FDIII2 140 Athenian Decree at Delphi concerning the Soteria

Athenian Decree at Delphi concerning the Soteria

F.Delphes III 2 140 Date: Second half of the 2nd cent. BC

Column 1

. . . . . . . . . [name] proposed: since . . . ^[1] . . . the Delphians for the Athenians . . . (5) . . . from the Amphiktyons . . . those who have been appointed previously . . . on which occasion when the Dorians . . . ^[2] . . . in exchange for which previously . . . . . . and still even now the . . . (10) . . . of the city to all and . . . . . . the religious delegates (theōrous) who (are or will be present) . . . for the competition of the [Soteria] . . . to report to the People about these matters . . . and the Soteria, the truce-bearers (spondophor-) (15) . . . to the Council, and the one who has been sent . . . [Mikion] son of Eurykleides of Kephisia^[3] about . . . so that the piety of the People may be manifest to all on this occasion as well as in the future. With good fortune, the Council shall decide that the presiding committee allotted to preside

Column 2

(20)at the forthcoming Assembly shall put these matters on the agenda, and submit the opinion of the Council to the People, that it seems good to the Council to . . . and shall be granted . . . to the People the truce-bearers (spondophor-) . . . (25)the competition of the Soteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . and the (30)prytany secretary shall inscribe this decree on a stone stele and dispatch it to the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi so that it can be also inscribed near the Treasury (thēsauron) of the City.

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References:

F.Delphes III 2 140 (Translated text) (PHI)

Translation by: Claudio Huayna Avila

Monument type: Wall

Inscription type: Decree (Council)

Fr. a - Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, east wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum)
Fr. b - Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, east wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 1448)
Fr. c - Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, east wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 109)
Fr. d - Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, east wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 772)
Fr. e - Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, east wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 719)

Transliterations on Places on

[1] This very fragmentary inscription is the only certain Athenian decree set up on the Athenian Treasury at Delphi (F.Delphes III 2, 142 may be another). On the Athenian Treasury, see Choix de Delphes 15 and on Attic inscriptions at Delphi, see IG II³ 4, 17. The inscription is composed of two columns, carved on two adjacent blocks; the left side of the first column, on the first block, and the middle part of the second column are completely lost. The decree relates to the celebration of the competition at the Soteria festival at Delphi (l. 13, l. 25) in the second half of the second century BC (on the Soteria festival and its organisation in the mid-third century BC, see IG II³ 1, 1005).

Given the fragmentary state of the inscription, it is very difficult to interpret. It appears that, after receiving a favorable response from the Dorians (see n. 2), a group of truce bearers (spondophoroi), envoys commissioned to announce the festivals held at the four great panhellenic games, were sent from Delphi to Athens (ll. 14-15). In response, the Athenian Council submits a probouleuma to the Athenian Assembly (ll. 18-21, cf. AIUK 4.2 (British Museum), p. 8), proposing that Athens dispatch an official religious delegation (theoria) to Delphi to participate in the Soteria (ll. 8-15, on theoria, see on the institution of the theoria see IG II³ 4, 18 with notes). It is likely that the decision to send a theoria to Delphi, led by Mikion, one of Athens' most prominent citizens (on whom, see n. 3), was not the sole purpose of the decree. It is probable that Athens was also consenting to changes to the festival or declaring its future participation. [2] The word “Dorians” may refer to the inhabitants of Doris, a small region in the upper Kephissos valley, or to the Dorians as one of the four major divisions of the Greek people (along with the Aeolians, Achaeans and Ionians). In this broader sense, it encompassed most of the inhabitants of northwestern Greece, the Peloponnese, the islands of the southern Aegean, the Carian coast, and overseas colonies founded by Dorian cities. Although these communities did not form a political unit, the Dorian cities used similar Greek dialects, shared some political and religious institutions (e.g. civic tribes, festivals, calendars), and claimed a common descent (see. J. Hall, Hellenicity, 2002, 73-89). They were entitled to send two representatives to the Amphiktyonic council, which managed the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi. The mention of the Dorians in this inscription is rather enigmatic as it is not clear to whom it specifically refers (the inhabitants of Doris, the Peloponnesians as a whole, or a specific Dorian community, such as Sparta, Argos, or Corinth?). However, it seems that the Delphian truce bearers (spondophoroi) were only sent to Athens after having reported the decision to go to Athens to the Dorians. [3] Mikon son of Eurykleides of Kephisia was member of one of the most influential families in mid-Hellenistic Athens. His ancestors (Eurykleides and the homonymous Mikion) were responsible for liberating Athens from Macedonian control in 229 and winning back Piraeus (cf. IG II³ 1, 1160). His family is well attested epigraphically throughout the third and second century BC (cf. Ch. Habicht, Studien zur Geschichte Athens in hellenistischer Zeit, 1982, 179-82). Our Mikion also appears in another fragmentary inscription on the Soteria which roughly dates to the same period (F.Delphes III 2, 141).

Added: 5 Jun 2023
Updated: 9 Jun 2023
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