ὁ δὲ Δημήτριος ἐν τῇ τοιαύτῃ τύχῃ γεγονὼς ἐπέστειλε τοῖς περὶ τὸν υἱὸν καὶ τοῖς περὶ Ἀθήνας καὶ Κόρινθον ἡγεμόσι καὶ φίλοις μήτε γράμμασιν αὐτοῦ μήτε σφραγῖδι πιστεύειν, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ τεθνηκότος Ἀντιγόνῳ τὰς πόλεις καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ πράγματα διαφυλάττειν.
Demetrius, however, finding himself in this plight, sent word to his son and the friends and commanders who were at Athens and Corinth, bidding them put no trust in letters or seal purporting to be his, but to treat him as dead, and to preserve for Antigonus his cities and the rest of his power.
Ἀντίγονος δὲ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς σύλληψιν πυθόμενος καὶ βαρέως ἐνεγκὼν καὶ πενθίμην ἀναλαβὼν ἐσθῆτα πρός τε τοὺς ἄλλους βασιλεῖς ἔγραψε καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν Σέλευκον, δεόμενος, καὶ πᾶν ὅ τι λοιπὸν ἦν αὐτοῖς παραδιδούς, καὶ πρὸ παντὸς ὁμηρεύειν ἕτοιμος ὢν αὐτὸς ὑπὲρ τοῦ πατρός. καὶ συνεδέοντο ταῦτα πόλεις τε πολλαὶ καὶ δυνάσται πλὴν Λυσιμάχου.
When Antigonus learned of his father’s capture, he was deeply distressed, put on mourning apparel, and wrote to the other kings and especially to Seleucus himself, supplicating him, and offering to surrender to him whatever was left of his own and his father’s possessions, and above everything else volunteering to be a hostage himself for his father. Many cities also and many rulers joined in these supplications.
Λυσίμαχος δὲ καὶ χρήματα πολλὰ πέμπων ὑπισχνεῖτο Σελεύκῳ κτείναντι Δημήτριον. ὁ δὲ ἐκεῖνον μὲν καὶ ἄλλως προβαλλόμενος ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐπὶ τούτῳ μιαρὸν ἡγεῖτο καὶ βάρβαρον, Ἀντιόχῳ δὲ τῷ παιδὶ καὶ Στρατονίκῃ φυλάττων Δημήτριον, ὡς ἐκείνων ἡ χάρις γένοιτο, παρῆγε τὸν χρόνον.
But Lysimachus did not; he sent to Seleucus the promise of a large sum of money if he killed Demetrius. But Seleucus, who had always had a feeling of aversion for Lysimachus, all the more for this proposal thought him abominable and barbarous, and continued to keep Demetrius under watch and ward for Antiochus his son and Stratonicé, that the favour of his release might come from them.
ὁ δὲ Δημήτριος, ὡς ἐν ἀρχῇ τὴν τύχην προσπεσοῦσαν ὑπέμεινε, καὶ ῥᾷον ἤδη φέρειν εἰθίζετο τὰ παρόντα, πρῶτον μὲν ἁμῶς γέ πως ἐκίνει τὸ σῶμα, θήρας, ἐφʼ ὅσον ἦν, καὶ δρόμων ἁπτόμενος, ἔπειτα κατὰ μικρὸν ὄκνου πρὸς αὐτὰ καὶ νωθείας ἐπίμπλατο, καὶ φέρων ἑαυτὸν εἰς πότους καὶ κύβους κατέβαλε καὶ τοῦ χρόνου τὸν πλεῖστον ἐν τούτοις διῆγεν,
But Demetrius, who in the beginning bore up under the misfortune that had come upon him, and presently grew accustomed to it and endured his situation with a better grace, at first, in one way or another, exercised his body, resorting to hunting, so far as he could, or riding; then, little by little, he came to have the greatest indifference and aversion to these sports, took eagerly to drinking and dice, and spent most of his time at these.
