Pausanias Analysis

Passage 1.16.1 Class: Historical

ἀνδριάντες δὲ χαλκοῖ κεῖνται πρὸ μὲν τῆς στοᾶς Σόλων ὁ τοὺς νόμους Ἀθηναίοις γράψας, ὀλίγον δὲ ἀπωτέρω Σέλευκος, ᾧ καὶ πρότερον ἐγένετο ἐς τὴν εὐδαιμονίαν τὴν μέλλουσαν σημεῖα οὐκ ἀφανῆ. Σελεύκῳ γάρ, ὡς ὡρμᾶτο ἐκ Μακεδονίας σὺν Ἀλεξάνδρῳ, θύοντι ἐν Πέλλῃ τῷ Διὶ τὰ ξύλα τὰ ἐπὶ τοῦ βωμοῦ κείμενα προύβη τε αὐτόματα πρὸς τὸ ἄγαλμα καὶ ἄνευ πυρὸς ἥφθη. τελευτήσαντος δὲ Ἀλεξάνδρου Σέλευκος Ἀντίγονον ἐς Βαβυλῶνα ἀφικόμενον δείσας καὶ παρὰ Πτολεμαῖον φυγὼν τὸν Λάγου κατῆλθεν αὖθις ἐς Βαβυλῶνα, κατελθὼν δὲ ἐκράτησε μὲν τῆς Ἀντιγόνου στρατιᾶς καὶ αὐτὸν ἀπέκτεινεν Ἀντίγονον, εἷλε δὲ ἐπιστρατεύσαντα ὕστερον Δημήτριον τὸν Ἀντιγόνου.

Proper Nouns:

Βαβυλών Δημήτριος Ζεύς Λάγος Μακεδονία Πέλλα Πτολεμαῖος Σέλευκος Σόλων Ἀθηναῖοι Ἀλέξανδρος Ἀλέξανδρος Ἀντίγονος Ἀντίγονος

Bronze statues are set up before the Stoa; Solon, who wrote the laws for the Athenians, stands in front of it, and a short distance away is Seleucus, for whom clear signs of his future good fortune appeared even before he achieved it. When Seleucus was setting out from Macedonia with Alexander, while sacrificing at Pella to Zeus, the wood placed upon the altar moved spontaneously towards the statue and caught fire by itself without any flame. After Alexander’s death, Seleucus, fearing Antigonus who had arrived at Babylon, fled to Ptolemy, son of Lagus, but later returned again to Babylon. Having returned, he defeated the army of Antigonus, killed Antigonus himself, and afterward captured Demetrius, son of Antigonus, who had campaigned against him.

Passage 1.16.2 Class: Historical

ὡς δέ οἱ ταῦτα προκεχωρήκει καὶ μετʼ ὀλίγον τὰ Λυσιμάχου κατείργαστο, τὴν μὲν ἐν τῇ Ἀσίᾳ πᾶσαν ἀρχὴν παρέδωκεν Ἀντιόχῳ τῷ παιδί, αὐτὸς δὲ ἐς Μακεδονίαν ἠπείγετο. στρατιὰ μὲν καὶ Ἑλλήνων καὶ βαρβάρων ἦν παρὰ Σελεύκῳ· Πτολεμαῖος δὲ ἀδελφὸς μὲν Λυσάνδρας καὶ παρὰ Λυσιμάχου παρʼ αὐτὸν πεφευγώς, ἄλλως δὲ τολμῆσαι πρόχειρος καὶ διʼ αὐτὸ Κεραυνὸς καλούμενος, οὗτος ὁ Πτολεμαῖος, ὡς προσιὼν ὁ Σελεύκου στρατὸς ἐγένετο κατὰ Λυσιμάχειαν, λαθὼν Σέλευκον κτείνει, διαρπάσαι δὲ ἐπιτρέψας τὰ χρήματα τοῖς βασιλεῦσιν ἐβασίλευσε Μακεδονίας, ἐς ὃ Γαλάταις πρῶτος ὧν ἴσμεν βασιλέων ἀντιτάξασθαι τολμήσας ἀναιρεῖται ὑπὸ τῶν βαρβάρων· τὴν δὲ ἀρχὴν Ἀντίγονος ἀνεσώσατο ὁ Δημητρίου.

Proper Nouns:

Γαλάται Δημήτριος Κεραυνός Λυσίμαχος Λυσιμάχεια Λύσανδρος Μακεδονία Μακεδονία Πτολεμαῖος Σέλευκος Σέλευκος Σέλευκος Ἀντίγονος Ἀντίοχος Ἀσία Ἕλληνες

When these undertakings had progressed successfully for Seleucus, and shortly afterward he had also finished off Lysimachus's affairs, he transferred the entire rule of Asia to his son Antiochus, and hastened himself towards Macedonia. Seleucus had with him an army of both Greeks and barbarians. Now Ptolemy—brother of Lysandra, who had fled from Lysimachus to Seleucus, being naturally daring and therefore called "Ceraunus" (the Thunderbolt)—when Seleucus's army reached the vicinity of Lysimacheia, secretly slew Seleucus. After allowing the kings to plunder Seleucus's treasures, this same Ptolemy reigned over Macedonia, until he became the first king known to us to dare resistance against the Gauls, and he was slain by these barbarians. Afterward, Antigonus, the son of Demetrius, recovered the kingdom.

Passage 1.16.3 Class: Historical

Σέλευκον δὲ βασιλέων ἐν τοῖς μάλιστα πείθομαι καὶ ἄλλως γενέσθαι δίκαιον καὶ πρὸς τὸ θεῖον εὐσεβῆ. τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ Σέλευκός ἐστιν ὁ Μιλησίοις τὸν χαλκοῦν καταπέμψας Ἀπόλλωνα ἐς Βραγχίδας, ἀνακομισθέντα ἐς Ἐκβάτανα τὰ Μηδικὰ ὑπὸ Ξέρξου· τοῦτο δὲ Σελεύκειαν οἰκίσας ἐπὶ Τίγρητι ποταμῷ καὶ Βαβυλωνίους οὗτος ἐπαγόμενος ἐς αὐτὴν συνοίκους ὑπελ ε ίπετο μὲν τὸ τεῖχος Βαβυλῶνος, ὑπελ ε ίπετο δὲ. τοῦ Βὴλ τὸ ἱερὸν καὶ περὶ αὐτὸ τοὺς Χαλδαίους οἰκεῖν.

Proper Nouns:

Βαβυλών Βαβυλώνιοι Βραγχίδαι Βῆλ Μηδικά Μιλήσιοι Ξέρξης Σέλευκος Σέλευκος Σελεύκεια Τίγρης Χαλδαῖοι Ἀπόλλων Ἐκβάτανα

Among kings, I am particularly inclined to believe that Seleucus was both just in character and pious toward the divine. For it was Seleucus who restored to the Milesians the bronze Apollo at Branchidae, originally carried off by Xerxes to Ecbatana in Media. It was also Seleucus who built Seleucia beside the river Tigris and transferred the Babylonians to inhabit it. Nevertheless, he permitted the wall of Babylon itself to remain, and allowed the sanctuary of Bel, together with the Chaldeans living around it, to continue there.

Legend:

Chapter 1.16