Jean-Léon Gérôme, King Candaules (1859)
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Herodotus, Histories 1.47.2 · 1.47.2

The Pythia answers

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ὅ τι μέν νυν τὰ λοιπὰ τῶν χρηστηρίων ἐθέσπισε, οὐ λέγεται πρὸς οὐδαμῶν· ἐν δὲ Δελφοῖσι ὡς ἐσῆλθον τάχιστα ἐς τὸ μέγαρον οἱ Λυδοὶ χρησόμενοι τῷ θεῷ καὶ ἐπειρώτων τὸ ἐντεταλμένον, ἡ Πυθίη ἐν ἑξαμέτρῳ τόνῳ λέγει τάδε.

What the other oracles prophesied is not told by anyone; but at Delphi, as soon as the Lydians entered the shrine to consult the god and asked the appointed question, the Pythia says this in hexameter verse:

Word by word

ὅhówhatτιti—μένmén—νυνnyn—τὰtàtheλοιπὰloipàotherτῶνtôn—χρηστηρίωνchrēstēríōnoraclesἐθέσπισεethéspiseprophesied,οὐounotλέγεταιlégetaitoldπρὸςpròsbyοὐδαμῶνoudamônanyone·ἐνenatδὲdèbutΔελφοῖσιDelphoîsiDelphiὡςhōsasἐσῆλθονesêlthonenteredτάχισταtáchistasoon asἐςesintoτὸtòtheμέγαρονmégaronshrineοἱhoitheΛυδοὶLydoìLydiansχρησόμενοιchrēsómenoito consultτῷtôitheθεῷtheôigodκαὶkaìandἐπειρώτωνepeirṓtōnaskedτὸtòtheἐντεταλμένονentetalménonappointed question,ἡhētheΠυθίηPythíēPythiaἐνeninἑξαμέτρῳhexamétrōihexameterτόνῳtónōiverseλέγειlégeisaysτάδεtádethis.

The setting

Only one of the answers is recorded.

A note on this passage

Herodotus is honest about his gaps: what the other oracles said <em>ou legetai pros oudamōn</em>, "is not told by anyone." He has no source for them, and he does not make one up. What he does have is the Delphic answer, and he stages it: the Lydians barely get through the door of the <em>megaron</em>, the inner shrine, before the Pythia speaks, and the verb jumps into the present tense, <em>legei</em>, "she says."

She speaks in <em>hexametros tonos</em>, the six-beat verse of Homer. Delphic oracles were traditionally given in hexameters, and Herodotus quotes them as verse, so the reader hears the change of voice: prose history stops, and the god talks like an epic poet.

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Herodotus, Histories 1.47.2 — The Great Library Project interlinear edition · greatlibraryproject.com/book/herodotus/1.47.2/