εἴτε τοὺς ἐν τῷ νήφειν ἀναλογισμοὺς τῶν παρόντων ἀποδιδράσκων καὶ παρακαλυπτόμενος τῇ μέθῃ τὴν διάνοιαν, εἴτε συγγνοὺς ἑαυτῷ τοῦτον εἶναι τὸν βίον, ὃν ἔκπαλαι ποθῶν καὶ διώκων ἄλλως ὑπʼ ἀνοίας καὶ κενῆς δόξης ἐπλάζετο καὶ πολλὰ μὲν ἑαυτῷ, πολλὰ δὲ ἑτέροις πράγματα παρεῖχεν, ἐν ὅπλοις καὶ στόλοις καὶ στρατοπέδοις τὸ ἀγαθὸν ζητῶν, ὃ νῦν ἐν ἀπραγμοσύνῃ καὶ σχολῇ καὶ ἀναπαύσει μὴ προσδοκήσας ἀνεύρηκε.
This was either because he sought escape from the thoughts on his present condition which tormented him when he was sober, and tried to smother his reflections in drunkenness; or because he had convinced himself that this was the real life, which he had long desired and striven to attain, but had foolishly missed it through folly and empty ambition, thereby bringing many troubles upon himself, and many upon others; he had sought in arms and fleets and armies to find the highest good, but now, to his surprise, had discovered it in idleness and leisure and repose.
τί γὰρ ἄλλο τῶν πολέμων καὶ τῶν κινδύνων πέρας ἐστὶ τοῖς φαύλοις βασιλεῦσι, κακῶς καὶ ἀνοήτως διακειμένοις, οὐχ ὅτι μόνον τρυφὴν καὶ ἡδονὴν ἀντὶ τῆς ἀρετῆς καὶ τοῦ καλοῦ διώκουσιν, ἀλλʼ ὅτι μηδὲ ἥδεσθαι μηδὲ τρυφᾶν ὡς ἀληθῶς ἴσασιν; ὁ δʼ οὖν Δημήτριος ἔτος τρίτον ἐν τῇ Χερρονήσῳ καθειργμένος ὑπʼ ἀργίας καὶ πλησμονῆς καὶ οἴνου νοσήσας ἀπέθανεν, ἔτη τέσσαρα καὶ πεντήκοντα βεβιωκώς.
For what other end than this can worthless kings seek to attain by their wars and perils? Wicked and foolish indeed are they, not only because they seek after luxury and pleasure instead of virtue and honour, but also because they do not even know how to enjoy real pleasure or true luxury. So, then, Demetrius, after an imprisonment of three years in the Syrian Chersonese, through inactivity and surfeit of food and wine, fell sick and died, in the fifty-fifth year of his life.
καὶ Σέλευκος ἤκουσέ τε κακῶς καὶ μετενόησεν οὐ μετρίως ἐν ὑποψίᾳ τὸν Δημήτριον θέμενος τότε, καὶ μηδὲ Δρομιχαίτην, ἄνδρα βάρβαρον Θρᾷκα, μιμησάμενος οὕτω φιλανθρώπως καὶ βασιλικῶς ἁλόντι Λυσιμάχῳ χρησάμενον.
Seleucus was in ill repute for this, and repented him bitterly for having cherished such suspicions against Demetrius, and for allowing himself to be outdone even by Dromichaetes, a barbarous Thracian, who had given Lysimachus, his captive, a treatment so humane and royal.
ἔσχε μέντοι καὶ τὰ περὶ τὴν ταφὴν αὐτοῦ τραγικήν τινα καὶ θεατρικὴν διάθεσιν. ὁ γὰρ υἱὸς Ἀντίγονος, ὡς ᾔσθετο τὰ λείψανα κομιζόμενα, πάσαις ἀναχθεὶς ταῖς ναυσὶν ἐπὶ νήσων ἀπήντησε· καὶ δεξάμενος εἰς τὴν μεγίστην τῶν ναυαρχίδων ἔθετο τὴν ὑδρίαν χρυσήλατον οὖσαν.
Moreover, there was something dramatic and theatrical even in the funeral ceremonies of Demetrius. For his son Antigonus, when he learned that his remains had been sent home, put to sea with his entire fleet and met them off the islands. They were given to him in a golden urn, and he placed them in the largest of his admiral’s ships.
