Herodotus, Histories 1.51.4 · 1.51.4
A Delphian's flattery
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ἔστι γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο Κροίσου, ἐπέγραψε δὲ τῶν τις Δελφῶν Λακεδαιμονίοισι βουλόμενος χαρίζεσθαι, τοῦ ἐπιστάμενος τὸ οὔνομα οὐκ ἐπιμνήσομαι. ἀλλʼ ὁ μὲν παῖς, διʼ οὗ τῆς χειρὸς ῥέει τὸ ὕδωρ, Λακεδαιμονίων ἐστί, οὐ μέντοι τῶν γε περιρραντηρίων οὐδέτερον.
This too is Croesus's gift. One of the Delphians inscribed it, wanting to do the Spartans a favor; I know his name but will not give it. But the boy through whose hand the water flows is indeed a Spartan dedication, though neither of the basins is.
Word by word
The setting
Herodotus explains the false inscription: a Delphian, not Croesus, put the Spartans' name on the basin to win their favor.
A note on this passage
Herodotus holds a name back on purpose. Tou epistamenos to ounoma ouk epimnēsomai, "knowing his name, I will not mention it," is a small, pointed act of discretion: he knows exactly who forged the claim and chooses silence instead of exposure, which is itself a kind of judgment. The motive he does give, boulomenos charizesthai, "wanting to do a favor," shows how much local prestige a Delphian could buy by crediting Sparta, the richest and most powerful patron of the sanctuary.
The correction in the second sentence is almost forensic. The bronze or marble pais, "boy," that pours the water really is Spartan-made, but oudeteron, "neither" of the basins is, gold or silver. Herodotus separates the true part of the claim from the false part piece by piece, as if daring a reader to go to Delphi and check the joints between statue and basin for themselves.
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