Pausanias Analysis

After the tomb of Kephisodoros is buried Heliodoros of Halis, whose portrait can also be seen in the great temple of Athena. There lies also Themistokles, son of Poliarchos, third in descent from that Themistokles who engaged in a naval battle against Xerxes and the Medes. Among his descendants below him, I shall pass over all but Akestios. Akestios had a daughter of Xenokles, who was the son of Sophokles, and he the son of Leon; from him backward to the fourth ancestor, Leon, all had held the office of torch-bearer. During her lifetime, she first saw her brother Sophokles as torch-bearer, then after him her husband Themistokles, and upon his death, her son Theophrastos.

They say that such was the fate which befell her there. But advancing a little further on, there is a sanctuary dedicated to the hero Lacius, and a township that takes its name Laciadae from him. There is also the tomb of Nicocles of Tarentum, who reached the highest renown among all the citharodes. Additionally, there is an altar to Zephyrus and a sanctuary of Demeter and her daughter. Together with them, Athena and Poseidon also receive honors here. At this very place, they say, Phytalus once welcomed Demeter into his house, and the goddess, in return for his hospitality, gave him the fig tree. A confirmation of my account is the inscription on the tomb of Phytalus: "Here the lord and hero Phytalus once welcomed holy Demeter, when first she revealed the fruit of autumn, that sacred fig tree, as mortals call it; whence Phytalus’ descendants forever enjoy honor."

Before crossing the Cephisus is the tomb of Theodorus, who excelled beyond all others of his time in the performing of tragedy. By the river stand statues: one of Mnesimache, and another, dedicated as an offering, depicting a boy having his hair cut in honor of the Cephisus. That this custom of haircutting was established from ancient times among all the Greeks may be inferred from the poetry of Homer, who relates how Peleus vowed to cut Achilles’ hair for the river Spercheius, should his son return safely from Troy.

After crossing the Cephisus there is an ancient altar of Zeus Meilichios. It was upon this altar that Theseus received purification from the descendants of Phytalos, having slain robbers and other men, including Sinis, who was related by blood to Pittheus. Nearby are tombs: one of Theodektes of Phaselis, and another of Mnesitheus. They say Mnesitheus was a skilled physician who dedicated statues, among which is represented Iacchos. Beside the road stands a small temple called that of Kyamites. I cannot clearly say whether this figure was the first who sowed beans or merely a hero given this epithet, since they are unable to attribute to Demeter the invention of beans. Whoever has seen the rites at Eleusis or read the so-called Orphic texts will understand what I am saying.

Of the tombs, those most noteworthy for their size and splendor, one belongs to a man from Rhodes who had settled in Athens; the other was constructed by Harpalus of Macedon. This Harpalus, having fled from Alexander out of Asia, crossed with ships into Europe, and arriving among the Athenians, he was captured by them. After bribing both others and friends of Alexander with money, he escaped. Previously he had married a woman named Pythionice—I do not know her exact origin—but she had been a courtesan in Athens and Corinth. He so greatly loved her that after her death he erected for her a tomb surpassing all ancient tombs among the Greeks in worthiness of seeing.

There is a temple in which stand statues of Demeter and her daughter, as well as Athena and Apollo; originally, however, only the statue of Apollo was made. For they say that Cephalus, son of Deion, who had participated with Amphitryon in expelling the Teleboans, was the first to settle the island now called Cephallenia after him. He had moved to Thebes for a time, exiled from Athens because of the murder of his wife Procris. Later, in the tenth generation after him, Chalcinus and Daetus, descendants of Cephalus, sailed to Delphi and asked the god for permission to return to Athens.

And he instructed them to sacrifice first to Apollo in that part of Attica where they should see a trireme running across the land. When they had come to the mountain called Poikilon, a serpent appeared before them hastening into its hole. In this place they offered sacrifice to Apollo, and later, upon their arrival in the city, the Athenians made them citizens. Beyond this there is a temple of Aphrodite, and in front of it stands a wall of unworked stones, worthy to be seen.