Fr. 31c

      τὼ]ς μὲν ἔφη· τὰς δ' εἶθαρ ἐμὸς πάλιν εἴρετο θυμός

    Fr. 31c Harder (= 31b Pf., = 35 Mass.) P.Oxy. 2263, fr. 1
       col. II 9-10 [image], Trismegistos 59402

    According to the diegesis, inhabitants of Epirus violated Artemis' sanctuary at Leucas, stole her crown, and replaced it with a mortar. The Leucadians subsequently replaced her crown but the goddess rejected it, preferring to keep the mortar, as a recollection of the event. Almost nothing is known about the incident, but a very similar event was related by the historian Herclides Lembus (2nd century BC), Excerpta Politiarum 45 Dilts, namely, that Molossians had plundered a sanctuary of Artemis in Cephallania and insulted the statue by removing its wreath and putting a mortar on its head. When the Cephallanians tried to replace the wreath it was found on the ground, rejected by the goddess.

     

    Bibliography

    Cappalletto, Pietro. 1995 “Le 'dee offese' nel primo libro degli Aitia di Callimaco,” Rendiconti 129:211-32.

    Fr. 31c

    εἶθαρ: at once, forthwith

    ἔρομαι, Ion. and Ep. εἴρομαι, impf. (=aor.) εἰρόμην: to ask, inquire

    Fr. 31g Harder (= 31b-e Diegesis, 2, 110 sq. Pf.)  P.Oxy. 2263 [image], Trismegistos 59402

        Τὼ]ς μὲν ἔφη• τὰς δ' εἶθαρ ἐμὸς πά-

           λιν εἴρετο θυμός        τῆς ἐν Λευ-

           καδίᾳ Ἀρτέμιδος τὸ ξόανον

           ]πὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς θυείαν ἔ-

    5    χει δι' αἰτίαν ταύτην• Ἠπει-

           ρῶται τ[.]ν.[.].η.[.]. . .η[.]. . .

           κατατρέχοντες τὴν Λευκά-

           δα ἐσύλων. ἐλθόντες δὲ καὶ

           εἰς τὸ τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος ἱερὸν εὗ-

    10   ρον τὴν θεὸν ἐστεμμένην

           χρυσῷ στεφάνῳ• τοῦτον ἐπι-

           χλευάσαντες ἀφεῖλον καὶ

           τὴν θυείαν, ἐν ᾗ σκόρδα τρί-

           ψαντες ἔφαγον, τῇ θεῷ ἐπέ-

    15   θηκαν. ἐ̣πι.ν.[.]. . . δ' οἱ Λευ-

           κάδι[οι]. . θ' ἡμ[έ]ρα[ν ἕ]τερον

           κατεσκεύασαν στέφανον καὶ

           ἀντὶ τῆς θυεία[ς] ἔθηκαν, ἀπο-

           πεσόντα δ' αὐτὸν προσήλω-

    20   σαν τῷ ξοάνῳ. πάλιν δὲ με-

           θ' ἡμέ[ρας] τρεῖς ἐπιτιθεμέ-

           νου κα[] . . με[ί]να[ν]το[ς.].ης

     

    Thus she spoke and at once my heart

    asked again       The statue of

    Artemis in Leucas

    has a mortar on its head

    for the following reason. The5

    Epirotes . . .

    overran Leucas and

    looted it. And coming

    to the temple of Artemis,

    they found that the goddess was crowned10

    with a golden wreath. Jeering, they took this

    away and placed on the goddess

    the mortar, in which they had

    crushed garlic before

    eating. . .The Leucadians15

    made another

    wreath and put it

    on instead of the mortar and

    when it had fallen off they nailed it

    onto the statue. When20

    after three days it again

    was put on and...

       

    Fr. 31c

    Thus she spoke and at once my heart asked again

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    Suggested Citation

    Susan Stephens, Callimachus: Aetia. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Dickinson College Commentaries, 2015. ISBN: 978-1-947822-07-8.https://dcc.dickinson.edu/pt/callimachus-aetia/book-1/artemis-leucas