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τῷ κυάμῳ λαχών. The lot was not reintroduced after the tyranny for the archonship till 487-486 B. C. Cf. Ath. Pol. 22εὐθὺς δὲ τῷ ὑστέρῳ ἔτει ἐπὶ Τελεσίνου ἄρχοντος ἐκυάμευσαν τοὺς ἐννέα ἄρχοντας κατὰ φυλὰς ἐκ τῶν προκριθέντων ὑπὸ τῶν δημοτῶν πεντακοσίων τότε μετὰ τὴν τυραννίδα πρῶτον: οἱ δὲ πρότεροι πάντες ἦσαν αἱρετοί”. In this obiter dictum then H. is guilty of a slight anachronism, though he is careful to distinguish the duties of the polemarch at Marathon and in his own day.

τὸ παλαιόν. In later days the Polemarch had no military duties but retained jurisdiction over metics and privileged aliens, and also the right to offer certain sacrifices, e.g. those in commemoration of Marathon, and of Harmodius and Aristogiton (Ath. Pol. 58).

Like Callimachus, Harmodius and Aristogiton (v. 55, 57) were of Aphidna, a deme of the Aeantid tribe (ix. 73. 2).


πόλις ... πρώτη. This confident prophecy of Athenian empire is an anachronism due to Herodotus or to his Philaid source.


σαθρόν: the metaphor appears to be taken from a squall (ἐμπεσοῦσαν διασείσειν) splitting a ship and causing a leak; cf. Plat. Gorg. 493 E ἀγγεῖα σαθρά. Miltiades' fear of a Medizing party hostile to the Athenian government was apparently well grounded; cf. chs. 115, 121, 124, and App. XVIII, § 6.

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  • Commentary references from this page (2):
    • Aristotle, Constitution of the Athenians, 22
    • Aristotle, Constitution of the Athenians, 58
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