Polybius, Histories

Translation

Book 9 - Chapter 15

<w lemma="kratei%3D">κρατεῖ</w> <w lemma="d%27">δ᾽</w> <w lemma="e%29pi%5C">ἐπὶ</w> <w lemma="pa%2Fntwn">πάντων</w> <w lemma="me%5Cn">μὲν</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="a%29nqrwpei%2Fwn">ἀνθρωπείων</w> <w lemma="e%29%2Frgwn">ἔργων</w> <w lemma="o%28">ὁ</w> <w lemma="kairo%2Fs">καιρός</w>, <w lemma="ma%2Flista">μάλιστα</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="polemikw%3Dn">πολεμικῶν</w>.

<w lemma="dio%5C">διὸ</w> <w lemma="proxei%2Frws">προχείρως</w> <w lemma="i%29ste%2Fon">ἰστέον</w> <w lemma="tw%3D%7C">τῷ</w> <w lemma="strathgw%3D%7C">στρατηγῷ</w> <w lemma="tropa%5Cs">τροπὰς</w> <w lemma="h%28li%2Fou">ἡλίου</w> <w lemma="qerina%5Cs">θερινὰς</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="xeimerina%2Fs">χειμερινάς</w>, <w lemma="e%29%2Fti">ἔτι</w> <w lemma="d%27">δ᾽</w> <w lemma="i%29shmeri%2Fas">ἰσημερίας</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="ta%5Cs">τὰς</w> <w lemma="metacu%5C">μεταξὺ</w> <w lemma="tou%2Ftwn">τούτων</w> <w lemma="au%29ch%2Fseis">αὐξήσεις</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="meiw%2Fseis">μειώσεις</w> <w lemma="h%28merw%3Dn">ἡμερῶν</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="nuktw%3Dn:">νυκτῶν·</w>

<w lemma="ou%28%2Ftws">οὕτως</w> <w lemma="ga%5Cr">γὰρ</w> <w lemma="a%29%5Cn">ἂν</w> <w lemma="mo%2Fnws">μόνως</w> <w lemma="du%2Fnaito">δύναιτο</w> <w lemma="summetrei%3Dsqai">συμμετρεῖσθαι</w> <w lemma="pro%5Cs">πρὸς</w> <w lemma="lo%2Fgon">λόγον</w> <w lemma="ta%5C">τὰ</w> <w lemma="dianu%2Fsmata">διανύσματα</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="gh%3Dn">γῆν</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="qa%2Flattan">θάλατταν</w>.

<w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="mh%5Cn">μὴν</w> <w lemma="tou%5Cs">τοὺς</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="me%2Fros">μέρος</w> <w lemma="kairou%5Cs">καιροὺς</w> <w lemma="a%29nagkai%3Don">ἀναγκαῖον</w> <w lemma="ei%29de%2Fnai">εἰδέναι</w>, <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="tou%5Cs">τοὺς</w> <w lemma="th%3Ds">τῆς</w> <w lemma="h%28me%2Fras">ἡμέρας</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="tou%5Cs">τοὺς</w> <w lemma="th%3Ds">τῆς</w> <w lemma="nukto%2Fs">νυκτός</w>, <w lemma="pro%5Cs">πρὸς</w> <w lemma="to%5C">τὸ</w> <w lemma="ginw%2Fskein">γινώσκειν</w> <w lemma="phni%2Fka">πηνίκα</w> <w lemma="poihte%2Fon">ποιητέον</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="ta%5Cs">τὰς</w> <w lemma="e%29cege%2Frseis">ἐξεγέρσεις</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="ta%5Cs">τὰς</w> <w lemma="a%29nazuga%2Fs:">ἀναζυγάς·</w>

<w lemma="ou%29">οὐ</w> <w lemma="ga%5Cr">γὰρ</w> <w lemma="oi%28%3Do%2Fn">οἷόν</w> <w lemma="te">τε</w> <w lemma="tou%3D">τοῦ</w> <w lemma="te%2Flous">τέλους</w> <w lemma="tugxa%2Fnein">τυγχάνειν</w> <w lemma="mh%5C">μὴ</w> <w lemma="ou%29">οὐ</w> <w lemma="th%3Ds">τῆς</w> <w lemma="a%29rxh%3Ds">ἀρχῆς</w> <w lemma="eu%29stoxh%2Fsanta">εὐστοχήσαντα</w>.

