μετὰ δὲ Νύκτιμον ἀποθανόντα Ἀρκὰς ἐξεδέξατο ὁ Καλλιστοῦς τὴν ἀρχήν· καὶ τόν τε ἥμερον καρπὸν ἐσηγάγετο οὗτος παρὰ Τριπτολέμου καὶ τὴν ποίησιν ἐδίδαξε τοῦ ἄρτου καὶ ἐσθῆτα ὑφαίνεσθαι καὶ ἄλλα, τὰ ἐς ταλασίαν μαθὼν παρὰ Δρίστα. ἀπὸ τούτου δὲ βασιλεύσαντος Ἀρκαδία τε ἀντὶ Πελασγίας ἡ χώρα καὶ ἀντὶ Πελασγῶν Ἀρκάδες ἐκλήθησαν οἱ ἄνθρωποι.
συνοικῆσαι δὲ οὐ θνητῇ γυναικὶ αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ νύμφῃ Δρυάδι ἔλεγον· Δρυάδας γὰρ δὴ καὶ Ἐπιμηλιάδας, τὰς δὲ αὐτῶν ἐκάλουν Ναΐδας, καὶ Ὁμήρῳ γε ἐν τοῖς ἔπεσι Ναΐδων νυμφῶν μάλιστά ἐστι μνήμη. τὴν δὲ νύμφην ταύτην καλοῦσιν Ἐρατώ, καὶ ἐκ ταύτης φασὶν Ἀρκάδι Ἀζᾶνα καὶ Ἀφείδαντα γενέσθαι καὶ Ἔλατον·
ἐγεγόνει δὲ αὐτῷ πρότερον ἔτι Αὐτόλαος νόθος. τοῖς δὲ παισίν, ὡς ηὐξήθησαν, διένειμεν Ἀρκὰς τριχῇ τὴν χώραν, καὶ ἀπὸ μὲν Ἀζᾶνος ἡ Ἀζανία μοῖρα ὠνομάσθη· παρὰ τούτων δὲ ἀποικισθῆναι λέγουσιν, ὅσοι περὶ τὸ ἄντρον ἐν Φρυγίᾳ τὸ καλούμενον Στεῦνος καὶ Πέγκαλαν ποταμὸν οἰκοῦσιν. Ἀφείδας δὲ Τεγέαν καὶ τὴν προσεχῆ ταύτης ἔλαχεν· ἐπὶ τούτῳ δὲ καὶ ποιηταὶ καλοῦσιν Ἀφειδάντειον κλῆρον τὴν Τεγέαν.
Ἔλατος δὲ ἔσχε τὸ ὄρος τὴν Κυλλήνην, ἔτι τότε οὖσαν ἀνώνυμον· χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον μετῴκησεν ὁ Ἔλατος ἐς τὴν νῦν καλουμένην Φωκίδα, καὶ τοῖς τε Φωκεῦσιν ἤμυνεν ὑπὸ Φλεγυῶν πολέμῳ πιεζομένοις καὶ Ἐλατείας πόλεως ἐγένετο οἰκιστής. παῖδα δὲ Ἀζᾶνι μὲν Κλείτορα, Ἀφείδαντι δὲ Ἄλεον, Ἐλάτῳ δέ φασιν εἶναι πέντε, Αἴπυτον Περέα Κυλλῆνα Ἴσχυν Στύμφηλον.
ἐπὶ δὲ Ἀζᾶνι τῷ Ἀρκάδος τελευτήσαντι ἆθλα ἐτέθη πρῶτον· εἰ μὲν καὶ ἄλλα, οὐκ οἶδα, ἱπποδρομίας δὲ ἐτέθη. Κλείτωρ μὲν δὴ ὁ Ἀζᾶνος ἐν Λυκοσώρᾳ τε ᾤκει καὶ ἦν τῶν βασιλέων δυνατώτατος καὶ Κλείτορα ᾤκισεν ἀφʼ αὑτοῦ πόλιν, Ἄλεος δὲ εἶχε τὴν πατρῴαν λῆξιν·
ἀπὸ δὲ Ἐλάτου τῶν παίδων Κυλλήνην τὸ ὄρος καλοῦσιν ἀπὸ Κυλλῆνος, καὶ ἀπὸ Στυμφήλου πηγή τε ὀνομάζεται καὶ πόλις Στύμφηλος ἐπὶ τῇ πηγῇ. τὰ δὲ ἐς τὸν θάνατον Ἴσχυος τοῦ Ἐλάτου πρότερον ἔτι ἐν τῇ συγγραφῇ τῇ Ἀργολίδι ἐδήλωσα. παῖδα δὲ Περεῖ ἄρρενα μέν φασιν οὐδένα, Νέαιραν δὲ γενέσθαι θυγατέρα· ταύτην γυναῖκα ἔσχεν Αὐτόλυκος, οἰκῶν μὲν ἐν τῷ ὄρει τῷ Παρνασσῷ, λεγόμενος δὲ Ἑρμοῦ παῖς εἶναι, Δαιδαλίωνος δὲ ὢν τῷ ἀληθεῖ λόγῳ.
