CHAPTER XXXIV

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Before you get to Coronea from Alalcomenæ, you will come to the temple of Itonian Athene, called so from Itonus the son of Amphictyon. Here the Bœotians hold their general meeting. In this temple are brazen statues of Itonian Athene and Zeus, designed by Agoracritus, a pupil and lover of Phidias. They also erected in my time some statues of the Graces. The following tradition is told that Iodama the priestess of Athene went to the temple by night, and Athene appeared to her with the head of the Gorgon Medusa on her tunic, and Iodama when she saw it was turned into stone. In consequence of this a woman puts fire every day on the altar of Iodama, and calls out thrice in the Bœotian dialect, “Iodama is alive and asks for fire.”

Coronea is remarkable for its altar of Hermes Epimelius in the market-place, and its altar of the Winds. And a little lower down is a temple and ancient statue of Hera by Pythodorus the Theban. She has some Sirens in her hand. For they say that they, the daughters of Achelous, were persuaded by Hera to vie with the Muses in singing, and that the Muses being victorious plucked off their wings and made crowns of them. About 40 stades from Coronea is the mountain Libethrium, where are statues of the Muses and Nymphs called Libethrides, and two fountains (one called Libethrias, and the other Petra) like women’s breasts, and water like milk comes up from them.

It is about 20 stades from Coronea to the mountain Laphystium, and to the sacred enclosure of Laphystian Zeus. There is a stone statue of the god here: and this is the spot they say where, when Athamas was going to sacrifice Phrixus and Helle, a ram with golden wool was sent them by Zeus, on whose back the children escaped. A little higher up is a statue of Hercules Charops, the Bœotians say Hercules came up here from the lower world with Cerberus. And as you descend from Laphystium to the temple of Itonian Athene is the river Phalarus, which discharges itself into the lake Cephisis.

Beyond the mountain Laphystium is Orchomenus, as famous and renowned as any Greek city, which, after having risen to the very acme of prosperity, was destined to come to a similar end as Mycenæ and Delos. This is what they record of its ancient history. They say Andreus first dwelt here, the son of the river Peneus, and the country was called Andreis after him. And when Athamas came to him, he distributed to him his land in the neighbourhood of the mountain Laphystium, and what are now called Coronea and Haliartia. And Athamas thinking he had no male children left, (for he had laid violent hands on Learchus and Melicerta, and Leucon had died of some illness, and as to Phrixus he did not know whether he was alive or had left any descendant), adopted accordingly Haliartus and Coronus, the sons of Thersander, the son of Sisyphus, who was brother of Athamas. But afterwards when Phrixus returned from Colchi according to some, according to others Presbon, Phrixus’ son by the daughter of Æetes, then the sons of Thersander conceded the kingdom of Athamas to him and his posterity, so they dwelt at Haliartus and Coronea which Athamas had given to them. And before this Andreus had married Euippe the daughter of Leucon at the instigation of Athamas, and had by her a son Eteocles, who according to the poets was the son of the river Cephisus, so that some of them called him Cephisiades in their poems. When Eteocles became king he allowed the country to keep its name Andreis, but established two tribes, one of which he called Cephisias, and the other from his own name Eteoclea. When Almus the son of Sisyphus came to him, he granted him a small village to dwell in, which got called after him Almones, but eventually got changed to Olmones.

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