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Athenaeus, The Learned Banqueters (Deipnosophistae) 602c · 602c

Cratinus

Myrtilus — τῶν ἀμφὶ τὸν Χαρίτωνα, προτάξας τοῦ ἑξαμέτρου τὸ πεντάμετρον, καθάπερ ὕστερον καὶ Διονύσιος ὁ Ἀθηναῖος ἐποίησε ὁ ἐπικληθεὶς Χαλκοῦς ἐν τοῖς Ἐλεγείοις. ἐστὶν δὲ ὁ χρησμὸς ὅδε·
the Pythia, quoted by Myrtilus — εὐδαίμων Χαρίτων καὶ Μελάνιππος ἔφυ, θείας ἁγητῆρες ἐφαμερίοις φιλότατος.
Myrtilus — διαβόητα δ’ ἐστὶν καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ Κρατίνῳ τῷ Ἀθηναίῳ γενόμενα· ὃς μειράκιον ⟨ ὢν ⟩ εὔμορφον, Ἐπιμενίδου καθαίροντος τὴν Ἀττικὴν ἀνθρωπείῳ αἵματι διά τινα μύση παλαιά, ὡς ἱστορεῖ Νεάνθης ὁ Κυζικηνὸς

…Chariton and his friend, putting the pentameter before the hexameter, as Dionysius of Athens, nicknamed the Bronze, later did in his Elegies. The oracle is this: “Blessed were Chariton and Melanippus, leaders of divine love for mortals.” Famous too is what happened to Cratinus of Athens. He was a handsome youth, and when Epimenides was purifying Attica with human blood because of some ancient pollutions, as Neanthes of Cyzicus records…

Word by word

Myrtilus

τῶνtônthoseἀμφὶamphìaroundτὸνtòn—ΧαρίτωναCharítōnaChariton,προτάξαςprotáxasputtingτοῦtoûtheἑξαμέτρουhexamétrouhexameterτὸtòtheπεντάμετρονpentámetronpentameter,καθάπερkatháperjust asὕστερονhýsteronlaterκαὶkaì—ΔιονύσιοςDionýsiosDionysiusὁhotheἈθηναῖοςAthēnaîosAthenianἐποίησεepoíēsedidὁho—ἐπικληθεὶςepiklētheìsnicknamedΧαλκοῦςChalkoûsthe BronzeἐνeninτοῖςtoîshisἘλεγείοιςElegeíoisElegies.ἐστὶνestìnisδὲdèandὁhotheχρησμὸςchrēsmòsoracleὅδεhódethis·

the Pythia, quoted by Myrtilus

εὐδαίμωνeudaímōnblessedΧαρίτωνCharítōnCharitonκαὶkaìandΜελάνιπποςMelánipposMelanippusἔφυéphywere,θείαςtheíasdivineἁγητῆρεςhagētêresleadersἐφαμερίοιςephameríoisfor mortalsφιλότατοςphilótatoslove.

Myrtilus

διαβόηταdiabóētafamousδ’d’andἐστὶνestìnisκαὶkaìtooτὰtàwhatἐπὶepìtoΚρατίνῳKratínōiCratinusτῷtôi—ἈθηναίῳAthēnaíōiof Athensγενόμεναgenómenahappened·ὃςhòsheμειράκιονmeirákionyouth⟨ὢνṑnbeing⟩εὔμορφονeúmorphonhandsome,ἘπιμενίδουEpimenídouEpimenidesκαθαίροντοςkathaírontoswas purifyingτὴνtḕn—ἈττικὴνAttikḕnAtticaἀνθρωπείῳanthrōpeíōihumanαἵματιhaímatibloodδιάdiábecause ofτιναtinasomeμύσηmýsēpollutionsπαλαιάpalaiáancient,ὡςhōsasἱστορεῖhistoreîrecordsΝεάνθηςNeánthēsNeanthesὁho—ΚυζικηνὸςKyzikēnòsof Cyzicus

The setting

The oracle reverses the usual elegiac couplet, putting the shorter line first. Epimenides, a Cretan seer, was remembered for cleansing Athens of an old pollution around 600 BC.

A note on this passage

An elegiac couplet normally runs long line, then short. Apollo's verse runs short line first, and Myrtilus, a scholar to the bone, stops to note it.<br><br>Then a darker story. In the usual account Epimenides cleansed Athens with sacrifices and rites (Plutarch, <i>Solon</i> 12). Neanthes adds a human victim, and Myrtilus will admit on the next page that another scholar called the whole tale invented.

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