Κλείτορι δὲ τῷ Ἀζᾶνος οὐ γενομένων παίδων, ἐς Αἴπυτον Ἐλάτου περιεχώρησεν ἡ Ἀρκάδων βασιλεία· τὸν δὲ Αἴπυτον ἐξελθόντα ἐς ἄγραν θηρίων μὲν τῶν ἀλκιμωτέρων οὐδέν, σὴψ δὲ οὐ προϊδόμενον ἀποκτίννυσι. τὸν δὲ ὄφιν τοῦτον καὶ αὐτός ποτε εἶδον· κατὰ ἔχιν ἐστὶ τὸν μικρότατον, τέφρᾳ ἐμφερής, στίγμασιν οὐ συνεχέσι πεποικιλμένος· κεφαλὴ δέ ἐστιν αὐτῷ πλατεῖα καὶ τράχηλος στενός, γαστέρα δὲ ἔχει μείζονα καὶ οὐρὰν βραχεῖαν· βαδίζει δὲ οὗτός τε καὶ ὄφις ἕτερος ὁ κεράστης καλούμενος ἐνδιδόντες ἐς τὰ πλάγια, ὥσπερ οἱ καρκίνοι.
μετὰ δὲ Αἴπυτον ἔσχεν Ἄλεος τὴν ἀρχήν· Ἀγαμήδης μὲν γὰρ καὶ Γόρτυς οἱ Στυμφήλου τέταρτον γένος ἦσαν ἀπὸ Ἀρκάδος, Ἄλεος δὲ τρίτον ὁ Ἀφείδαντος. Ἄλεος δὲ τῇ τε Ἀθηνᾷ τῇ Ἀλέᾳ τὸ ἱερὸν ᾠκοδόμησεν ἐν Τεγέᾳ τὸ ἀρχαῖον καὶ αὐτῷ κατεσκεύαστο αὐτόθι ἡ βασιλεία· Γόρτυς δὲ ὁ Στυμφήλου πόλιν Γόρτυνα ᾤκισεν ἐπὶ ποταμῷ· καλεῖται δὲ Γορτύνιος καὶ ὁ ποταμός. Ἀλέῳ δὲ ἄρσενες μὲν παῖδες Λυκοῦργός τε καὶ Ἀμφιδάμας καὶ Κηφεύς, θυγάτηρ δὲ ἐγένετο Αὔγη.
ταύτῃ τῇ Αὔγῃ τῷ Ἑκαταίου λόγῳ συνεγίνετο Ἡρακλῆς, ὁπότε ἀφίκοιτο ἐς Τεγέαν· τέλος δὲ καὶ ἐφωράθη τετοκυῖα ἐκ τοῦ Ἡρακλέους, καὶ αὐτὴν ὁ Ἄλεος ἐσθέμενος ὁμοῦ τῷ παιδὶ ἐς λάρνακα ἀφίησεν ἐς θάλασσαν, καὶ ἡ μὲν ἀφίκετο ἐς Τεύθραντα δυνάστην ἄνδρα ἐν Καΐκου πεδίῳ καὶ συνῴκησεν ἐρασθέντι τῷ Τεύθραντι· καὶ νῦν ἔστι μὲν Αὔγης μνῆμα ἐν Περγάμῳ τῇ ὑπὲρ τοῦ Καΐκου, γῆς χῶμα λίθου περιεχόμενον κρηπῖδι, ἔστι δὲ ἐν τῷ μνήματι ἐπίθημα χαλκοῦ πεποιημένον, γυνὴ γυμνή.
