀνδριάντα εἰργάσατο, τὸν δὲ Τιμοσθένην Εὐτυχίδης Σικυώνιος παρὰ Λυσίππῳ δεδιδαγμένος· ὁ δὲ Εὐτυχίδης οὗτος καὶ Σύροις τοῖς ἐπὶ Ὀρόντῃ Τύχης ἐποίησεν ἄγαλμα, μεγάλας παρὰ τῶν ἐπιχωρίων ἔχον τιμάς.
ἐν δὲ τῇ Ἄλτει παρὰ τὸν τοῦ Τιμοσθένους ἀνδριάντα ἀνάκειται Τίμων καὶ ὁ παῖς τοῦ Τίμωνος Αἴσυπος, παιδίον ἐπὶ ἵππῳ καθήμενον· ἔστι γὰρ δὴ καὶ ἡ νίκη τῷ παιδὶ ἵππου κέλητος, ὁ Τίμων δὲ ἐπὶ ἅρματι ἀνηγορεύθη. τῷ δὲ Τίμωνι εἰργάσατο καὶ τῷ παιδὶ τὰς εἰκόνας Δαίδαλος Σικυώνιος, ὃς καὶ ἐπὶ τῇ Λακωνικῇ νίκῃ τὸ ἐν τῇ Ἄλτει τρόπαιον ἐποίησεν Ἠλείοις.
ἐπίγραμμα δὲ τὸ ἐπὶ τῷ Σαμίῳ πύκτῃ τὸν ἀναθέντα μὲν ὅτι ὁ παιδοτρίβης εἴη Μύκων καὶ ὅτι Σάμιοι τὰ ἐς ἀθλητὰς καὶ ἐπὶ ναυμαχίαις εἰσὶν Ἰώνων ἄριστοι, τάδε μὲν λέγει τὸ ἐπίγραμμα, ἐς δὲ αὐτὸν τὸν πύκτην ἐσήμαινεν οὐδέν.
παρὰ δὲ Μεσσήνιος Δαμίσκος, ὃς δύο γεγονὼς ἔτη καὶ δέκα ἐνίκησεν ἐν Ὀλυμπίᾳ. θαῦμα δὲ εἴπερ ἄλλο τι καὶ τόδε ἐποιησάμην· Μεσσηνίους γὰρ ἐκ Πελοποννήσου φεύγοντας ἐπέλιπεν ἡ περὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα τύχη τὸν Ὀλυμπικόν. ὅτι γὰρ μὴ Λεοντίσκος καὶ Σύμμαχος τῶν ἐπὶ πορθμῷ Μεσσηνίων, ἄλλος γε οὐδεὶς Μεσσήνιος οὔτε Σικελιώτης οὔτʼ ἐκ Ναυπάκτου δῆλός ἐστιν Ὀλυμπίασιν ἀνῃρημένος νίκην· εἶναι δὲ οἱ Σικελιῶται καὶ τούτους τῶν ἀρχαίων Ζαγκλαίων καὶ οὐ Μεσσηνίους φασί.
συγκατῆλθε μέντοι Μεσσηνίοις ἐς Πελοπόννησον καὶ ἡ περὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα τύχη τὸν Ὀλυμπικόν· ἐνιαυτῷ γὰρ ὕστερον τοῦ οἰκισμοῦ τοῦ Μεσσήνης ἀγόντων Ὀλύμπια Ἠλείων ἐνίκα στάδιον παῖδας ὁ Δαμίσκος οὗτος, καί οἱ καὶ πενταθλήσαντι ὕστερον ἐγένοντο ἐν Νεμέᾳ τε νῖκαι καὶ Ἰσθμοῖ.
