Τεγεᾶται δὲ ἐπὶ μὲν Τεγεάτου τοῦ Λυκάονος τῇ χώρᾳ φασὶν ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ γενέσθαι μόνῃ τὸ ὄνομα, τοῖς δὲ ἀνθρώποις κατὰ δήμους εἶναι τὰς οἰκήσεις, Γαρεάτας καὶ Φυλακεῖς καὶ Καρυάτας τε καὶ Κορυθεῖς, ἔτι δὲ Πωταχίδας καὶ Οἰάτας Μανθυρεῖς τε καὶ Ἐχευήθεις· ἐπὶ δὲ Ἀφείδαντος βασιλεύοντος καὶ ἔνατός σφισι δῆμος προσεγένετο Ἀφείδαντες· τῆς δὲ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν πόλεως οἰκιστὴς ἐγένετο Ἄλεος.
Τεγεάταις δὲ παρὲξ ἢ τὰ Ἀρκάδων κοινά, ἐν οἷς ἔστι μὲν ὁ πρὸς Ἰλίῳ πόλεμος, ἔστι δὲ τὰ Μηδικά τε καὶ ἐν Διπαιεῦσιν ὁ πρὸς Λακεδαιμονίους ἀγών, παρὲξ οὖν τῶν καταλελεγμένων ἰδίᾳ Τεγεάταις ἐστὶν αὐτοῖς τοσάδε ἐς δόξαν. τὸν γὰρ ἐν Καλυδῶνι ὗν Ἀγκαῖος ὑπέμεινεν ὁ Λυκούργου τρωθείς, καὶ Ἀταλάντη τοξεύει τὸν ὗν καὶ ἔτυχε πρώτη τοῦ θηρίου· τούτων ἕνεκα αὐτῇ ἡ κεφαλή τε τοῦ ὑὸς καὶ τὸ δέρμα ἀριστεῖα ἐδόθη.
Ἡρακλειδῶν δὲ ἐς Πελοπόννησον κατιόντων Ἔχεμος ὁ Ἀερόπου Τεγεάτης ἐμονομάχησεν ἰδίᾳ πρὸς Ὕλλον, καὶ ἐκράτησε τοῦ Ὕλλου τῇ μάχῃ. Λακεδαιμονίους τε οἱ Τεγεᾶται πρῶτοι Ἀρκάδων σφίσιν ἐπιστρατεύσαντας ἐνίκησαν καὶ αἰχμαλώτους αἱροῦσιν αὐτῶν τοὺς πολλούς.
Τεγεάταις δὲ Ἀθηνᾶς τῆς Ἀλέας τὸ ἱερὸν τὸ ἀρχαῖον ἐποίησεν Ἄλεος· χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον κατεσκευάσαντο οἱ Τεγεᾶται τῇ θεῷ ναὸν μέγαν τε καὶ θέας ἄξιον. ἐκεῖνο μὲν δὴ πῦρ ἠφάνισεν ἐπινεμηθὲν ἐξαίφνης, Διοφάντου παρʼ Ἀθηναίοις ἄρχοντος, δευτέρῳ δὲ ἔτει τῆς ἕκτης καὶ ἐνενηκοστῆς Ὀλυμπιάδος, ἣν Εὐπόλεμος Ἠλεῖος ἐνίκα στάδιον.
ὁ δὲ ναὸς ὁ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν πολὺ δή τι τῶν ναῶν, ὅσοι Πελοποννησίοις εἰσίν, ἐς κατασκευὴν προέχει τὴν ἄλλην καὶ ἐς μέγεθος. ὁ μὲν δὴ πρῶτός ἐστιν αὐτῷ κόσμος τῶν κιόνων Δώριος, ὁ δὲ ἐπὶ τούτῳ Κορίνθιος· ἑστήκασι δὲ καὶ ἐντὸς τοῦ ναοῦ κίονες ἐργασίας τῆς Ἰώνων. ἀρχιτέκτονα δὲ ἐπυνθανόμην Σκόπαν αὐτοῦ γενέσθαι τὸν Πάριον, ὃς καὶ ἀγάλματα πολλαχοῦ τῆς ἀρχαίας Ἑλλάδος, τὰ δὲ καὶ περὶ Ἰωνίαν τε καὶ Καρίαν ἐποίησε.
