Sir Richard C. Jebb, Commentary on Sophocles: Philoctetes

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Πεπάρηθον (now called “Σκόπελος”), a small island near the Thessalian coast, about 12 miles E. of the south end of Magnesia. The island of Sciathus lies between it and the mainland; Euboea is only 20 miles distant to the S.W., and Scyros about 40 to the S. The E. name is well-chosen, then, to make Philoctetes feel that he is listening to a neighbour of his old home. Peparethus, though not more than some 12 miles in length, with a greatest width of 5 or 6, contained three towns. Its famous wine is ranked by Aristophanes with those of Pramnus, Chios and Thasos (fr. 301). The author of [Dem. ] or. 35 § 35 names Peparethus, along with Cos, Thasos and Mendè, as a seat of the wine-trade with the Euxine. An Alexandrian physician, Apollodorus, recommended the wine of Peparethus before all others, adding that its repute would be still higher, did it not require six years to attain perfection ( H. N. 14. 9). The epithet εὔβοτρυν here is peculiarly fitting, since Pliny speaks of the island as quondam Evoenum dictam (ib. 4. 23). And so Heracleides Ponticus fr. 13 says of it, “αὔτη ἡ νῆσος εὔοινός ἐστι καὶ εὔδενδρος”. It also produced good olives (Ov. Met. 7. 470).—In the Iliad the Greeks at Troy import wine from Lemnos (7. 467) and from Thrace (9. 72).

ἤκουσα τοὺς ναύτας ὅτι: cp. Ai. 1141“σὺ δ᾽ ἀντακούσει τοῦτον ὡς τεθάψεται”: M. 4. 2. 23 “τὸν Δαίδαλον οὐκ ἀκήκοας, ὅτι ἠναγκάζετο δουλεύειν”;— πάντες: and therefore he could not have been anticipated in bringing the news.— Dobree's conjecture, συννεναυστοληκότες, has been generally accepted by recent edd. If the MS. οἱ νεναυστοληκότες is retained, then σοὶ is possess. pron.: ‘that all those who had made the voyage were thy men.’ The objection to this is the want of point in the participle.