Herodotus, The Histories (ed. A. D. Godley)

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XXXI. When Solon had provoked him by saying that the affairs of Tellus were so fortunate, Croesus asked who he thought was next, fully expecting to win second prize. Solon answered, “Cleobis and Biton. [2] They were of Argive stock, had enough to live on, and on top of this had great bodily strength. Both had won prizes in the athletic contests, and this story is told about them: there was a festival of Hera in Argos, and their mother absolutely had to be conveyed to the temple by a team of oxen. But their oxen had not come back from the fields in time, so the youths took the yoke upon their own shoulders under constraint of time. They drew the wagon, with their mother riding atop it, traveling five miles until they arrived at the temple. [3] When they had done this and had been seen by the entire gathering, their lives came to an excellent end, and in their case the god made clear that for human beings it is a better thing to die than to live. The Argive men stood around the youths and congratulated them on their strength; the Argive women congratulated their mother for having borne such children. [4] She was overjoyed at the feat and at the praise, so she stood before the image and prayed that the goddess might grant the best thing for man to her children Cleobis and Biton, who had given great honor to the goddess. [5] After this prayer they sacrificed and feasted. The youths then lay down in the temple and went to sleep and never rose again; death held them there. The Argives made and dedicated at Delphi statues of them as being the best of men.”

Further comments from W. W. How, J. Wells, A Commentary on Herodotus:
book 1 (general note)
book 1 (general note)
book 1, chapter 31 (general note)
book 1, chapter 31, section 1: proetrepsato
book 1, chapter 31, section 2 (general note)
book 1, chapter 31, section 3: ho theos
book 1, chapter 31, section 3: ameinon ... tethnanai
book 1, chapter 31, section 5 (general note)

Cross references from Perseus Encyclopedia:
herodotus-3 [Herodotus and Homer (3)]

Cross references from The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites (eds. Richard Stillwell, William L. MacDonald, Marian Holland McAllister):
argive-heraion [ ARGIVE HERAION Argolid, Greece. ]

Cross references from Sir Richard C. Jebb, Commentary on Sophocles: Oedipus Tyrannus:
500: dokeôn panchu deutereia gôn oisesthai
1228: emakarizon tên mêtera hoiôn

Cross references from Raphael Kühner, Bernhard Gerth, Ausführliche Grammatik der griechischen Sprache (ed. Ildar Ibraguimov):
349b [Bemerkungen über die Komparation der Adjektive, Adverbien und Verben.]
374 [B. Medialform.)]
389 [Konjunktiv, Optativ, Imperativ, Infinitiv und Partizip der Zeitformen.]
410 [b) Akkusativ bei intransitiven und passiven Verben und Adjektiven).]
416 [Fortsetzung.]

Cross references from Raphael Kühner, Bernhard Gerth, Ausführliche Grammatik der griechischen Sprache (ed. Ildar Ibraguimov):
485 [B. Partizip als Ausdruck adverbialer Verhältnisse der Zeit, der Kausalität und der Art und Weise.]
507 [Konfirmatives oun [Lesb., böot., dor. u. neuion. ôn]).]
551 [Bemerkungen.]
597 [II. Brachylogie).]

Cross references from Sir Richard Jebb, Commentary on Sophocles: Electra:
* [516-1057]

Cross references from Perseus Sculpture Catalog:
Delphi, Kleobis and Biton [Delphi, Kleobis and Biton]

Cross references from Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities (1898):
biton [Biton]

Cross references from William Watson Goodwin, Syntax of the Moods and Tenses of the Greek Verb:
124 [Aorist Optative.]: Epeirôta tina idoi
580 [Consecutive Relative Clauses Expressing Result. -- Causal Relative.]
669 [Simple Sentences in Indirect Discourse: Indicative and Optative after hoti and hôs, and in Indirect Questions.]

Cross references from Basil Lanneau Gildersleeve, Syntax of Classical Greek:
41 [Abstract noun used as a concrete.]
43 [The distributive singular. ]

This text is based on the following book(s):
Herodotus, with an English translation by A. D. Godley. Cambridge. Harvard University Press. 1920.
OCLC: 1610641
ISBN: 0674991303, 0674991311, 0674991338, 0674991346

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