αἱ δὲ πόλεις αἷς προσεῖχον, τοῦτο μὲν στεφάνους ἐπέφερον τῇ ὑδρίᾳ, τοῦτο δὲ ἄνδρας ἐν σχήματι πενθίμῳ συνθάψοντας καὶ συμπαραπέμψοντας ἀπέστελλον. εἰς δὲ Κόρινθον τοῦ στόλου καταπλέοντος ἥ τε κάλπις ἐκ πρύμνης περιφανὴς ἑωρᾶτο πορφύρᾳ βασιλικῇ καὶ διαδήματι κεκοσμημένη, καὶ παρειστήκεισαν ἐν ὅπλοις νεανίσκοι δορυφοροῦντες. ὁ δὲ τῶν τότε αὐλητῶν ἐλλογιμώτατος Ξενόφαντος ἐγγὺς καθεζόμενος προσηύλει τῶν μελῶν τὸ ἱερώτατον·
Of the cities where the fleet touched in its passage, some brought garlands to adorn the urn, others sent men in funeral attire to assist in escorting it home and burying it. When the fleet put in at Corinth, the cinerary vase was conspicuous on the vessel’s poop, adorned with royal purple and a king’s diadem, and young men stood about it in arms as a bodyguard. Moreover, the most celebrated flute-player then living, Xenophantus, sat near, and with the most solemn melody upon his flute accompanied the rowers;
καὶ πρὸς τοῦτο τῆς εἰρεσίας ἀναφερομένης μετὰ ῥυθμοῦ τινος, ἀπήντα ψόφος, ὥσπερ ἐν κοπετῷ, ταῖς τῶν αὐλημάτων περιόδοις· τὸν δὲ πλεῖστον οἶκτον καὶ ὀλοφυρμὸν αὐτὸς ὁ Ἀντίγονος τοῖς ἠθροισμένοις ἐπὶ τὴν θάλασσαν ὀφθεὶς ταπεινὸς καὶ δεδακρυμένος παρέσχεν. ἐπενεχθεισῶν δὲ τιμῶν καὶ στεφάνων περὶ Κόρινθον εἰς Δημητριάδα κομίσας ἔθηκε τὰ λείψανα, πόλιν ἐπώνυμον ἐκείνου, συνοικισθεῖσαν ἐκ μικρῶν τῶν περὶ τὴν Ἰωλκὸν πολιχνίων.
to this melody the oars kept perfect time, and their splashing, like funereal beatings of the breast, answered to the cadences of the flute-tones. But the most pity and lamentation among those who had come in throngs to the sea-shore was awakened by the sight of Antigonus himself, who was bowed down and in tears. After garlands and other honours had been bestowed upon the remains at Corinth, they were brought by Antigonus to Demetrias for burial, a city named after his father, who had settled it from the small villages about Iolcus.
ἀπέλιπε δὲ γενεὰν ὁ Δημήτριος Ἀντίγονον μὲν ἐκ Φίλας καὶ Στρατονίκην, δύο δὲ Δημητρίους, τὸν μὲν Λεπτόν, ἐξ Ἰλλυρίδος γυναικός, τὸν δὲ ἄρξαντα Κυρήνης ἐκ Πτολεμαΐδος, ἐκ δὲ Δηϊδαμείας Ἀλέξανδρον, ὃς ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ κατεβίωσε. λέγεται δὲ καὶ Κόρραγον υἱὸν ἐξ Εὐρυδίκης αὐτῷ γενέσθαι. κατέβη δὲ ταῖς διαδοχαῖς τὸ γένος αὐτοῦ βασιλεῦον εἰς Περσέα τελευταῖον, ἐφʼ οὗ Ῥωμαῖοι Μακεδονίαν ὑπηγάγοντο. διηγωνισμένου δὲ τοῦ Μακεδονικοῦ δράματος ὥρα τὸ Ῥωμαϊκὸν ἐπεισαγαγεῖν.
The children left by Demetrius were these: Antigonus and Stratonicé, by Phila; two named Demetrius, one who was surnamed the Thin, by a woman of Illyria, and one who ruled Cyrené, by Ptolemaïs; and, by Deïdameia, Alexander, who lived and died in Egypt. It is said also that he had a son named Corrhagus, by Eurydicé. His line came down in a succession of kings to Perseus, the last, in whose reign the Romans subdued Macedonia. And now that the Macedonian play has been performed, let us introduce the Roman.
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