οὔπω δὲ πεντακοσίους σταδίους διελθόντες εἴδομεν ὕλην μεγίστην καὶ λάσιον πιτύων καὶ κυπαρίττων. καὶ ἡμεῖς μὲν εἰκάσαμεν ἤπειρον εἶναι· τὸ δ᾽ ἦν πέλαγος ἄβυσσον ἀρρίζοις δένδροις καταπεφυτευμένον· εἱστήκει δὲ τὰ δένδρα ὅμως ἀκίνητα, ὀρθὰ καθάπερ ἐπιπλέοντα. πλησιάσαντες οὖν καὶ τὸ πᾶν κατανοήσαντες ἐν ἀπόρῳ εἰχόμεθα τί χρὴ δρᾶν· οὔτε γὰρ διὰ τῶν δένδρων πλεῖν δυνατὸν ἦν - πυκνὰ γὰρ καὶ προσεχῆ ὑπῆρχεν - οὔτε ἀναστρέφειν ἐδόκει ῥᾴδιον· ἐγὼ δὲ ἀνελθὼν ἐπὶ τὸ μέγιστον δένδρον ἀπεσκόπουν τὰ ἐπέκεινα ὅπως ἔχοι, καὶ ἑώρων ἐπὶ σταδίους μὲν πεντήκοντα ἢ ὀλίγῳ πλείους τὴν ὕλην οὖσαν, ἔπειτα δὲ αὖθις ἕτερον ὠκεανὸν ἐκδεχόμενον. καὶ δὴ ἐδόκει ἡμῖν ἀναθεμένους τὴν ναῦν ἐπὶ τὴν κόμην τῶν δένδρων - πυκνὴ δὲ ἦν - ὑπερβιβάσαι, εἰ δυναίμεθα, εἰς τὴν θάλατταν τὴν ἑτέραν· καὶ οὕτως ἐποιοῦμεν. ἐκδήσαντες γὰρ αὐτὴν κάλῳ μεγάλῳ καὶ ἀνελθόντες ἐπὶ τὰ δένδρα μόλις ἀνιμησάμεθα, καὶ θέντες ἐπὶ τῶν κλάδων, πετάσαντες τὰ ἱστία καθάπερ ἐν θαλάττῃ ἐπλέομεν τοῦ ἀνέμου προωθοῦντος ἐπισυρόμενοι· ἔνθα δὴ καὶ τὸ Ἀντιμάχου τοῦ ποιητοῦ ἔπος ἐπεισῆλθέ με - φησὶν γάρ που κἀκεῖνος·

«Τοῖσιν δ᾽ ὑλήεντα διὰ πλόον ἐρχομένοισιν.»

    διελθόντες: ao. part. of δια-ἔρχομαι, “having gone on”

    εἴδομεν: ao. of ὁράω, "we saw"

    πιτύων καὶ κυπαρίττων: gen. pl., “of pine trees and cypresses”

    εἰκάσαμεν ἤπειρον εἶναι: “we surmised that it was a continent”

    τὸ δ᾽ ἦν: “but it was”

    καταπεφυτευμένον: perf. part. pas. of κατα-φυτεύω, “completely overgrown”

    εἱστήκει: plupf. of ἵστημι, “they stood up”

    πλησιάσαντες: ao. part. of πλησιάζω, “having drawn near”

    κατανοήσαντες: ao. part. of κατα-νοέω, “having realized”

    ἐν ἀπόρῳ εἰχόμεθα: “we were at a loss”

    τί χρὴ δρᾶν: ind. question, “what we should do”

    οὔτε πλεῖν δυνατὸν ἦν, οὔτε: “neither was it possible to sail, nor...”

    ἀνελθὼν: ao. part. of ἀνα-ἔρχομαι, “having climbed up”

    ἀπεσκόπουν: impf. of ἀπο-σκοπέω, “I looked around”

    ὅπως ἔχοι: pr. opt. in ind. quest. in sec. sequence, “how things were”

    ἑώρων: impf 1 s. of ὁράω, “I saw”

    τὴν ὕλην οὖσαν: ind. st. after ἑώρων, “that the forest was”

    ἐκδεχόμενον: pr. part. of ἐκ-δέχομαι, “coming next”

    ἀναθεμένους: ao. part. of ἀνα-τίθημι, modifying the acc. subject of ὑπερβιβάσαι, “having lifted”

    ὑπερβιβάσαι: ao. inf. of ὑπερβιβάζω after ἐδόκει ἡμῖν, “to make our way”

    εἰ δυναίμεθα: opt. in indef. past condition, “if we could”

    ἐκδήσαντες: ao. part. of ἐκ-δέω, “have tied”

    ἀνελθόντες: ao. part. of ἀνα-ἔρχομαι, “having climbed”

    ἀνιμησάμεθα: ao. of ἀνιμάω, “we drew here up”

    θέντες: ao. part. of τίθημι, "having placed”

    πετάσαντες: ao. part. of πετάννυμι, “have spread out”

    τοῦ ἀνέμου προωθοῦντος: pr. part. of προ-ωθέω, gen abs., “with the wind pushing us”

    ἐπισυρόμενοι: pr. part., “dragging”

    Ἀντιμάχου: Antimachus of Colophon, fl. 400 BC, author of an epic on Thebes.

    ἐπεισῆλθέ: ao. of ἐπι-εις-ἔρχομαι, “came to me”

    γάρ που: “for somewhere”

    πεντακόσιοι, -αι: five hundred

    διέρχομαι: to go through, pass through

    ὕλη, ἡ: a forest

    λάσιος, -ος, -ον: hairy, rough, shaggy, woolly

    πίτυς, υος, ἡ: the pine, stone pine

    κυπάριττος, ἡ: a cypress

    εἰκάζω: to make like, represent, portray

    ἤπειρος: terra-firma, the land

    πέλαγος, -εος, τό: the sea

    ἄβυσσος, -ον: bottomless, abyss

    ἄρριζος, -ον: without roots

    καταφυτεύω: to plant

    ἀκίνητος, -η, -ον: unmoved, motionless

    ἐπιπλέω: to sail upon or over

    πλησιάζω: to bring near

    κατανοέω: to observe well, to understand

    ἄπορος, -ον: without passage, without resource

    πυκνός: close, compact

    προσεχής, -ές: next to (each other)

    ἀναστρέφω: to turn upside down, upset

    ἀνέρχομαι: to go up to

    ἀποσκοπέω: to look away from

    ἐπέκεινα: on yonder side, beyond

    πεντήκοντα: fifty

    πλείον: more

    ὠκεανός, οῦ, ὁ: ocean

    ἐκδέχομαι: to take or receive from

    ἀνατίθημι: to put up

    κόμη, ἡ: the hair, hair of the head

    ὑπερβιβάζω: to carry over, transfer

    ἐκδέω: to bind so as to hang from, to fasten to or on

    κάλως, -ου, ὁ: a reefing rope

    ἀνέρχομαι: to go up

    μόλις: scarcely

    ἀνιμάω: to draw up

    κλάδος, ου: a young slip or shoot broken off

    πετάννυμι: to spread out

    ἱστίον, τό: any web, a sail

    ἄνεμος, ὁ: wind

    προωθέω: to push forward, push or urge on

    ἐπισύρω: to drag or trail after

    ἐπεισέρχομαι: to come in besides

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    Suggested Citation

    Eric Casey, Evan Hayes, and Stephen Nimis, Lucian True History. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Dickinson College Commentaries, 2023. ISBN: .
    https://dcc.dickinson.edu/lucian-true/book-2/2-42