FDIII2 27 List of cavalrymen escorting the second Hellenistic <i>Pythais</i> at Delphi, 128/7 BC

List of cavalrymen escorting the second Hellenistic Pythais at Delphi, 128/7 BC

F.Delphes III 2 27 Date: 128/7 BC

And the following cavalrymen were dispatched together by the People of the Athenians to escort the Pythais.^[1]

col. 1

Cavalry commander (hipparchos): (5)Diokles son of Diokles^[2] Tribal cavalry commanders (phularchoi): Erechtheis^I Hagias son of Boulon^[3] Aigeis^II (10)Hermon son of Antiphon.^[4] Cavalrymen: Erechtheis^I E- E[umarei]des^[5] (15)Alkidamos^[6] Pyrrhos^[3] Byttakos Aigeis^II Eu- (20)A- . . . Pandionis^III Demetrios of Oa (25) Leontis^IV Athenobios Charinos^[3] Zoilos Sotion (30)Sosigenes Boukattes Ptolemais^V Sosibios Herakleides (35)Artemon Mnesitheos Polykleitos Sostratos Kallitheos^[3] (40) Akamantis^VI Demoteles Menandros Asklepiades

col. 2

(3)Amyntas Oineis^VII (5)Archestratos Antipatros Zopyros Eubios Menekrates (10)Kallias Theophrastos Kekropis^VIII Diodotos Eudemos^[7] (15)Kichesias Archytas Hippothontis^IX Glaukos Eudoxos (20) Theoros^[8] Hipparchos Aiantis^X -des . . . (25) Antiochis^XI ^[9] Sotas Dionysodoros Rhadamanthys Dionysios (30)Demophilos Philinos Demetrios Autandros Apollonios (35)Kallistratos^[3] Menekrates Menophilos^XII Diodoros Anaxikrates (40)Apollonios Diomenes.

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References:

F.Delphes III 2 27 (Translated text) (PHI)

Syll.³ 697g

Tracy, Pythaïs Inscriptions pp. 192-3

Tracy, ALC 170e

Kühn, Pythais-Prozession 324-5

Translation by: Banban Wang

Monument type: Block (Wall)

Inscription type: List of names (Cavalry), List of names (Pythais)

Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, south wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 1474)
Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, south wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 708)
Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, south wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 1505)
Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, south wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 1470)
Findspot: Delphi (Athenian Treasury, south wall, in situ) (Delphi Museum 112)

Transliterations on Places on

[1] Textual Note AIO accepts the restoration of Ε[ὐμαρεί]δης in col. 1, l. 14 by H. Pomtow in Syll.³ 697g.

