CHAPTER X

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Not far from the gates is a large sepulchre to all those who fell in battle against Alexander and the Macedonians. And at no great distance they show the place where they say, believe it who will, that Cadmus sowed the teeth of the dragon that he slew by the well, and that the ground produced a crop of armed men from these teeth.

And there is a hill sacred to Apollo on the right of the gates, the hill and the god and the river that flows by are all called Ismenius. At the approach to the temple are statues of Athene and Hermes in stone, called gods of the Vestibule, Hermes by Phidias and Athene by Scopas, and next comes the temple itself. And the statue of Apollo in it is in size and appearance very like the one at Branchidæ. Whoever has seen one of these statues and learnt the statuary’s name will not need much sagacity, if he sees the other, to know that it is by Canachus. But they differ in one respect, the one at Branchidæ being in bronze, the Ismenian in cedarwood. There is here also the stone on which they say Manto the daughter of Tiresias sate. It is near the entrance, and its name even to this day is Manto’s seat. And on the right of the temple are two stone statues, one they say of Henioche the other of Pyrrha, both daughters of Creon, who ruled as guardian of Laodamas the son of Eteocles. And still at Thebes I know they choose annually a lad of good family, good looking and strong, as priest to Ismenian Apollo: his title is laurel-bearer, because these lads wear crowns of laurel-leaves. I do not know whether all who wear these laurel crowns must dedicate to the god a brazen tripod, and I don’t think that can be the usage, for I did not see many tripods so offered. But the wealthiest lads certainly do offer these tripods. Especially notable for age and the celebrity of the person who gave it is that given by Amphitryon, Hercules wearing the laurel crown.

Somewhat higher than the temple of Apollo Ismenius you will see the spring which is they say sacred to Ares, who placed a dragon there to guard it. Near it is the tomb of Caanthus, who was they say the brother of Melia and the son of Oceanus, and was sent by his father to seek for his sister who had been carried off. But when he found Apollo with Melia he could not take her away, so he dared to set the grove of Ismenian Apollo on fire, and the god transfixed him with an arrow, so the Thebans say, and here is his tomb. And they say Melia bare Apollo two sons Tenerus and Ismenius, to Tenerus Apollo gave the power of divination, and Ismenius gave his name to the river. Not that it was without a name before, if indeed it was called Ladon before the birth of Apollo’s son Ismenius.

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