μετὰ δὲ Ἄλιον τελευτήσαντα Λυκοῦργος ὁ Ἀλέου τὴν βασιλείαν πρεσβεῖα ἔσχε· παρέσχετο δὲ ἐς μνήμην Ἀρηίθοον ἄνδρα πολεμικὸν δόλῳ καὶ οὐ σὺν τῷ δικαίῳ κτείνας. γενομένων δὲ αὐτῷ παίδων Ἀγκαίου τε καὶ Ἐπόχου, τὸν μὲν νοσήσαντα ἐπιλαμβάνει τὸ χρεών, Ἀγκαῖος δὲ Ἰάσονί τε τοῦ πλοῦ μετέσχεν ἐς Κόλχους καὶ ὕστερον ὁμοῦ Μελεάγρῳ τὸ ἐν Καλυδῶνι κατεργαζόμενος θηρίον ἀπέθανεν ὑπὸ τοῦ ὑός. Λυκοῦργος μὲν δὴ πορρωτάτω γήρως ἀφίκετο ἐπιδὼν τοὺς παῖδας ἀμφοτέρους τελευτήσαντας·
When Nyctimus died, Arcas, son of Callisto, reigned in his stead. He introduced the cultivation of corn, which he learned from Triptolemus, and taught the people to bake bread, to weave garments, and to spin wool, which last art he acquired from Adristas. After his reign the country was called Arcadia instead of Pelasgia, and the people Arcadians instead of Pelasgians.
They say he mated, not with a mortal woman, but with a Dryad nymph. For some nymphs were called Dryads and Epimeliads, and others Naiads, and Homer mostly mentions the Naiads. This particular nymph was called Erato, and they say that she bore Azas, Aphidas, and Elatus to Arcas, who had previously had a bastard son Autolaus. When his sons grew up, Arcas divided the country between them into three portions. The district of Azania was named after Azas ; and they say that the people in Phrygia who dwell about the cave called Steunos and the river Pencalas, are a colony from Azania. Tegea and the adjoining country fell to the lot of Aphidas; hence poets speak of Tegea as ‘the lot of Aphidas.’
Elatus got Mount Cyllene, which was then nameless ; but afterwards he migrated to the country now known as Phocis. There he helped the Phocians, who were hard put to it by the Phlegyans in war, and he founded the city of Elatea. They say that Azas had a son Clitor, that Aphidas had a son Aleus, and that Elatus had five sons, to wit, Aepytus, Pereus, Cylien, Ischys, and Stymphalus. On the death of Azas, son of Arcas, games were held for the first time; at least there was a horse-race: whether there were other contests or not I do not know. Clitor, son of Azas, dwelt in Lycosura: he was the most powerful of the kings, and founded the city of Clitor, naming it after himself. Aleus possessed his father’s portion. Of the sons of Elatus, Cyllen gave his name to Mount Cyllene; and Stymphalus gave his name to the spring and to the city of Stymphalus, which is beside the spring. The story of the death of Ischys, son of Elatus, has been already told by me in the section on Argolis. Pereus, they say, had no male issue, but he had a daughter Neaera. She married Autolycus, who dwelt on Mount Parnassus, and was reputed to be a son of Hermes, though in truth his father was Daedalion.
Clitor, son of Azas, had no children, so the kingdom of Arcadia devolved on Aepytus, son of Elatus. He, having gone out a-hunting, was killed, not by any of the more powerful beasts, but by a seps, which he had not noticed. I have myself seen this species of snake. It is like a very small adder, is ash-coloured, and spotted irregularly : its head is flat, neck thin, belly large, tail short. Like the crested snake, it moves with a sidelong motion, crab-fashion.
Aepytus was succeeded by Aleus. For whereas Agamedes and Gortys, sons of Stymphalus, were great-grandsons of Arcas, Aleus, son of Aphidas, was his grandson. Aleus built the old sanctuary of Athena Alea at Tegea, which he made the seat of his kingdom. Gortys, son of Stymphalus, founded the city of Gortys on a river which also bears the name Gortynius.
Aleus had three sons, Lycurgus, Aphidamas, and Cepheus, and a daughter Auge. This Auge, according to Hecataeus, had an intrigue with Hercules when the latter came to Tegea. At last it was discovered that she had had a child by Hercules; so her father put her and the child into a chest and threw it into the sea. She arrived at the court of Teuthras, a prince in the valley of the Caicus, who fell in love with and married her. Her tomb is still to be seen at Pergamus on the Caicus: it is a mound of earth enclosed by a stone basement, and surmounted by a bronze figure of a naked woman.
After the death of Aleus the kingdom passed by right of birth to his eldest son Lycurgus, of whom it is recorded that he treacherously murdered a foeman named Areithous. Of his sons Ancaeus and Epochus, the latter fell sick and died, but Ancaeus sailed with Jason to Colchis: afterwards, in despatching the Calydonian boar with Meleager, he was killed by the beast. So Lycurgus lived to a great age, and saw both his sons die before him.
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