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immediately to Sparta, and he sends men everywhere in search of Helen. After some time, Paris arrived, having been saved from Egypt. When Priam and Hecuba received him and saw Helen, they were astonished, and they inquired who she might be and from where. She said that she was a kinswoman of Alexander, and that she was more related to Priam and Hecuba themselves and not to Menelaus, the son of Pleisthenes. For from Plesione, the daughter of Danaus, were descended Dardanus and Tros and the kings from him; and from Agenor, the paternal uncle of Danaus, was descended Dymas the king, the father of Hecuba; and from the family of Dymas is Leda also, my mother. When Helen had said these things, and at the same time swearing that she had taken none of Menelaus's possessions, and demanding an oath that she not be betrayed, she remained, beloved by them. Learning this, Agamemnon and his men sent envoys before the war, both Menelaus himself and Odysseus, and letters from Clytemnestra, wife of Agamemnon and sister of Helen, demanding that the wife be returned to Menelaus. They were sent away unsuccessful. Therefore, all the rulers of Europe, and Achilles son of Thetis and Peleus with his subject 1.219 troop of Myrmidons, and Nestor the Elean and Odysseus of Ithaca and the two Ajaxes and Diomedes and Idomeneus and many other noble men, setting out on an expedition with one thousand one hundred and ninety-eight ships, sailed away. And having wintered near a place called Aulis, they encamped against Ilium. Since the winter weather opposed them for a long time, Calchas the seer said that Agamemnon owed a sacrifice, to offer his own daughter to Artemis, who was the goddess of the land; but he was unwilling. But indeed, a woman also prophesying in harmony with Calchas said that unless they offered Agamemnon's first daughter to Artemis, the storm would not be broken. But others say that this happened not because of the storm, but because Agamemnon shot and killed a very large goat near the temple of Artemis, and that on account of this a plague-like disease arose instead. And when a dispute arose, Agamemnon was deposed from the kingship, and Palamedes was appointed in his place. At which things Odysseus, being terribly disposed, pretended to sail away to his own land, but he went to Clytemnestra, the wife of Agamemnon, at Argos, and taking Iphigenia with forged letters (for she was the first of Agamemnon's daughters) on the pretext that she would be given as a wife to Achilles, who was excelling in the camp, he returned with bridal gifts, and handed her over to the priests for