<w lemma="tou%5Cs">τοὺς</w> <w lemma="me%5Cn">μὲν</w> <w lemma="ou%29%3Dn">οὖν</w> <w lemma="th%3Ds">τῆς</w> <w lemma="h%28me%2Fras">ἡμέρας</w> <w lemma="kairou%5Cs">καιροὺς</w> <w lemma="th%3D%7C">τῇ</w> <w lemma="skia%3D%7C">σκιᾷ</w> <w lemma="qewrei%3Dn">θεωρεῖν</w> <w lemma="ou%29k">οὐκ</w> <w lemma="a%29du%2Fnaton">ἀδύνατον</w>, <w lemma="e%29%2Fti">ἔτι</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="th%3D%7C">τῇ</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="to%5Cn">τὸν</w> <w lemma="h%28%2Flion">ἥλιον</w> <w lemma="porei%2Fa%7C">πορείᾳ</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="toi%3Ds">τοῖς</w> <w lemma="e%29pi%5C">ἐπὶ</w> <w lemma="tou%3D">τοῦ</w> <w lemma="ko%2Fsmou">κόσμου</w> <w lemma="ginome%2Fnois">γινομένοις</w> <w lemma="au%29tou%3D">αὐτοῦ</w> <w lemma="tou%2Ftou">τούτου</w> <w lemma="diasth%2Fmasi:">διαστήμασι·</w>

<w lemma="tou%5Cs">τοὺς</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="th%3Ds">τῆς</w> <w lemma="nukto%5Cs">νυκτὸς</w> <w lemma="dusxere%2Fs">δυσχερές</w>, <w lemma="e%29a%5Cn">ἐὰν</w> <w lemma="mh%2F">μή</w> <w lemma="tis">τις</w> <w lemma="e%29pi%5C">ἐπὶ</w> <w lemma="tou%3D">τοῦ</w> <w lemma="fainome%2Fnou">φαινομένου</w> <w lemma="th%3D%7C">τῇ</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="dw%2Fdeka">δώδεκα</w> <w lemma="zw%7Cdi%2Fwn">ζῳδίων</w> <w lemma="oi%29konomi%2Fa%7C">οἰκονομίᾳ</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="ta%2Fcei">τάξει</w> <w lemma="sumperife%2Frhtai:">συμπεριφέρηται·</w> <w lemma="pa%2Fnu">πάνυ</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="tou%3Dto">τοῦτο</w> <w lemma="r%28a%2F%7Cdion">ῥᾴδιον</w> <w lemma="toi%3Ds">τοῖς</w> <w lemma="ta%5C">τὰ</w> <w lemma="faino%2Fmena">φαινόμενα</w> <w lemma="pepolupragmonhko%2Fsin">πεπολυπραγμονηκόσιν</w>.

<w lemma="e%29pei%5C">ἐπεὶ</w> <w lemma="ga%5Cr">γὰρ</w> <w lemma="a%29ni%2Fswn">ἀνίσων</w> <w lemma="ou%29sw%3Dn">οὐσῶν</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="nuktw%3Dn">νυκτῶν</w> <w lemma="o%28%2Fmws">ὅμως</w> <w lemma="e%29n">ἐν</w> <w lemma="pa%2Fsh%7C">πάσῃ</w> <w lemma="th%3D%7C">τῇ</w> <w lemma="nukti%5C">νυκτὶ</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="dw%2Fdeka">δώδεκα</w> <w lemma="zw%7Cdi%2Fwn">ζῳδίων</w> <w lemma="e%28%5Cc">ἓξ</w> <w lemma="a%29nafe%2Fresqai">ἀναφέρεσθαι</w> <w lemma="sumbai%2Fnei">συμβαίνει</w>, <w lemma="fanero%5Cn">φανερὸν</w> <w lemma="w%28s">ὡς</w> <w lemma="a%29nagkai%3Don">ἀναγκαῖον</w> <w lemma="e%29n">ἐν</w> <w lemma="toi%3Ds">τοῖς</w> <w lemma="au%29toi%3Ds">αὐτοῖς</w> <w lemma="me%2Fresi">μέρεσι</w> <w lemma="pa%2Fshs">πάσης</w> <w lemma="nukto%5Cs">νυκτὸς</w> <w lemma="i%29%2Fsa">ἴσα</w> <w lemma="me%2Frh">μέρη</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="dw%2Fdeka">δώδεκα</w> <w lemma="zw%7Cdi%2Fwn">ζῳδίων</w> <w lemma="a%29nafe%2Fresqai">ἀναφέρεσθαι</w>.

