The Eleusian inscription of 446 B.C.

SAS ey E ELEUSINIAN INSCRIPTION. gt 2 193 5 Should be unlawful to erect altars in the Pelargicon with- „out the authority of the Boule and Demos, or to cut and take away the stones from that sacred place, or bring ‘earth or stones into it—with a penalty of fifty drachmae: THE ELEUSINIAN INSCRIPTION OF 446 B.c. this resolution is evidently due to the oracle of which Thukydides records (ii. 17) the axporeAsúriov. I. HE inscription discovered at Eleusis, at the end of 1879, throws light upon two Greek words. Before, however, discussing these, a short account of the Inscription itself may not be uninteresting to the readers of HERMATHENA. Inscribed on Pentelic marble, it was found near the temple of S. Zacharias, at Eleusis, and first published in an Athenian journal, February, 1880. The foregoing part of that oracle was what induced the Athenians IlaAıyyeveola, in to offer these first-fruits—xara rà märpıa Kal Thy pavreiav tv ¿y As\por. One important point which I can barely mention still remains, ‘Miva Sè éuf3aAuv "Eraroußava tov véov apyovra," which shows that Poseideon was not the only month that was repeated by intercalation. I now proceed to the consideration of the words on which the inscription throws light. Since then, M. Foucart and H. Sauppe have edited and annotated it. Both the forms of some of the letters, and also a fact in its contents, prove that its date is 446B.c. 11.—ON THE WORD oıpde. It is an Athenian decree, devoting certain portions of the produce of the land as first-fruits to Demeter and Persephone, and directing the Demarchoi to collect the dues, each in his deme, and bring them to be deposited in the temple of those goddesses at Eleusis: the allies were also to be obliged to contribute. But what perhaps is the most interesting point in the whole Zipóc (we also find the spellings cepóg and otppde in the codices) is explained by Liddell and Scott as ‘a pit, especially for keeping corn in,’ and it is generally held to be the name of the underground the Thracians kept their corn; caves in which and, to judge from the extant passages, which bear on the word, the oıpoi seem to document is the sentence directing that the city should have been confined to Thrace, and the word used only to announce this decree designate the Thracian pits. ‘to all the other (z.e. except the allied) Grecian cities, fo which 14 may seem to be possible— ‘urging, but not commanding’ them, to contribute offer- Demosth., [spi rw» ¿v Xepp. 100, 26, Says, urto Sì ray pedeviv Kal riv OAUpwY rav èv roîc Opaxioic oipoic tv ry Bapádpy xauaëev. The Emperor Julian ings, ‘if they wish. This exclusion seems to point at has in a letter ric piv cade Eye nuag piv tv Opaxn Stayev Sparta and Thebes. I may notice the al roíc ivravda otpoïc tyyxemaZav. words un émrarrovrag, keAevovrac & as a remarkable example of the proper meaning of xeAevew. The rest of the decree is occupied with details of sacrificing and dedicating, but a few lines from the end is the direction that in future it mosthenes’ words in mind.) (He evidently had De- Varro mentions peculiar to Thrace and to Cappadocia. otpoi as The comedian Anaxandrides, in a fragment where he makes fun of the marriage of Iphikrates with a daughter of Kotys, king IS. ASRMATAGNA Val. SW

I. "THE inscription discovered at Eleusis, at the end of 1879, throws light upon two Greek words. Before, however, discussing these, a short account of the Inseription itself may not be uninteresting to the readers of HERMATHENA. Inscribed on Pentelic marble, it was found near the temple of S. Zacharias, at Eleusis, and first published in an Athenian journal, IlaAıyyevsola, in February, 1880. Since then, M. Foucart and H. Sauppe have edited and annotated it. Both the forms of some of the letters, and also a fact in its contents, prove that its date is 446 B.C. It is an Athenian decree, devoting certain portions of the produce of the land as first-fruits to Demeter and Persephone, and directing the Demarchoi to collect the dues, each in his deme, and bring them to be deposited in the temple of those goddesses at Eleusis: the allies were also to be obliged to contribute. But what perhaps is the most interesting point in the whole document is the sentence directing that the city should announce this decree ‘to all the other (z.e. except the allied) Grecian cities, to which tt may seem to be possible— ‘urging, but not commanding’ them, to contribute offerings, ‘if they wish.’ This exclusion seems to point at Sparta and Thebes. I may notice the words un émrérrovraç, keebovrac Sf as a remarkable example of the proper meaning of «xeXcdev. The rest of the decree is occupied with details of sacrificing and dedicating, but a few lines from the end is the direction that in future it

