Decree about tribute of Delian League ("Kleinias' decree")
AIUK 4.2 (BM, Decrees of Council and Assembly) no. 5 Date: 425/4 BC or a little laterFragments abd
Gods.
The Council and the
People decided. Oineis was the prytany;
Spoudias was secretary; -on
(5) was chairman. Kleinias proposed:[1] the
Council and the officials (archontas) in the cities[2] and the overseers (episkopos) shall manage that
the tribute is collected each
(10) year and conveyed to Athens.
Tokens (chsumbola) shall be made for (pros) the cities,
so that it shall not be possible
for those conveying the tribute to do
wrong. Let the city write on
(15) a writing tablet (grammateion) the tribute which it is sending, and
seal it with the token (sumboloi) and send it to Athens; and those
conveying it shall hand over the writing tablet (grammateion) in the Council
to be read when they hand over the tribute. Let the
prytany (prutanes) hold an Assembly after the Dionysia for
(20) the Greek Treasurers (hellenotamiasi) to reveal to the Athenians those of
the cities which have paid the tribute in full and,
separately, those which have fallen short, [and those?] which [have not paid it or they are?]. The Athenians shall
elect four men and send them to the cities,
to give receipts for the tribute which has been paid and to
(25) demand what has not been paid. [Of those elected] two
shall sail to [Ionia, Caria and the Islands?] in
a fast trireme, [and the other two to the Hellespont and?] to Thrace. . . . to the
Council and the People . . . (30) deliberate about [these matters continuously until they are settled].
If any Athenian or ally does wrong concerning the
tribute which the cities are required to write on a writing tablet (grammateion) for those conveying it and to send to Athens, whoever wishes of the Athenians and the allies
shall be permitted to write an accusation against him to the prytany (prutanes);
(35) and let the prytany (prutanes) introduce the accusation
into the Council [within a certain number of days from when] it is made, or they shall be
penalised at their accounting (euthunestho) for bribery (doron), [a thousand or ten thousand] drachmas each. Whomever
the Council condemns . . . for him the judgement shall be valid . . . refer him to . . . . When he is judged to be in the wrong,
(40) let the prytany (prutanes) formulate proposals (gnomas poiesthon) about what
he should suffer or pay. And if any one does wrong with regard to the bringing
of the cow and panoply,[3] the accusations
against him and the punishment shall be handled in the same manner. The Greek Treasurers (hellenotamias) shall write up on a whitened board (pinakion leleukomenon) (45) . . . of the tribute and . . . . . . . . . ca. 10 lines missing
Fragment c
(57) . . . the in-coming Council
. . . as many of those conveying (scil. the tribute)
. . . who have been written up as being
(60) in debt . . . [the Council?] shall indicate to the
People . . . If any of the cities
[disputes the payment of the tribute], claiming
that it has paid it . . . the collective body (?) (koinon) of the
[city?] . . . the cities and
(65) . . . it shall not be possible to
. . . [let the accused or the accuser?] owe
. . . the accusation shall be
. . . in the month -. If anybody
. . . let the Council
(70) [deliberate?] . . . Let the - introduce
. . . tribute to the Athenians . . . the board (pinaka) containing the denunciation (?)
. . . of the tribute and last year's
. . . the Council shall formulate a proposal and
(75) bring it forward . . . on the next day
[to the People] . . . [to deal with?] . . . of the choice (or election) . . .