<w lemma="tou%3D">τοῦ</w> <w lemma="d%27">δ᾽</w> <w lemma="h%28li%2Fou">ἡλίου</w> <w lemma="gnwrizome%2Fnou">γνωριζομένου</w> <w lemma="kaq%27">καθ᾽</w> <w lemma="h%28me%2Fran">ἡμέραν</w>, <w lemma="poi%2Fan">ποίαν</w> <w lemma="moi%3Dran">μοῖραν</w> <w lemma="e%29pe%2Fxei">ἐπέχει</w>, <w lemma="dh%3Dlon">δῆλον</w> <w lemma="w%28s">ὡς</w> <w lemma="du%2Fnantos">δύναντος</w> <w lemma="tou%2Ftou">τούτου</w> <w lemma="th%5Cn">τὴν</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="dia%2Fmetron">διάμετρον</w> <w lemma="e%29pite%2Fllein">ἐπιτέλλειν</w> <w lemma="a%29na%2Fgkh">ἀνάγκη</w>.

<w lemma="loipo%5Cn">λοιπὸν</w> <w lemma="o%28%2Fson">ὅσον</w> <w lemma="a%29%5Cn">ἂν</w> <w lemma="to%5C">τὸ</w> <w lemma="meta%5C">μετὰ</w> <w lemma="tau%2Fthn">ταύτην</w> <w lemma="me%2Fros">μέρος</w> <w lemma="a%29natetalko%5Cs">ἀνατεταλκὸς</w> <w lemma="fai%2Fnhtai">φαίνηται</w> <w lemma="tou%3D">τοῦ</w> <w lemma="zw%7Cdiakou%3D">ζῳδιακοῦ</w>, <w lemma="tosou%3Dton">τοσοῦτον</w> <w lemma="ei%29ko%5Cs">εἰκὸς</w> <w lemma="h%29nu%2Fsqai">ἠνύσθαι</w> <w lemma="th%3Ds">τῆς</w> <w lemma="nukto%5Cs">νυκτὸς</w> <w lemma="ai%29ei%2F">αἰεί</w>.

<w lemma="gnwrizome%2Fnwn">γνωριζομένων</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="zw%7Cdi%2Fwn">ζῳδίων</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="to%5C">τὸ</w> <w lemma="plh%3Dqos">πλῆθος</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="to%5C">τὸ</w> <w lemma="me%2Fgeqos">μέγεθος</w>, <w lemma="toiou%2Ftous">τοιούτους</w> <w lemma="gi%2Fnesqai">γίνεσθαι</w> <w lemma="meta%5C">μετὰ</w> <w lemma="tau%3Dta">ταῦτα</w> <w lemma="sumbai%2Fnei">συμβαίνει</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="tou%5Cs">τοὺς</w> <w lemma="kata%5C">κατὰ</w> <w lemma="me%2Fros">μέρος</w> <w lemma="kairou%5Cs">καιροὺς</w> <w lemma="th%3Ds">τῆς</w> <w lemma="nukto%2Fs">νυκτός</w>.

