Plutarch, Theseus, chapter 25

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ἔτι δὲ μᾶλλον αὐξῆσαι τὴν πόλιν βουλόμενος ἐκάλει πάντας ἐπὶ τοῖς ἴσοις, καὶ τὸ ‘δεῦρ᾽ ἴτε πάντες λεῴ’ κήρυγμα Θησέως γενέσθαι φασὶ πανδημίαν τινὰ καθιστάντος. οὐ μὴν ἄτακτον οὐδὲ μεμιγμένην περιεῖδεν ὑπὸ πλήθους ἐπιχυθέντος ἀκρίτου γενομένην τὴν δημοκρατίαν, ἀλλὰ πρῶτος ἀποκρίνας χωρὶς εὐπατρίδας καὶ γεωμόρους καὶ δημιουργούς, [2] εὐπατρίδαις δὲ γινώσκειν τὰ θεῖα καὶ παρέχειν ἄρχοντας ἀποδοὺς καὶ νόμων διδασκάλους εἶναι καὶ ὁσίων καὶ ἱερῶν ἐξηγητάς, τοῖς ἄλλοις πολίταις ὥσπερ εἰς ἴσον κατέστησε, δόξῃ μὲν εὐπατριδῶν, χρείᾳ δὲ γεωμόρων, πλήθει δὲ δημιουργῶν ὑπερέχειν δοκούντων. ὅτι δὲ πρῶτος ἀπέκλινε πρὸς τὸν ὄχλον, ὡς Ἀριστοτέλης φησί, καὶ ἀφῆκε τὸ μοναρχεῖν, ἔοικε μαρτυρεῖν καὶ Ὅμηρος ἐν νεῶν καταλόγῳ μόνους Ἀθηναίους δῆμον προσαγορεύσας. [3]

ἔκοψε δὲ καὶ νόμισμα, βοῦν ἐγχαράξας, ἢ διὰ τὸν Μαραθώνιον ταῦρον, ἢ διὰ τὸν Μίνω στρατηγόν, ἢ πρὸς γεωργίαν τοὺς πολίτας παρακαλῶν. ἀπ᾽ ἐκείνου δέ φασι τὸ ἑκατόμβοιον καὶ τὸ δεκάβοιον ὀνομασθῆναι. προσκτησάμενος δὲ τῇ Ἀττικῇ τὴν Μεγαρικὴν βεβαίως, τὴν θρυλουμένην ἐν Ἰσθμῷ στήλην ἔστησεν, ἐπιγράψας τὸ διορίζον ἐπίγραμμα τὴν χώραν δυσὶ τριμέτροις, ὧν ἔφραζε τὸ ¹ μὲν πρὸς ἕω

τάδ᾽ οὐχὶ Πελοπόννησος, ἀλλ᾽ Ἰωνία:

τὸ ² δὲ πρὸς ἑσπέραν

τάδ᾽ ἐστὶ Πελοπόννησος, οὐκ Ἰωνία.

[4] καὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα πρῶτος ἔθηκε κατὰ ζῆλον Ἡρακλέους, ὡς δι᾽ ἐκεῖνον Ὀλύμπια τῷ Δΐ, καὶ δι᾽ αὐτὸν Ἴσθμια τῷ Ποσειδῶνι φιλοτιμηθεὶς ἄγειν τοὺς Ἕλληνας. ὁ γὰρ ἐπὶ Μελικέρτῃ τεθεὶς αὐτόθι νυκτὸς ἐδρᾶτο, τελετῆς ἔχων μᾶλλον ἢ θέας καὶ πανηγυρισμοῦ τάξιν. ἔνιοι δέ φασιν ἐπὶ Σκείρωνι τὰ Ἴσθμια τεθῆναι, τοῦ Θησέως ἀφοσιουμένου τὸν φόνον διὰ τὴν συγγένειαν: Σκείρωνα γὰρ υἱὸν εἶναι Κανήθου καὶ Ἡνιόχης τῆς Πιτθέως. οἱ δὲ Σίνιν, [5] οὐ Σκείρωνα, καὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα τεθῆναι διὰ τοῦτον ὑπὸ Θησέως, οὐ δι᾽ ἐκεῖνον. ἔταξεν οὖν καὶ διωρίσατο πρὸς τοὺς Κορινθίους Ἀθηναίων τοῖς ἀφικνουμένοις ἐπὶ τὰ Ἴσθμια παρέχειν προεδρίαν ὅσον ἂν τόπον ἐπίσχῃ καταπετασθὲν τὸ τῆς θεωρίδος νεὼς ἱστίον, ὡς Ἑλλάνικος καὶ Ἄνδρων ὁ Ἁλικαρνασεὺς ἱστορήκασιν.

1 τὸ μὲν, τὸ δὲ with Coraës, after Reiske: τὰ μὲν, τὰ δέ.

2 τὸ μὲν, τὸ δὲ with Coraës, after Reiske: τὰ μὲν, τὰ δέ.

Plutarch. Plutarch's Lives. with an English Translation by. Bernadotte Perrin. Cambridge, MA. Harvard University Press. London. William Heinemann Ltd. 1914. 1.

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Cross-references to this page (8):
- Aristotle, Athenian Constitution, Fragments
- A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890), CI´VITAS
- A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890), EUPA´TRIDAE
- A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890), EXEGE´TES
- A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890), GEO´MORI
- A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890), ISTHMIA
- Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), ATHE´NAE
- Smith's Bio, Sinis
Cross-references in notes to this page (1):
- Demosthenes, Funeral Speech, Dem. 60 28
Cross-references in general dictionaries to this page (5):
- LSJ, δημιουργ-ός
- LSJ, δεκά-βοιος
- LSJ, εὐπα^τρίδης
- LSJ, παν-δημία
- LSJ, ζῆλος

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Plutarch, Theseus
Bernadotte Perrin, Ed.

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Plutarch, Theseus Bernadotte Perrin, Ed.

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Plutarch, Theseus
Bernadotte Perrin, Ed.