Athenian Decree of Themistokles
Text
[qeoi¿].
eÃdoc[en] th=i? boulh=i kaiì tw½i dh/mwi:
Qemis[tokl]h=?j? N?eokle/?ouj Frea/rrioj eiåpen:
th\[m] me\?n? po/[lin par]ak?a?t[aqe/]sqai th=i ¹Aqhna=i th=i ¹Aqhnw½-
m [medeo]u/[shi] k[aiì toiÍj aÃll]oij qe?oiÍj aÀ?pa?sin fula/ttei-
n k?a?[iì] a)?m?[u/nein to\m ba/]r?b?a?r?[o]n u(pe\r th=j xw¯raj: ¹Aqhnai¿ou-
[j d' aÀp]a?[ntaj kaiì tou\j ce/no]u?j tou\j oi¹kou=ntaj ¹Aqh/nhsi
[ta\ te/k]n[a kaiì ta\j gunaiÍk]a?j? e?[i¹j] Troizh=na kataqe/sqai
t?[..........20..........] tou=? a)?rxhge/tou th=j xw¯raj: t-
[ou\j de\ presbu/taj kaiì ta\] kth/mata ei¹j SalamiÍna kataq-
e/[s]q[ai: tou\j de\ tami¿aj kaiì t]a\j i¸ere/aj e)n th=i a)kropo/le-
[i me/nein fula/ttontaj ta\ tw½]n? q?ew½n: tou\j de\ aÃllouj ¹Aqh-
[nai¿ouj aÀpantaj kaiì tou\j ce/]no?uj tou\j h(bw½ntaj ei¹sbai¿-
nein e?[i¹j ta\j e(toimasq]e?[i¿]s?[a]j? diakosi¿aj nau=j kaiì a)mu/-
nes[qai] t[o\m ba/rbaron u(pe\r th=]j e)leuqeri¿aj th=j te e(au-
tw½?n [kaiì tw½n aÃllwn ¸Ellh/nwn] meta\ Lakedaimoni¿wn kaiì Ko-
r?i?n?[qi¿wn kaiì Ai¹ginhtw½n] k?a?iì tw½n aÃllwn tw½m boulome/nw-
[n] k?oinw[nh/sein tou= kindu/no]u: katasth=sai de\ kaiì trih?-
[r]a/?[rxouj diakosi¿ouj eÀna e)piì] th\n nau=n e(ka/sthn tou\j [s]-
trath[g]ou\[j a)rxome/nouj t]h=i auÃrion h(me/rai e)k tw½n k[ek]-
t?h?m?e/?n?[w]n? g?[h=n] t?[e k]a?iì? [oi¹ki¿]an ¹Aq[h/]nhsi kaiì oiâj aÄm paiÍd[ej]
wÕs?i gnh/[sioi mh\ presbute/ro]uj penth/konta e)tw½n ka?[iì e)]-
pikl[hrw½sai au)t]o?iÍ?j [t]a\j na?u=j: v v katale/cai de\ kaiì e)p?[i]-
ba/taj [d]e/ka? [e)f' e(ka/sth]n nau=n e)k tw½n u(pe\r eiãkosin eÃth [g]-
egono/tw[n me/xri tria/]ko?nta e)tw½n kaiì toco/taj te/ttar-
aj: dia[klhrw½sai de\ k]a?iì? [t]a\?j? u(?phresi¿aj e)piì ta\j nau=j oÀt-
amper k[aiì tou\j trihra/r]xouj e)piklhrw½sin: a)nagra/ya-
i de\ ka?[iì tou\j aÃllouj {nau/taj�}kata\] nau=?n? tou\j strathgou\j ei¹j l-
eukw¯[mata, tou\j me\n ¹A]q?h?n?a?i¿?o?u?j e)k tw½n lhciarxikw½n gr-
ammatei¿?[wn, tou\j] d?e\? c[e/n]ouj e)k tw½n a)pogegramme/nwn pa?-
[r]a\? t?w½i [pole]m?[a/rx]w?[i]: a)na?gra/fein de\ ne/montaj kata\ ta/c-
ei[j e]i¹j diakosi¿a[j] a)?[n]a\? e(kato\n a)riqmo\n kaiì e)pigra/ya-
i t?h=?i? [ta/c]ei? e(?k?a/?sthi th=j tri?h/rouj touÃnoma kaiì tou= tri-
h?ra/rxou kaiì t?h=?j? u(?phre[si¿]aj, oÀpwj aÄn ei¹dw½sin ei¹j o(poi¿-
an trih/rh e)[m]bh/setai h( [t]a/cij e([k]a/sth: e)peida\n de\ nemh-
q?w½s?in aÀpa[s]ai ai¸ ta/ceij kaiì e)piklhrwqw½si taiÍj trih/-
res?i, pl?h?rou=n a(?[p]a/saj? ta\j diakosi¿aj nau=j th\m boulh\n
kaiì t?[o]u\?s?trathg?ou\[j {tou\j strathgou\s} qu/]santaj a)resth/rion tw½i Diiì
tw½i
PagkrateiÍ kaiì th=i ¹Aqhna=i {kaiì}��� th=i Ni¿khi kaiì tw½i Posei-
dw½ni tw½i ¹Asfa[l]ei¿wi: v v e)peida\n de\ peplhrwme/nai wÕsin
ai¸ nh=ej?, ta[iÍ]j me\n e(kato\n au)tw½n bohqeiÍn e)piì to\ ¹Artemi¿s-
[i]o?n t?o\? Eu)boi+ko/n, taiÍj de\ e(kato\n au)tw½n periì th\n Salam-
iÍna kaiì th\n aÃllhn ¹Attikh\n nauloxeiÍn kaiì fula/ttein
th\n xw¯r?a?n: oÀpwj d' aÄn kaiì o(monoou=ntej aÀpantej ¹AqhnaiÍoi
a)?m?u/?nwntai to\m ba/rbaron, tou\j me\n meqesthko/taj ta\ [d]-
[e/ka] eÃth a)pie/nai ei¹j SalamiÍna kaiì me/nein au)tou\j? e)?[ke]-
[iÍ eÀwj aÃn ti tw½i dh/m]w?i do/chi periì au)tw½n: tou\j de\ [a)ti¿mou]-
[j ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ®] traces [® ® ® ® ® ® ®]
Translation