<w lemma="e%29n">ἐν</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="tai%3Ds">ταῖς</w> <w lemma="sunnefe%2Fsi">συννεφέσι</w> <w lemma="nuci%5C">νυξὶ</w> <w lemma="th%3D%7C">τῇ</w> <w lemma="selh%2Fnh%7C">σελήνῃ</w> <w lemma="prosekte%2Fon">προσεκτέον</w>, <w lemma="e%29pei%5C">ἐπεὶ</w> <w lemma="dia%5C">διὰ</w> <w lemma="to%5C">τὸ</w> <w lemma="me%2Fgeqos">μέγεθος</w> <w lemma="w%28s">ὡς</w> <w lemma="e%29pi%2Fpan">ἐπίπαν</w> <w lemma="ai%29ei%5C">αἰεὶ</w> <w lemma="to%5C">τὸ</w> <w lemma="tau%2Fths">ταύτης</w> <w lemma="e%29mfai%2Fnetai">ἐμφαίνεται</w> <w lemma="fw%3Ds">φῶς</w>, <w lemma="kaq%27">καθ᾽</w> <w lemma="o%28%5Cn">ὃν</w> <w lemma="a%29%5Cn">ἂν</w> <w lemma="h%29%3D%7C">ᾖ</w> <w lemma="to%2Fpon">τόπον</w> <w lemma="tou%3D">τοῦ</w> <w lemma="ko%2Fsmou">κόσμου</w>.

<w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="pote%5C">ποτὲ</w> <w lemma="me%5Cn">μὲν</w> <w lemma="e%29k">ἐκ</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="peri%5C">περὶ</w> <w lemma="ta%5Cs">τὰς</w> <w lemma="a%29natola%5Cs">ἀνατολὰς</w> <w lemma="kairw%3Dn">καιρῶν</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="to%2Fpwn">τόπων</w> <w lemma="stoxaste%2Fon">στοχαστέον</w>,

<w lemma="pote%5C">ποτὲ</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="pa%2Flin">πάλιν</w> <w lemma="e%29k">ἐκ</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="peri%5C">περὶ</w> <w lemma="ta%5Cs">τὰς</w> <w lemma="du%2Fseis">δύσεις</w>, <w lemma="kaquparxou%2Fshs">καθυπαρχούσης</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="peri%5C">περὶ</w> <w lemma="tou%3Dto">τοῦτο</w> <w lemma="to%5C">τὸ</w> <w lemma="me%2Fros">μέρος</w> <w lemma="e%29nnoi%2Fas">ἐννοίας</w> <w lemma="e%29pi%5C">ἐπὶ</w> <w lemma="tosou%3Dton">τοσοῦτον</w> <w lemma="w%28%2Fste">ὥστε</w> <w lemma="sumperife%2Fresqai">συμπεριφέρεσθαι</w> <w lemma="tai%3Ds">ταῖς</w> <w lemma="kaq%27">καθ᾽</w> <w lemma="h%28me%2Fran">ἡμέραν</w> <w lemma="diaforai%3Ds">διαφοραῖς</w> <w lemma="tw%3Dn">τῶν</w> <w lemma="a%29natolw%3Dn">ἀνατολῶν</w>.

<w lemma="e%29%2Fsti">ἔστι</w> <w lemma="de%5C">δὲ</w> <w lemma="tro%2Fpos">τρόπος</w> <w lemma="eu%29qew%2Frhtos">εὐθεώρητος</w> <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="peri%5C">περὶ</w> <w lemma="tau%2Fthn:">ταύτην·</w> <w lemma="o%28%2Fros">ὅρος</w> <w lemma="ga%5Cr">γὰρ</w> <w lemma="ei%28%3Ds">εἷς</w> <w lemma="mh%5Cn">μὴν</w> <w lemma="w%28s">ὡς</w> <w lemma="tu%2Fpw%7C">τύπῳ</w>, <w lemma="kai%5C">καὶ</w> <w lemma="pro%5Cs">πρὸς</w> <w lemma="ai%29%2Fsqhsin">αἴσθησιν</w>

It is time, indeed, which rules all human action and especially the affairs of war.

So that a general must be familiar with the dates of the summer and winter solstices, and the equinoxes, and with the rate of increase and decrease of days and nights between these; for by no other means can he compute correctly the distances he will be able to traverse either by sea or land.

He must also be acquainted with the subdivisions of day and night so as to know when to sound the revally and to be on the march;

for it is impossible to obtain a happy end unless the beginning is happily timed.

Now for the time of day there is nothing to hinder our observing it either by the shadow or by the sun's course or by his position and height in the heavens, but it is difficult to tell the hour of the night, unless one is familiar with the system and order of the twelve signs of the Zodiac in the starry sky, knowledge of which it is quite easy to gain by studying the constellations.