There is a statue of a pancratiast by Lysippus. This man was the first not only from Stratus, but from the whole of Acarnania, who won a victory in the pancratium ... . he was called [Xenarches], son of Philandrides. It seems that after the invasion of the Medes the Lacedaemonians were keener breeders of horses than all the rest of the Greeks. For besides those I have already enumerated, there are statues of the following Spartan horse-breeders, Xenarches, Lycinus, Arcesilaus, and his son Lichas. Their statues are set up beyond that of the Acarnanian athlete. Xenarches gained other victories also in Delphi, Argos, and Corinth. Lycinus brought foals to Olympia, and one of them being rejected, he entered them for the race of the full-grown horses, and won with them. He dedicated also two statues in Olympia, works of Myron the Athenian. Arcesilaus won two Olympic victories. His son Lichas, because at that time the Lacedaemonians were excluded from the games, entered his chariot in the name of the Theban people; and when his chariot won, Lichas with his own hands tied a ribbon on the charioteer: for this he was whipped by the umpires. It was on Lichas’ account that the Lacedaemonians, in the reign of Agis, marched against the Eleans and fought a battle inside the Altis. At the conclusion of the war he set up the statue here; but in the Elean register of the Olympic victors, not Lichas, but the ‘Theban people is entered as the victor.
Near the statue of Lichas stands the statue of an Elean soothsayer, Thrasybulus, son of Aeneas, one of the Iamids: it was he who divined for the Mantineans at the battle with the Lacedaemonians under King Agis, son of Eudamidas, about which I shall have more to say in treating of Arcadia. On the statue of Thrasybulus a spotted lizard is creeping toward his right shoulder, and a dog (no doubt a sacrificial victim) is lying beside him, cut in two, with its liver exposed. Divination by means of kids and lambs and calves is known to have been practised by mankind from a remote date, and the Cyprians discovered, moreover, how to divine by means of swine; but no people is in the habit of making any use of dogs in divination. It seems, then, that Thrasybulus instituted a mode of divination of his own by means of the inwards of dogs.
The soothsayers who are called Iamids are descended from Iamus, of whom Pindar in a song says that he was a son of Apollo and received the gift of divination from him. 4. Beside the statue of Thrasybulus stands a statue of Timosthenes, an Elean, who won the foot-race for boys, and there is a statue of a Milesian, Antipater, son of Clinopatrus, who vanquished the boys in boxing. Some Syracusans, who were bringing a sacrifice to Olympia from Dionysius, tried to bribe the father of Antipater to let his son be proclaimed as a Syracusan. But Antipater, despising the tyrant’s bribe, proclaimed himself a Milesian, and inscribed on the statue that he was a Milesian by birth, and was the first Ionian who had dedicated a statue at Olympia. The statue of Antipater is by Polyclitus, and that of Timosthenes is by Eutychides, a Sicyonian, a pupil of Lysippus. This Eutychides also made an image of Fortune for the Syrians on the Orontes, and the image is much venerated by the natives. In the Altis, beside the statue of Timosthenes, are statues of Timon and his son Aesypus, the latter a child on horseback. For the boy won the horse-race, but Timon was proclaimed victor in the chariot-race. The statues of Timon and his son are by Daedalus, a Sicyonian, who also made the trophy in the Altis, which commemorates the victory of the Eleans over the Lacedaemonians. The inscription on the statue of the Samian boxer declares that the statue was dedicated by his trainer, Mycon, and that the Samians are the best of the Ionians at athletics and sea-fights ; but about the boxer himself the inscription says not a word. 5. Beside this statue is one of Damiscus, a Messenian, who won a prize at Olympia at the age of twelve. It is a very surprising fact, that while the Messenians were banished from Peloponnese their luck in the Olympic games deserted them. For, except Leontiscus and Symmachus, both from Messene on the Strait, no Messenian, either from Sicily or from Naupactus, is known to have won a victory at Olympia; and the Sicilians say that even Leontiscus and Symmachus were not Messenians, but of the old Zanclean stock. However, when the Messenians returned to Peloponnese their luck in the Olympic games returned with them. For at the Olympic festival, which was held in the year after the foundation of Messene, this Damiscus beat the boys in the foot-race, and afterwards he won victories in the pentathlum at Nemea and the Isthmus.
Cite This Text