[Gods].
Resolv[ed] by the Boule and the Demos:
Themis[tokl]es son of Neokles of the deme of Phrearrhioi proposed:
The ci[ty] shall [be en]trusted to Athena, Athen-
s' [protectress, and to all the oth]er gods, to protec-
t an[d] def[end against the ba]rbar[ia]n on behalf of the country. The Athenian
[s, all of them and the alien]s residing in Athens
shall deposit i[n] Troezen [their children and their women]
[..........20..........] the founder of the country. T-
[he elderly and the] property, they shall deposit on Salamis.
[And the Treasurers and th]e Priestesses shall remain on the Akropol-
[is, guarding the property of the] gods. The rest of the Ath-
[enians, all of them, and the resident alie]ns in the prime of youth are to emba-
rk o[n the prepared] 200 ships and defe-
[nd against the Barbarian on behalf of] freedom, both the-
ir own [and of the rest of the Greeks] along with the Lakedaimonians and the Ko-
rin[thians and the Aiginetans] and all the rest wantin-
[g to] have a share in the danger. And there shall be appointed trie-
[rarchs, 200 of them, one for] each ship, by the [g]-
ener[als, starting] tomorrow, from those p[os]-
sessing both l[and] and [hom]e in Ath[e]ns and to whom there are childr[en]
who are legi[timate, being no old]er than fifty years of age an[d the l]-
lot [shall be used to assign them to th]e ships. v v And they (the generals) shall
draw up a list of o[n]-
board soldiers, [t]en [for each] ship from those over 20 years [of]
age [until 30] years, and archers, four
of them. And [the lot shall be used to assign] the staff officers(?) to the ships,
at pre-
cisely whatever time they also assign by lot [the trierar]chs. And there will be writ-
ten up a list of [the rest (of the sailors?), according to] (each) ship, by the generals,
on wh-
ite [notice boards, the A]thenians from the deme re-
gister[s, the] a[lien]s from the lists of those registered b-
y the [ polemarchos]. They will write up, distributing them according to divi-
sions, up to 200, each up to 100 in number and they shall write in addition
for each [divisi]on the name of the triereme and of the tri-
erarch and of the staff officer so that they shall know on whi-
ch triereme each division will e[m]bark. When
all of the divisions have been assigned and they have been assigned by lot to the
trie-
remes, all 200 ships shall be manned by the Boule
and the generals, after having made a propitiatory sacrifice to Zeus the
Allpowerful and to Athena and to Nike and to Posei-
don the Securer. v v When they shall have staffed
the ships, 100 of them shall provide reinforcement to the ships at the Artemis-
[i]on in Euboia, 100 of them, to the ships around Salam-
is and the rest of Attika, shall lie at anchorage and guard
the country. And in order that all of the Athenians shall be in agreement
(and) defend against the Barbarian, those having been banished for [t]-
[en] years shall set out for Salamis and they shall remained th[er]-
[e until the dem]os shall make some decision about them. But those [having been deprive]-
[d of citizen-rights - - - - - - - - - -] traces [- - - - - - - ]
480 B.C. (recarved? ca. 300-265 B.C.)
Troezen, marble stele from the church of H. Soteira, now in the Epigraphic Museum.
Athenian decree
SEG 22.274; ML 23.