For since, though nights are of unequal length, yet during the course of every night six out of the twelve signs of the Zodiac must appear above the horizon, it follows of necessity that equal parts of the twelve signs must appear at the same times of the night.

As the position each day of the sun in the Zodiac is known, it is evident that at his setting the part diametrically opposite must rise.

So that the portion of the night which is past is to be judged by the portion of the Zodiac which has risen after this;

and the number and size of the signs of the Zodiac being known, the subsequent subdivisions of the night correspond to them.

On cloudy nights, however, we must observe the moon, because as a rule, owing to her size, her light is visible in whatever part of the heaven she may be situated.

We can guess the hour at times from the time and place of her rising and at times again from those of her setting,

if here too we have sufficient previous knowledge to be familiar with the daily difference in the hour of her rising.

Here also there is an easy method of reckoning, for the period of her revolution is generally speaking one month, and all the months are similar as far as we can perceive.

Walbank Commentary

Overview

9.11.0 - 9.20.0

On generalship The context of this discussion is unknown; but it formed part either of the res Italiae of 210 or of the Spanish or Greek events of 211 (above, p. 10). It is to be regarded as supplementary to the fuller discussion of such matters in the lost book on Tactics (20. 4).

9.15.7 - 9.15.11

Calculating the hour from the signs of the zodiac. In the course of each night, whether long or short, six of the twelve signs of the zodiac rise above the eastern horizon; consequently anyone with a knowledge of the zodiacal constellations who observes how many have risen at a particular moment of the night can calculate how much of the night has passed. The fact that six signs rise in each and every night was well known to the ancients; cf. Arat. Phaen. 553–6, <w lang="el-GR">τοῦ δ᾿ ὅσσον κοίλοιο κατ᾿ ὠκεανοῖο δύητατόσσον ὑπὲρ γαίης φέρεται</w> <emph rend="italics">\?\</emph> <w lang="el-GR">πάσῃ ἐπὶ νυκτὶἐξ αἰεὶ δύνουσι δυωδεκάδες κύκλοιοτόσσαι δ᾿ ἀντέλλουσι</w> <milestone unit="page" n="140">[140]</milestone> (with the scholiast: <w lang="el-GR">ἀεὶ γὰρ ἐπ᾿ ἀκριβὲς ἓξ μὲν ὑπὲρ γῆς ζῴδια, ἓξ δὲ πάλιν ὑ?πὸ γῆν)</w>. See also Manilius, iii. 241–2 (with Housman's commentary); Vitruv. ix. 1. 4; Aetna, 236; Lucan, i. 91 (with Getty's commentary). These elementary astronomical facts, which can be easily demonstrated on a celestial globe, were unreasonably impugned by Schmidt (1–5) and Susemihl (ii. 92 n. 55, 'einen starken Irrtum'), and had to be reiterated by Bttner-Wobst (Phil. 1900, 151–3; cf. Klio, 1905, 99). Their explanation is simple. The ecliptic and the horizon are both great circles and therefore intersect; hence 180 of the ecliptic, i.e. six signs of the zodiac, are always above the horizon and 180 below. The sun is a point on the ecliptic, therefore between its rising and its setting 180 of the ecliptic must have passed across the heavens, or what amounts to the same thing have risen above the horizon; and the same is true between its setting and its rising. As Housman (ed. Manilius, iii, p. xii) points out, however, the different signs make different angles with the eastern horizon, because the zodiac is oblique. 'Taurus rises at an inclination nearer the horizontal than Cancer's, Virgo at an inclination nearer the perpendicular.' This means that different signs rise at different speeds; and in the short nights of summer six swiftly rising signs come over the horizon, and in the long nights of winter six slowly rising signs. This is the first qualification of P.'s argument, which assumes (§ 8) that signs rise at an equal speed. Further, as Hipparchus pointed out (ii. 1. 1 f., p. 120 Man.), the actual constellations visible to the onlooker do not correspond exactly to the twelve 30 sections of the zodiac associated with them; and this introduces another variable into the calculation. It should be noted that P.'s statement that six signs rise in any night ceases to be true north of the arctic circle (and south of the antarctic circle) because in these areas some of the signs never rise above the horizon at all, i.e. those in which the sun is to be found in mid-winter; but P. was not concerned with the polar areas. Hipparchus' remarks quoted above were aimed at Aratus and his commentator, Attalus of <a class="linkToPlace" target="_blank" href="/place?placename=Rhodes&groupId=931&placeId=1665">Rhodes</a>, a contemporary of P.; Bttner-Wobst (locc. citt.) has suggested that P. drew on Attalus' work (cf. Hipparchus, ii. 1. 5 f., p. 124 Man.) for his discussion here, which is possible. But one must remember that an elementary knowledge of the signs of the zodiac was widespread; thus even Socrates <w lang="el-GR">ἐκέλευε . . . καὶ ἀστρολογίας ἐμπείρους γίγνεσθαι, καὶ ταύτης μέντοι μέχρι τοῦ νυκτός τε ὥραν καὶ μηνὸς καὶ ἐνιαυτοῦ δύνασθαι γιγνώσκειν ἕνεκα πορείας τε καὶ πλοῦ καὶ φολακῆς</w> (Xen. Mem. iv. 7. 4).