should be unlawful to erect altars in the Pelargicon without the authority of the Boule and Demos, or to cut and take away the stones from that sacred place, or bring earth or stones into it—with a penalty of fifty drachmae: this resolution is evidently due to the oracle of which Thukydides records (ii. 17) the ákporeAeúrtov. The foregoing part of that oracle was what induced the Athenians to offer these first-fruits—kara ra märpıa Kai nv uavretav mv ty AeÀpuv. One important point which I can barely mention still remains, ‘Miva 8 ëufJáAÀev "Eraroußamwva tov véov äpxovra,’ which shows that Poseideon was not the only month that was repeated by intercalation. I now proceed to the consideration of the words on which the inscription throws light. {I1.—ON THE WORD oıpde. Zupöc (we also find the spellings sepdé¢ and ouppóc in the codices) is explained by Liddell and Scott as ‘a pit, especially for keeping corn in,’ and it is generally held to be the name of the underground caves in which the Thractans kept their corn; and, to judge from the extant passages, which bear on the word, the atpoi seem to have been confined to Thrace, and the word used only to designate the Thracian pits. Demosth., Ilepi rwv èv Xepp. 100, 26, Says, ürio Où rwv me\uvwv Kal rwv hAupwv rv Ev TOIC Opgxtore otpoic Ev ry BapdOpw xemaZev. : The Emperor Julian has in a letter mc piv kalüç Exer nuac piv Ev Opaxg ctayev Kai roic évraÿ0a atpoic éyxematav. (He evidently had Demosthenes’ words in mind.) Varro mentions oupof as peculiar to Thrace and to Cappadocia. The comedian Anaxandrides, in a fragment where he makes fun of the marriage of Iphikrates with a daughter of Kotys, king

of Thrace, says, that among the wedding presents is to be BoAßwv re aipòv Swoexarnyuv. In all these places the sipof are spoken of with contempt, as Thracian and as poor wretched pits. Now, it is to be observed that in the middle of the fifth - century they were not only not confined to the barbarians, but used by the most civilised of the Greeks—a hundred years before Demosthenes delivered the speech in which the words quoted above occur. This interesting fact is proved by the Eleusinian Inscription, which I have described above, whose date, as I have said, is 446 B.C., or thereabouts—not later. In this document it is directed, oikodouïaat atpodç Tpeig "EXevoive for the reception of the first-fruits which were to be brought in for the two goddesses, worshipped with such peculiar solemnity at Eleusis. _ The word oixodounsa: proves, moreover, that the Attic oupof were not rudely-dug pits, or hewn-out caves, but regular granaries duz/¢ underground; that their construction required expense is shown by the following clause which decrees that money is to be paid therefor, amò rov apyuplov Tov roiv Ooty. In the passage of Demosthenes, then, Opaxforg is absolutely necessary along with oıpoig to express the meaning required. Late writers, judging from such passages as these, thought that the use of ode for ‘corn-pit’ had never extended beyond Thrace. That it is a foreign word, probably Thracian, and that these corn-pits were primarily a peculiarity of that country, is beyond dispute; hence, it is evident that this method of preserving grain was introduced into Attica from Thrace, and improved upon by the Athenians; and the tradition of the Thracian Eumolpos having been created ispopavree of the Eleusinian worship by Erechtheus, its founder, points significantly to a very early introduction of the oıpol for special religious purposes.