τὰ δὲ ἐν τοῖς ἀετοῖς ἐστιν ἔμπροσθεν ἡ θήρα τοῦ ὑὸς τοῦ Καλυδωνίου· πεποιημένου δὲ κατὰ μέσον μάλιστα τοῦ ὑὸς τῇ μέν ἐστιν Ἀταλάντη καὶ Μελέαγρος καὶ Θησεὺς Τελαμών τε καὶ Πηλεὺς καὶ Πολυδεύκης καὶ Ἰόλαος, ὃς τὰ πλεῖστα Ἡρακλεῖ συνέκαμνε τῶν ἔργων, καὶ Θεστίου παῖδες, ἀδελφοὶ δὲ Ἀλθαίας, Πρόθους καὶ Κομήτης·
κατὰ δὲ τοῦ ὑὸς τὰ ἕτερα Ἀγκαῖον ἔχοντα ἤδη τραύματα καὶ ἀφέντα τὸν πέλεκυν ἀνέχων ἐστὶν Ἔποχος, παρὰ δὲ αὐτὸν Κάστωρ καὶ Ἀμφιάραος Ὀικλέους, ἐπὶ δὲ αὐτοῖς Ἱππόθους ὁ Κερκυόνος τοῦ Ἀγαμήδους τοῦ Στυμφήλου· τελευταῖος δέ ἐστιν εἰργασμένος Πειρίθους. τὰ δὲ ὄπισθεν πεποιημένα ἐν τοῖς ἀετοῖς Τηλέφου πρὸς Ἀχιλλέα ἐστὶν ἡ ἐν Καΐκου πεδίῳ μάχη.
The Tegeans say that in the time of Tegeates, son of Lycaon, the district alone received its name from him, and that the people dwelt in townships, namely Gareatae, Phylacenses, Caryatae, Corythenses, Potachidae, Oeatae, Manthyrenses, and Echeuethenses ; and in the reign of Aphidas, a ninth township, that of Aphidantes, was added. The founder of the present city was Aleus.
Besides the enterprises which the Tegeans shared with the Arcadians generally, including the Trojan war, the Persian wars, and the battle with the Lacedaemonians at Dipaea, they have the following separate titles to glory. Ancaeus, the son of Lycurgus, wounded though he was, awaited the attack of the Calydonian boar, and Atalanta shot at and was the first to hit the beast; therefore she received the head and skin of the boar as a meed of valour. When the Heraclids returned to Peloponnese, Echemus, son of Aeropus, a Tegean, engaged in single combat with Hyllus and conquered him in the fight. Again, the Tegeans were the first of the Arcadians who, attacked by the Lacedaemonians, defeated them and took most of them prisoners.
The ancient sanctuary of Athena Alea at Tegea was made by Aleus; but in after time the Tegeans constructed a large and stately temple for the goddess. The old sanctuary was destroyed by a sudden fire when Diophantes was archon at Athens, in the second year of the ninety-sixth Olympiad, in which Eupolemus, an Elean, won the foot-race.
The present temple far surpasses all other temples in Peloponnese both in size and style. The first row of columns is Doric, and the next Corinthian: within the temple, too, stand columns of the Ionic order. I learned that the architect was Scopas the Parian, who made images in many places of ancient Greece, and some in Ionia and Caria. On the front gable is the hunt of the Calydonian boar. The boar is set just in the middle. On one side are Atalanta, Meleager, Theseus, Telamon, Peleus, Pollux, and Iolaus, the comrade of Hercules in most of his labours ; and there are also Prothus and Cometes, sons of Thestius and brothers of Althaea. On the other side of the boar is Epochus supporting Ancaeus, who is wounded, and has dropped his axe: beside him are Castor, Amphiaraus, and Oicles, also Hippothus, son of Cercyon, son of Agamedes, son of Stymphalus ; and last of all is Pirithous. On the back gable is represented the fight of Telephus with Achilles in the plain of the Caicus.
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