Telephus

ΤΗΛΕΦΟΣ

ὦ γαῖα πατρὶς ἣν Πέλοψ ὁρίζεται, χαῖρ᾿, ὅς τε πέτραν Ἀρκάδων δυσχείμερον Πὰν ἐμβατεύεις, ἔνθεν εὔχομαι γένος· Αὔγη γὰρ Ἀλέου παῖς με τῷ Τιρυνθίῳ 5τίκτει λαθραίως Ἡρακλεῖ· ξύνοιδ᾿ ὄρος Παρθένιον, ἔνθα μητέρ᾿ ὠδίνων ἐμὴν ἔλυσεν Εἰλείθυια, γίγνομαι δ᾿ ἐγώ. καὶ πόλλ᾿ ἐμόχθησ᾿, ἀλλὰ συντεμῶ λόγον. ἦλθον δὲ Μυσῶν πεδίον, ἔνθ᾿ εὑρὼν ἐμὴν 10μητέρα κατοικῶ, καὶ δίδωσί μοι κράτη Τεύθρας ὁ Μυσός, Τήλεφον δ᾿ ἐπώνυμον καλοῦσί μ᾿ ἀστοὶ Μυσίαν κατὰ χθόνα· τηλοῦ γὰρ οἰκῶν βίοτον ἐξιδρυσάμην. Ἕλλην δὲ βαρβάροισιν ἦρχε †τεκτονων† 15πολλοῖς σὺν ὅπλοις πρίν <γ’> Ἀχαϊκὸς μολὼν στρατὸς τὰ Μυσῶν πεδί᾿ ἐπ[ι]στρωφῶν πατεῖ.

Telephus

O fatherland, which Pelops marked out as his own, greetings—and you, Pan, who haunt Arcadia’s stormy massif from where I claim descent; for Aleus’ daughter Auge bore me secretly to Heracles of Tiryns—my witness is Mount5 Parthenion, where Eileithyia released my mother from her labour and I was born.¹ Many hardships I endured, but I will cut short my story: I came to the Mysian plain, where I found my mother and made my home. Teuthras the Mysian gave me authority, and people throughout Mysia10 call me by the fitting name of Telephus, for I settled far from home when I made my life here.² A Greek led barbarians † . . . †³ abundantly armed—till the Achaean host came15 roaming and trampling over the Mysian plain.