Decree about colonising expedition to the Adriatic
IG II3 1 370 Date: 325/4 BCcol. 1
[1] Decree in accordance with which
Miltiades[2] took over the
triremes and quadriremes
and the triaconters
and their equipment.
Kephisophon son of Lysiphon
of Cholargos proposed:
for the good fortune of the Athenian People, so that
(5) the decisions of the People
may be carried out as swiftly as possible
concerning the colony (apoikias) to the Adriatic, the People
shall resolve: that the
(10) supervisors (epimelētas) of the shipyards
shall hand over to the trierarchs
the ships and the equipment
in accordance with the decisions of the
People, and the trierarchs
(15) who have been appointed shall
bring their ships up along to the
[jetty (chōma)] in the month
of Mounichion before the tenth
and present them
(20) prepared for
sailing; and the first to
bring his ship along, let
the People crown him with a gold
crown of 500 drachmas;
(25) and the second with one of 300
drachmas; and the third
with one of 200 drachmas; and
let the herald of the Council announce
the crowns at the competition of the Thargelia,
(30) and the receivers (apodektas) shall allocate the money
for the crowns, so that the
love of honour (philotimia) of the trierarchs
towards the People may be apparent;
(35) and in order that the
pleas for exemption (skēpseis) may also be heard,
the court presidents (thesmothetas) shall
fill the courts to
two hundred and one for the
(40) general elected
in charge of the symmories, in the
month of Mounichion on the
second and the
fifth, and
(45) the treasurers of the goddess
shall provide the payment (misthon) for the courts according to the
law; and in order that the People
may have for all
(50) time their own markets (emporia oikeia) and
grain transport (sitopompia), and by the
establishment of their own naval station (naustathmo) may have protection (phulakē) against
the Etruscans,[3] and Miltiades
(55) the founder (oikistēs) and the settlers (epoikoi) may have use of their own
navy (nautikōi), and those Greeks
and barbarians who
sail the sea
(60) may sail [safely?] to
the Athenian [market (emporion)?] [bringing grain?] and other things
. . . that
col. 2
. . . but if anyone, of whom each of these things
(65) have been required, whether
official or private citizen, does not act in accordance with this
decree, let whoever does not so act owe
ten thousand drachmas
sacred (hieras) to Athena, and let the
(70) scrutineer (euthunos) and his assistants (paredroi) compulsorily condemn them,
or owe it themselves;
and the Council of
500 shall supervise (epimeleisthai) the despatch (apostolou),
(75) punishing any
trierarchs who are disorderly
according to the laws;
and the prytany (prutaneis) shall hold
a session of the Council on the jetty (chōmati) (80) concerning the despatch (apostolou),
continuously, until the despatch (apostolos) has taken place; and the People
shall elect as despatchers (apostoleas) ten men from
(85) all the Athenians; and those
elected shall supervise (epimeleisthai) the despatch (apostolo),
as required by the Council;
and it shall be permitted
(90) for the Council and the prytany (prutanesin) who have supervised the
despatch (apostolou) to be crowned
by the People with a gold
crown of 1,000 drachmas;
(95) and if this decree
lacks anything in relation to the
despatch (apostolon), the Council
shall be empowered to vote on it,
so long as they do not undo any of what
(100) has been voted by the People;
and all these things shall be
for the protection (phulakēn) of the country (chōras).