III.—THE KOLAKRETAI. On the functions of these officers the Eleusinian Inscription throws new light. That they had originally the management of all financial affairs, till the time of Kleisthenes, that he transferred these offices to the Apodektai, leaving with the Kolakretai only the duty of providing the meals in the Prytaneion; and finally, that Perikles, in instituting the pay of the Dikastai, assigned to the Kolakretai the office of paying them (cf. Arist. Wasps, 693, 724)—all this we knew already. But in the 51st line of the Eleusinian Inscription we find that the Kolakretai are to supply the money for buying and erecting two slabs on which a.public decree was to be inscribed, of 8 KwAaxpéra Öóvrwv TO apyüpıov. This proves that they had some part in the financial affairs in 446 B.C.; and it seems probable that Perikles, at the time of his reforms, gave them some other duties connected with the state-money as well as that of paying the Dikastai, and so revived the office of KwAaxpérne from the comparative unimportance in which it had been placed by Kleisthenes, and in which it had remained since his time. In his long and learned discussion on this interesting Inscription, H. Sauppe has, curious to say, taken no note of this point. I add a few Notes on Herodatus and Euripides :— 1. Herodotus iv. 153. Onpaloror dt fade adeAgfov re am adeAgeov méumav maAy Aayxavovra Kai awd Tüv Xúpwv dmávrwv intra idvtwy avopac, elvar LA # € 7 Baoita Bárrov. nv THAaréav. ” Ô T ÒÉ opewv Kal myeudva Kal dé x ovrw dm oréAAovar Sto mevrnrovrépouc ic

It is evident that Herodotus mentioned the number of men who were sent out to found Kyrene, or he would not have used the word ävòpac, which thus by itself is de trop. Stein saw this, and says in his note, that the number of the men “ist hinter &vòoac ausgefallen, lässt sich aber ziemlich genau aus den zwei Fiinfzigruderern schliessen, deren jeder etwa 80 Mann fasste (vii. 184. 15).” Now, in vii. 184, we find that Herodotus, in reckoning the total number of men in all the penteconteroi of Xerxes’ force, takes 80 as the average number in each, saying that, in some there were more, but in others less. We should expect to find that ships sailing to found a colony peaceably would be filled with a larger crew than ships going on a war-expedition, any moment liable to be engaged in a sea-fight, where lightness of freight would be important. Hence I think Stein wrong in limiting the number to 80 in each. I would suggest to read ävòpac Öenkootove, C, the symbol for 200, having fallen out after the last letter of ävòpac. We have thus a number more likely to be fixed upon for a colony than 160 or thereabouts. 2. In Eurip. Zóh. in Taurss, 1117, we have the words— Sndove’ Grav dia mavröc Òvodaluov' (a), where the chorus, Iphigeneia’s faithful friends, are speaking and are the subject (iyw) of ZnAovoa, while Gray refers to Iphigeneia’s misfortunes. But it is nonsense to talk about exvying their mistress’s calamity, and so Nauck writes “ärav absurdum,” and proposes aiw; Koechly proposes alcav, both of which give very poor sense. Monk’s ZnAovoa rav, though less change, is not satisfactory. All three have assumed the corruption to be in ärav, but I find the difficulty in ZnAovo’, which in any case is quite inappropriate. Read 'IAOYC, and we have good sense;

NOTES. the chorus has witnessed Iphigeneia’s misfortunes from beginning to end. In the corresponding line in the Strophe we have dapvév answering to idovo’. 3. Frag, 362 ('EpexÔeúc), 1. 38, nv ouk èuùv mAnv gto Òdow kópnv. A syllable is wanting. makeshift äunv oùv. Nagel proposed the Read wAjv ñ gpóoe, a redundancy which an ignorant scribe might easily omit. 4. Frag. 889 (Incertae Fab.), 1. 4, we have mávrwv taro pu Ovnroic, purposing to be an anapaestic line. Nauck wishes to transpose @ynroic between mávrwv and iòwroc. It seems to me more probable that, a word having dropped out after mávrwv, Ovnroïc was added by a copyist to complete the line. I read rANTQN AAAQN fjdtorog Eu, an instance of an ordinary Greek idiom. JOHN B. BURY.