Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War

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Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War

Editions and translations: Greek | English
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CIV. The same winter the Athenians purified Delos, in compliance, it appears, with a certain oracle. It had been purified before by Pisistratus the tyrant; not indeed the whole island, but as much of it as could be seen from the temple. All of it was, however, now purified in the following way. [2] All the sepulchres of those that had died in Delos were taken up, and for the future it was commanded that no one should be allowed either to die or to give birth to a child in the island; but that they should be carried over to Rhenea, which is so near to Delos that Polycrates, tyrant of Samos, having added Rhenea to his other island conquests during his period of naval ascendancy, dedicated it to the Delian Apollo by binding it to Delos with a chain.

The Athenians, after the purification, celebrated, for the first time, the quinquennial festival of the Delian games. [3] Once upon a time, indeed, there was a great assemblage of the Ionians and the neighboring islanders at Delos, who used to come to the festival, as the Ionians now do to that of Ephesus, and athletic and poetical contests took place there, and the cities brought choirs of dancers. [4] Nothing can be clearer on this point than the following verses of Homer, taken from a hymn to Apollo:--

Phoebus, where'er thou strayest, far or near,
Delos was still of all thy haunts most dear.
Thither the robed Ionians take their way
With wife and child to keep thy holiday,--
Invoke thy favour on each manly game,
And dance and sing in honor of thy name.

[5] That there was also a poetical contest in which the Ionians went to contend, again is shown by the following, taken from the same hymn. After celebrating the Delian dance of the women, he ends his song of praise with these verses, in which he also alludes to himself:--

Well, may Apollo keep you all! and so,
Sweethearts, good-bye--yet tell me not I go
Out from your hearts; and if in after hours
Some other wanderer in this world of ours
Touch at your shores, and ask your maidens here
Who sings the songs the sweetest to your ear,
Think of me then, and answer with a smile,
A blind old man of Chios' rocky isle.

[6] Homer thus attests that there was anciently a great assembly and festival at Delos. In later times, although the islanders and the Athenians continued to send the choirs of dancers with sacrifices, the contests and most of the ceremonies were abolished, probably through adversity, until the Athenians celebrated the games upon this occasion with the novelty of horse-races.

¹ See HH Apoll. 146-50

² See HH 3a.165-72

There are a total of 40 comments on and cross references to this page.

Further comments from Charles F. Smith, Commentary on Thucydides: Book 3:
book 3 (general note)
book 3, chapter 104: Dêlon ekathêran
book 3, chapter 104: dê
book 3, chapter 104: Peisistratos . . . ouch hapasan
book 3, chapter 104: thêkai hosai
book 3, chapter 104: aneilon
book 3, chapter 104: to loipon
book 3, chapter 104: es tên Rhêneian
book 3, chapter 104: Polukratês . . . tôi Apollôni tôi Dêliôi
book 3, chapter 104: ischusas tina chronon nautikôi
book 3, chapter 104: Nêsôn
book 3, chapter 104: arxas
book 3, chapter 104: halusei dêsas pros tên Dêlon
book 3, chapter 104: halusei dêsas
book 3, chapter 104: hoi Athênaioi
book 3, chapter 104: ta Dêlia
book 3, chapter 104: xunodos es tên Dêlon
book 3, chapter 104: tôn Iônôn
book 3, chapter 104: periktionôn nêsiôtôn
book 3, chapter 104: xun te gar
book 3, chapter 104: etheôroun
book 3, chapter 104: ta Ephesia
book 3, chapter 104: agôn epoieito
book 3, chapter 104: chorous a n êgon
book 3, chapter 104: Homêros
book 3, chapter 104: en tois epesi
book 3, chapter 104: ek prooimiou
book 3, chapter 104: all hote
book 3, chapter 104: aguian
book 3, chapter 104: kathesôsin agôna
book 3, chapter 104: kai mousikês agôn
book 3, chapter 104: agônioumenoi
book 3, chapter 104: ton . . . choron tôn gunaikôn
book 3, chapter 104: eteleuta . . . es tade ta epê
book 3, chapter 104: allos epelthôn
book 3, chapter 104: tosauta men
book 3, chapter 104: etekmêriôsen
book 3, chapter 104: kai ta pleista
book 3, chapter 104: ton agôna
book 3, chapter 104: epoiêsan

Cross references from The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites (eds. Richard Stillwell, William L. MacDonald, Marian Holland McAllister):
panionion [ PANIONION Turkey. ]

Cross references from Herbert Weir Smyth, A Greek Grammar for Colleges:
2441 [prin WITH THE INDICATIVE]

Cross references from Raphael Kühner, Bernhard Gerth, Ausführliche Grammatik der griechischen Sprache (ed. Ildar Ibraguimov):
406 [Apposition.]
432 [Eis (es) und hôs.]

Cross references from W. W. How, J. Wells, A Commentary on Herodotus:
1, 26, 2 [BOOK I]
5, 88, 1 [BOOK V]
6, 97, 1 [BOOK VI]
6, 97, 2 [BOOK VI]

Cross references from Thomas W. Allen, E. E. Sikes, Commentary on the Homeric Hymns:
* [ FIFTH CENTURY B.C.]: dêloi de malista Homêros hoti toiauta ên en tois epesi toisde, ha estin ek prooimiou Apollônos: all hote Dêlôi Phoibe malista ge thumon eterphthês,entha toi helkechitônes Iaones êgerethontaisun sphoisin tekeessi gunaixi te sên es aguian:entha se pugmachiêi te kai orchêstui kai aoidêimnêsamenoi terpousin hotan kathesôsin agôna. hoti de kai mousikês agôn ên kai agônioumenoi ephoitôn, en toisde au dêloi, ha estin ek tou autou prooimiou. ton gar Dêliakon choron tôn gunaikôn humnêsas eteleuta tou epainou es tade ta epê, en hois kai heautou epemnêsthê: all ageth hilêkoi men Apollôn Artemidi xun,chairete d humeis pasai: emeio de kai metopisthemnêsasth' hoppote ken tis epichthoniôn anthrôpônenthad aneirêtai talapeirios allos epelthôn:ô kourai tis d' ummin anêr hêdistos aoidônenthade pôleitai kai teôi terpesthe malista;humeis d' eu mala pasai hupokrinasthai aphêmôs,tuphlos anêr, oikei de Chiôi eni paipaloessêi
* [SECOND CENTURY A.D.]
* [THE NATURE OF THE HOMERIC HYMNS]

Cross references from E.C. Marchant, Commentary on Thucydides: Book 3:
3, 29, 1
3, 59, 3

Cross references from E.C. Marchant, Commentary on Thucydides: Book 7:
7, 57, 4

Cross references from C.E. Graves, Commentary on Thucydides: Book 4:
4, 24
4, 48
4, 24
4, 48
4, 89

Cross references from C.E. Graves, Commentary on Thucydides: Book 5:
5, 1

Cross references from William Watson Goodwin, Syntax of the Moods and Tenses of the Greek Verb:
695 [Single Dependent Clauses in Indirect Discourse.]

Cross references from Basil Lanneau Gildersleeve, Syntax of Classical Greek:
632 [First Position:]

Cross references from Charles D. Morris, Commentary on Thucydides Book 1:
1, 24 [The dispute between Corinth and Corcyra. Chaps. 24-55.]
1, 8

Cross references from Charles Forster Smith, Commentary on Thucydides Book 7:
7, 37

Preferred URL for linking to this page: http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Thuc.+3.104.1

This text is based on the following book(s):
Thucydides. The Peloponnesian War. London, J. M. Dent; New York, E. P. Dutton. 1910.