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Herodotus, Histories 1.52.1 · 1.52.1

Gifts for Amphiaraus

Ταῦτα μὲν ἐς Δελφοὺς ἀπέπεμψε, τῷ δὲ Ἀμφιάρεῳ, πυθόμενος αὐτοῦ τήν τε ἀρετὴν καὶ τὴν πάθην, ἀνέθηκε σάκος τε χρύσεον πᾶν ὁμοίως καὶ αἰχμὴν στερεὴν πᾶσαν χρυσέην, τὸ ξυστὸν τῇσι λόγχῃσι ἐὸν ὁμοίως χρύσεον· τὰ ἔτι καὶ ἀμφότερα ἐς ἐμὲ ἦν κείμενα ἐν Θήβῃσι καὶ Θηβέων ἐν τῷ νηῷ τοῦ Ἰσμηνίου Ἀπόλλωνος.

These things he sent to Delphi. But to Amphiaraus, having learned of his courage and his suffering, he dedicated a shield entirely of gold, and a solid spear, all of gold, its shaft likewise gold along with the spearheads. Both of these were still lying, down to my own time, at Thebes, in the temple of Ismenian Apollo among the Thebans.

Word by word

ΤαῦταTaûtathese thingsμὲνmèn—ἐςestoΔελφοὺςDelphoùsDelphiἀπέπεμψεapépempsehe sent,τῷtôi—δὲdèbutἈμφιάρεῳAmphiáreōito Amphiaraus,πυθόμενοςpythómenoshaving learnedαὐτοῦautoûof hisτήνtḗn—τεte—ἀρετὴνaretḕncourageκαὶkaìandτὴνtḕn—πάθηνpáthēnhis fate,ἀνέθηκεanéthēkehe dedicatedσάκοςsákosa shieldτεte—χρύσεονchrýseongoldenπᾶνpânentirelyὁμοίωςhomoíōs—καὶkaìandαἰχμὴνaichmḕnspearστερεὴνstereḕnsolidπᾶσανpâsanentirelyχρυσέηνchryséēnof gold,τὸtòtheξυστὸνxystònshaftτῇσιtêisialong with theλόγχῃσιlónchēisispearheadsἐὸνeònbeingὁμοίωςhomoíōslikewiseχρύσεονchrýseongolden·τὰtàof theseἔτιétistillκαὶkaì—ἀμφότεραamphóterabothἐςesdown toἐμὲemèmy own timeἦνênwereκείμεναkeímenalyingἐνeninΘήβῃσιThḗbēisiThebesκαὶkaìamongΘηβέωνThēbéōnthe ThebansἐνeninτῷtôitheνηῷnēôitempleτοῦtoûofἸσμηνίουIsmēníouIsmenianἈπόλλωνοςApóllōnosApollo.

The setting

Croesus sends a different kind of gift to the hero-oracle Amphiaraus at Thebes: a shield and spear entirely of gold.

A note on this passage

Amphiaraus gets a gift of a different shape from Delphi's: not a vessel for wine but a shield and spear, a soldier's kit remade in gold. Herodotus gives the reason in one tight phrase, tēn te aretēn kai tēn pathēn, "his courage and his suffering," pairing the hero's valor with his fate, swallowed alive into the earth at Thebes rather than dying an ordinary death. A gift of arms suits a warrior-oracle in a way a mixing-bowl never could.

Es eme ēn keimena, "were lying, down to my own time": Herodotus closes the gift-list with a personal claim to have confirmed it himself, or at least to vouch for a report he trusts, generations after Croesus died. It is a small signature he leaves on secondhand history, telling the reader exactly how fresh his information is and where, physically, a skeptic could still go to see the gold for themselves.

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Herodotus, Histories 1.52.1 — The Great Library Project interlinear edition · greatlibraryproject.com/book/herodotus/1.52.1/