This list of 63 cavalrymen from the second Hellenistic Pythais at Delphi, which took place in 128/7 BC, was inscribed on the southern façade of the Athenian Treasury, occupying a rectangular space on two blocks one on top of the other (join at l. 22). On the Hellenistic Pythais and the Treasury, see F.Delphes III 2, 3 and on Attic inscriptions at Delphi, see IG II³ 4, 17 with notes. Cavalrymen rode alongside the procession as escorts and participated in contests during the Pythais, a display of Athenian military strength and wealth (see S. Kühn, Pythais-Prozession, 2018, 156 and F.Delphes III 2, 34-42). A similar roster of participating cavalrymen survives from the third Pythais (F.Delphes III 2, 28); the cavalrymen of the fourth Pythais were listed as part of the roster of ephebes (F.Delphes III 2, 26). Unlike other lists from the second Pythais, this cavalry list does not have a spatial connection with the other cavalry list on the Treasury (F.Delphes III 2, 28), but is located directly beneath a Delphic honorific decree for the association (koinon) of cavalrymen in Athens and key cavalry commanders (F.Delphes III 2, 46, also in 128/7 BC), to which it is linked by the opening ‘and’. This suggests that this list presents the members of this association. The heading covers two and a half lines (ll. 1-3), leaving space at the right side of the line. The first line of col. 2 starts in line with l. 3. [2] Diokles son of Diokles is also mentioned in F.Delphes III 2, 24, l. 5 (from the same Pythais), where he holds the title '(general) of the cavalry' (epi to hippikon). Here and in F.Delphes III 2, 46, l. 9 he holds the more normal title, 'commander of the cavalry' (hipparchos). [3] Hagias (col. 1, l. 7), Hermon (l. 10), Pyrrhos (l. 16), Byttakos (l. 17), Charinos (l. 27), Zoilos (l. 28), Sotion (l. 29), Kallitheos (l. 39), and Kallistratos (col. 2, l. 35) are attested in F.Delphes III 2, 34-42 as victors in the cavalry contests of the second Pythais. [4] In F.Delphes III 2, 24, four tribal cavalry commanders are mentioned without tribal filiation. Here the tribes of two tribal cavalry commanders are specified, and the other two tribal cavalry commanders are not mentioned. On tribal cavalry commanders and their duties, see IG II³ 1, 949 with note. Hermon was adopted by one Dionysios. The name of his birth-father, Antiphon, was added inline in F.Delphes III 2, 24, l. 6, but here he is simply named as the son of Antiphon. [5] For Eumareides, an ephebe in the first Pythais (F.Delphes III 2, 23, col. 2, l. 21), see IG II³ 4, 368. Other cavalrymen who had participated in the Pythais before include Polykleitos (col. 1, l. 37, Pythaist-boy in 138/7, F.Delphes III 2, 11, l. 10), Amyntas (col. 2, l. 3, ephebe in 138/7, F.Delphes III 2, 23, col. 2, l. 9), and Rhadamanthys (see below). [6] Alkidamos (col. 1, l. 15) was honoured by the Delphians in this year for bringing a tripod on a chariot during the procession back to Athens in F.Delphes III 2, 33 (on this tripod, see F.Delphes III 2, 32 with notes). [7] Eudemos (col. 2, l. 14) and Rhadamanthys (col. 2, l. 28) also appear in the list of sacred delegates (theoroi), F.Delphes III 2, 8. A possible explanation is that they were honoured because of their status as cavalrymen and perhaps competed in the cavalry games, but served as theoroi rather than cavalrymen in the procession. Other people mentioned here also served in other roles, including: Mnesitheos (col. 1, l. 36, court president in F.Delphes III 2, 3, col. 1, l. 10), Theophrastos (col. 2, l. 11, hoplite general in F.Delphes III 2, 24, ll. 3–4), Glaukos (col. 2, l. 18, Polemarch in F.Delphes III 2, 3, col. 1, l. 5), Hipparchos (col. 2, l. 21, perhaps general of the fleet in F.Delphes III 2, 24, l. 4) [8] The word 'theoros' (col. 2, l. 20) is centred, like the tribal rubrics. If this word is interpreted as the title, ‘sacred delegate’ (per G. Colin in F.Delphes III 2, 27, p. 34), one needs to explain why Hipparchos was added to this list and not to the list of sacred delegates in F.Delphes III 2, 8. Most likely, Theoros is a personal name (perhaps a relative of Theoros son of Theoros who was an ephebe in 97/6 BC, cf. F.Delphes III 2, 26, col. 2, l. 7, cf. Rutherford, State Pilgrims, 2014, 164) which the lettercutter misinterpreted as a title. Hipparchos (l. 21) is probably identical to Hipparchos of Piraeus (in the tribe of Hippothontis), who served as general of the fleet this year (F.Delphes III 2, 24, l. 4) and would be manager (epimeletes) of Delos in 114/3 BC (I Délos 1901). [9] The name of the twelfth tribe, Attalis, is omitted. Menophilos is named as a cavalryman of Attalis in the list of 106/5 BC (F.Delphes III 2, 28, col. 3, l. 30), and thus at least the last five cavalrymen (col. 2, ll. 37-41) should come from this tribe. S. Tracy, BCH 99, 1975, 193 supposes that, given that Attalis had 11 cavalrymen and Antiochis only 7 in the third Pythais of 106/5 BC, 'something more than half of the 16 cavalrymen listed here under Antiochis in fact belonged to Attalis.' However, the size of tribal contingents could vary greatly between Pythaides; Kekropis had only four cavalrymen in 128/7 BC, but twelve representatives in 106/5 BC.

Added: 3 Dec 2023
Updated: 3 Dec 2023
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