the propitiation of Artemis. When, therefore, they were about to bring her to the sacrifice, a deer was found in her place approaching the altar, which was then offered as a sacrifice instead of 1.220 the maiden. And when she had been saved and returned to her father alive, Agamemnon immediately dedicated her as a priestess to the temple of Artemis; and Odysseus arranged for the kingship to be restored again to Agamemnon. But a little later Odysseus, using forged letters and witnesses, laid a charge of treason against Palamedes, and arranged for the army to stone him, and after cremating the remains, to send them to Nauplius his father. This is the Palamedes who also invented the game board for the amusement of the army, and established the arrangement on it with great philosophy. For he decreed the board to be the earthly world, the twelve points the number of the zodiac, the dice-caster and the pips on it the seven stars of the planets, and the tower the height of heaven, from which good or evil things are given back to all. The same man also invented the 16 letters of the alphabet: a b g d e i k l m n o p r s t u. And Cadmus of Miletus added to them three other letters: th ph ch. Therefore for a long time they used the 19; whence the ancients, not having the psi, called the psalis a palis, and pronounced and said and wrote many other words differently. To these Simonides the

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εἰς τὴν Σπάρτην εὐθύς, πέμπει δὲ εἰς ἀναζήτησιν τῆς Ἑλένης πανταχοῦ. μετὰ δὲ χρόνον ἧκεν ὁ Πάρις ἀπὸ τῆς Αἰγύ πτου σωθείς. ὃν Πρίαμος καὶ Ἑκάβη ἀποδεδεγμένοι, ἰδόντες τὴν Ἑλένην, ἐξέστησαν, καὶ τίς ἂν εἴη καὶ πόθεν ἐπυνθάνοντο. ἡ δὲ Ἀλεξάνδρου ἔφη εἶναι συγγενής, καὶ αὐτῷ μᾶλλον Πριάμῳ καὶ τῇ Ἑκάβῃ καὶ οὐ τῷ Πλεισθένους υἱῷ προσήκειν Μενελάῳ. ἐκ τῆς ∆αναοῦ γὰρ θυγατρὸς Πλησιόνης ∆άρδανον καὶ Τρῶα κατ άγεσθαι καὶ τοὺς ἐξ αὐτοῦ βασιλεῖς· Ἀγήνορος δὲ τοῦ πατρα δέλφου ∆αναοῦ ἀπόγονος ∆ύμας βασιλεὺς ὁ Ἑκάβης πατήρ· ἐκ γένους δὲ τοῦ ∆ύμα καὶ Λήδα ἐστὶ μήτηρ ἡ ἐμή. ταῦτα Ἑλένη εἰποῦσα, καὶ ἅμα διομνυμένη μηδὲν τῶν Μενελάου λαβεῖν, καὶ ὅρκον δὲ ἀπαιτήσασα μὴ προδοθῆναι, ἔμεινεν ἀγαπωμένη πρὸς αὐτῶν. τοῦτο μαθόντες οἱ περὶ Ἀγαμέμνονα πέμπουσι πρέσβεις πρὸ τοῦ πολέμου, αὐτόν τε Μενέλαον καὶ Ὀδυσσέα, καὶ γράμ ματα Κλυταιμνήστρας γυναικὸς Ἀγαμέμνονος, ἀδελφῆς Ἑλένης, ἀξιοῦντες ἀποδοθῆναι Μενελάῳ τὴν γυναῖκα. οἳ καὶ ἀποπέμπον ται ἄπρακτοι. διὸ καὶ τοὺς τοπαρχοῦντας τῆς Εὐρώπης ἅπαντας, καὶ τὸν Θέτιδος καὶ Πηλέως Ἀχιλλέα μετὰ τὸ ὑποκείμενον αὐτῷ 1.219 τῶν Μυρμιδόνων στῖφος, καὶ Νέστορα τὸν Ἠλεῖον καὶ τὸν Ἰθακήσιον Ὀδυσσέα καὶ τοὺς δύο Αἴαντας ∆ιομήδην τε καὶ Ἰδομενέα καὶ ἄλλους πολλοὺς καὶ γενναίους σὺν ναυσὶ χιλίαις ἑκατὸν ἐνενή κοντα ὀκτὼ ἐκστρατεύσαντες ἀποπλέουσι. καὶ παρὰ Αὐλίδι οὕτω καλουμένῳ χωρίῳ παραχειμάσαντες κατὰ Ἰλίου ἐστρατοπεδεύοντο. τοῦ χειμῶνος δὲ ἀντικειμένου αὐτοῖς ἐπὶ πολὺ Κάλχας ὁ μάντις θυσίαν ὀφείλειν τὸν Ἀγαμέμνονα εἶπε τὴν αὐτοῦ θυγατέρα τῇ Ἀρτέμιδι παρασχεῖν, θεᾷ τῆς χώρας οὔσῃ· ὁ δὲ οὐκ ἤθελεν. ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ γυνὴ συνῳδὰ τῷ Κάλχαντι προφητεύουσα εἶπεν ὡς εἰ μὴ τὴν πρώτην Ἀγαμέμνονος θυγατέρα τῇ Ἀρτέμιδι προσαγάγωσιν, ὁ χειμὼν οὐ λυθήσεται. οἱ δὲ οὐ διὰ τὸν χειμῶνα τοῦτό φασι συμβῆναι, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ αἶγα μεγίστην παρὰ τὸ ἱερὸν τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος τοξεῦσαι καὶ ἀνελεῖν τὸν Ἀγαμέμνονα, καὶ ἐπὶ τούτῳ μᾶλλον λοιμικὴν νόσον γενέσθαι. καὶ διστάσεως γενομένης καθαι ρεῖται μὲν Ἀγαμέμνων τῆς βασιλείας, Παλαμήδης δὲ ἀντ' αὐτοῦ προχειρίζεται. ἐφ' οἷς Ὀδυσσεὺς δεινῶς διατεθεὶς προσποιεῖται μὲν πρὸς τὴν ἰδίαν χώραν ἀποπλεῖν, παραγίνεται δὲ πρὸς Κλυ ταιμνήστραν τὴν τοῦ Ἀγαμέμνονος γυναῖκα εἰς τὸ Ἄργος, καὶ πλαστοῖς γράμμασι τὴν Ἰφιγένειαν λαβὼν (αὕτη γὰρ ἦν πρώτη τῶν τοῦ Ἀγαμέμνονος θυγατέρων) ὡς Ἀχιλλεῖ κατὰ τὸ στρατόπεδον ἀριστεύοντι δοθησομένην γυναῖκα ὑποστρέφει μετὰ ἔδνων, καὶ παραδίδωσι ταύτην τοῖς ἱερεῦσι πρὸς ἱλασμὸν τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος. ὡς οὖν ἔμελλον εἰς θυσίαν ταύτην προσάγειν, ἔλαφος ἀντ' αὐτῆς εὑ ρέθη προσισταμένη τῷ βωμῷ, ἥτις καὶ προσηνέχθη θυσία ἀντὶ 1.220 τῆς παρθένου. καὶ ταύτης διασωθείσης καὶ ἀποδοθείσης τῷ πατρὶ ζώσης, ἱέρειαν αὐτὴν παραυτὰ τῷ ἱερῷ τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος Ἀγαμέμνων ἀφιέρωσε· καὶ Ὀδυσσεὺς ἀποδοθῆναι αὖθις τὴν βασιλείαν τῷ Ἀγαμέμνονι παρεσκεύασε. Παλαμήδην δὲ μετ' ὀλίγον Ὀδυσσεύς, πλαστοῖς γράμμασι καὶ μάρτυσι χρησάμενος, αἰτίαν προδότου τίθησιν, καὶ παρασκευάζει τὸν στρατὸν λιθοβολῆσαι αὐτόν, καὶ τὸ λείψανον τεφρώσαντας Ναυπλίῳ τῷ αὐτοῦ πατρὶ παραπέμψαι. οὗτός ἐστι Παλαμήδης ὁ καὶ τὴν τάβλαν ἐφευρὼν πρὸς μετεωρι σμὸν τοῦ στρατοῦ, καὶ τὴν ἐν αὐτῇ σύνθεσιν σὺν φιλοσοφίᾳ πολλῇ καταστήσας. ὥρισε γὰρ εἶναι τὴν τάβλαν τὸν γήϊνον κόσμον, τοὺς δὲ δώδεκα κάσους τὸν ζωδιακὸν ἀριθμόν, τὸ δὲ ψηφόβολον καὶ τὰ ἐν αὐτῷ κοκκία τὰ ἑπτὰ ἄστρα τῶν πλανήτων, τὸν δὲ πύργον τὸ ὕψος τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, ἐξ οὗ ἀνταποδίδοται πᾶσι καλὰ ἢ κακά. ὁ αὐτὸς εὗρε καὶ τὰ ι ϛʹ γράμματα τοῦ ἀλφαβήτου, α β γ δ ε ι κ λ μ ν ο π ρ ς τ υ. προσέθηκε δὲ αὐτοῖς Κάδμος ὁ Μιλήσιος ἕτερα γράμματα τρία, θ φ χ. διὸ καὶ πολλῷ τῷ χρόνῳ τοῖς ιθʹ ἐχρῶντο· ὅθεν οἱ ἀρχαῖοι μὴ ἔχοντες τὸ ψ τὴν ψαλίδα παλίδα ἔλεγον, καὶ ἄλλα πολλὰ ῥήματα ἄλλως ἐξεφώνουν καὶ ἔλεγον καὶ ἔγραφον. πρὸς ταῦτα Σιμωνίδης ὁ