Pausanias Analysis

Going down from this place and turning once again toward the marketplace, there is the tomb of Cerdo, wife of Phoroneus, and a temple of Asclepius. Nearby stands a sanctuary of Artemis surnamed Peitho; this sanctuary too was dedicated by Hypermnestra, who established it after defeating in court her father, whom she had defied on Lynceus' account. Here also is a bronze statue of Aeneas, and a place called Delta; concerning the reason for this name—I did not find the current explanations satisfactory—I willingly pass it by.

In front of it has been erected an altar of Zeus Phyxios; nearby is the tomb of Hypermnestra, the mother of Amphiaraus, while another is of Hypermnestra, the daughter of Danaus, and Lynceus is buried with her. Opposite these is the tomb of Talaus, the son of Bias. I have previously spoken concerning Bias and the descendants of Bias.

They say that Hegeleos founded the sanctuary of Athena Salpinx ("Trumpet"). This Hegeleos, they say, was the son of Tyrsenos, who in turn was the son of Heracles by a Lydian woman. Tyrsenos was the first inventor of the trumpet, and Hegeleos son of Tyrsenos taught the Dorians accompanying Temenos how to produce sound upon this instrument; for this reason, Athena received the epithet Salpinx. In front of the temple of Athena, they say, is the tomb of Epimenides; for the Lacedaemonians, while fighting against the Knossians, captured Epimenides alive and subsequently put him to death because he had prophesied ill fortune for them; later, however, repenting of their deed, they themselves claim to have buried him here.

The structure of white stone standing near the very center of the marketplace is not, as the Argives claim, a trophy commemorating victory over Pyrrhus the Epirote; rather, it marks the place where his corpse was cremated, and this can also be recognized by examining it closely. For upon it, among other representations, are carved the elephants and other things used by Pyrrhus in battle. The building was erected over the site of his pyre. As for Pyrrhus' bones themselves, they lie in the sanctuary of Demeter, near which, as I explained in my Attic history, he met his death. At the entrance to this sanctuary of Demeter, above the doors, one can see a bronze shield of Pyrrhus hanging as a dedication.

Not far from the building in the marketplace of the Argives, there is a mound of earth; they say that the head of the Gorgon Medusa lies within it. Apart from the mythical tradition, this other version about her is also recorded: that she was a daughter of Phorcus, and upon her father's death she succeeded him as ruler of the people who dwell around Lake Tritonis; that she habitually went out hunting and led the Libyans into battle, and at that time indeed opposed her army to the force commanded by Perseus—for Perseus, too, was attended by chosen fighters from the Peloponnese. It is said she was treacherously murdered by night, and Perseus, even admiring her beauty in death, cut off her head in this way and brought it back to Greece as a marvel for display.

A Carthaginian named Procles, son of Eucrates, presented another story, which seemed to him to be more credible than the previous one. The desert of Libya produces creatures which are unbelievable to those who hear of them; moreover, wild men and women inhabit it; Procles claimed that he himself saw a man of this sort who had been brought to Rome. He reasoned, therefore, that a certain woman of these people had wandered forth and come to Lake Tritonis, bringing harm upon the local inhabitants, until Perseus killed her. He held the opinion that Athena joined Perseus in this deed because the people dwelling around Lake Tritonis considered her sacred.

In Argos, next to this monument, is the tomb of Gorgophone, daughter of Perseus. The reason why she was given that name is immediately clear to anyone who hears it ("Gorgon Slayer"). They say she was the first among women who, after the death of her husband Perieres son of Aeolus—to whom she had been joined while still a maiden—married again, this time to Oebalus. Previously, it had been customary for women to remain widows when their husbands died.

In front of the tomb stands a trophy of stone, raised against the Argive Laphes. For this man—here I relate only what the Argives themselves say about their own affairs—when he was tyrant was expelled by an uprising of the people. After he fled to Sparta, the Lacedaemonians tried to restore him to the tyranny, but the Argives prevailed in battle, killing Laphes and most of the Lacedaemonians. The sanctuary of Leto is not far from the trophy, and the statue within is the work of Praxiteles.

The image standing beside the goddess they call Chloris, asserting that she was a daughter of Niobe, though her original name was Meliboea. When the children of Amphion were being destroyed by Artemis and Apollo, she alone among her sisters survived, along with Amyclas, having prayed to Leto for mercy. At that moment fear made Meliboea turn so pale (chlōrē) that for the rest of her life she continued to show this pallor; thus, due to this incident, her name was changed from Meliboea to Chloris.

The Argives indeed say that these were the ones who first built the temple of Leto. But I—for I attach somewhat greater importance than others to the poetry of Homer—believe that none of Niobe's children survived. Homer’s verse, "But they destroyed the two remaining though they were among many others," confirms my opinion. Homer indeed knows well that the house of Amphion was utterly overthrown from its foundations.