Specifics

9.15.1 - 9.15.1

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">κρατεῖ δ᾿ . . . ὁ καιρός</w>:</emph> cf. x. 43. 2. The idea is proverbial; cf. Hesiod, Op. 694, <w lang="el-GR">καιρὸς δ᾿ ἐπὶ πᾶσιν ἄριστος</w>. See Wunderer, ii. 43.

9.15.2 - 9.15.2

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">προχείρως ἰστέον</w>:</emph> 'he must have a ready knowledge'.

9.15.3 - 9.15.3

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">συμμετρεῖσθαι πρὸς λόγον</w>:</emph> 'to calculate proportionately'; for <w lang="el-GR">πρὸς λόγον</w> cf. vi. 30. 3.

9.15.4 - 9.15.4

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">τοὺς κατὰ μέρος καιρούς</w>:</emph> 'the separate times, subdivisions' (Paton). <emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">τὰς ἐξεγέρσεις καὶ τὰς ἀναζυγάς</w>:</emph> '(when) to arouse the men and when to be on the march'.

9.15.6 - 9.15.6

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">τῇ κατὰ τὸν ἥλιον πορείᾳ</w>:</emph> 'by the sun's course'; the sun's <w lang="el-GR">διαστήματα</w> are its various positions and height in the sky.

9.15.7 - 9.15.7

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">ἐπὶ τοῦ φαινομένου</w>:</emph> 'in the visible heavens'. <emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">τῇ τῶν δώδεκα ζῳδίων οἰκονομίᾳ καὶ τάξει</w>:</emph> 'the system and order of the twelve signs of the zodiac'. Wunderer (iii. 38) takes the word <w lang="el-GR">οἰκονομία</w> as a sign of Stoic influence, but unjustifiably; cf. vi. 9. 10 n. <milestone unit="page" n="141">[141]</milestone>

9.15.8 - 9.15.8

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">φανερὸν ὡς ἀναγκαῖον . . . ἀναφέρεσθαι</w>:</emph> 'it is clear that during the same portions of every night equal portions of the twelve signs must needs rise above the horizon'. P. means that each sign will take a sixth of the night to risewhich is untrue, for the reasons given above (§§ 7–11 n.); the signs rising before midnight will rise quicker or slower than those rising after midnight, according to the time of the year.

9.15.9 - 9.15.9

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">ποίαν μοῖραν ἐπέχει</w>:</emph> 'which position (in the zodiac) it occupies'. <emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">τὴν κατὰ διάμετρον</w>:</emph> 'the part diametrically opposite'.

9.15.11 - 9.15.11

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">μετὰ ταῦτα</w>:</emph> 'subsequently': but the sense is not clear. If P. means much the same as by <w lang="el-GR">μετὰ ταύτην</w> (sc. <w lang="el-GR">μοῖραν)</w> in § 10, the meaning is 'the subdivisions of the night subsequent to the rising of the sign opposite to the sun correspond to the rising and passing across the heavens of the various signs which follow'.

9.15.12 - 9.15.12

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">ὡς ἐπίπαν . . . ἐμ φαίνεται</w>:</emph> true for Greece.

9.15.15 - 9.15.15

<emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">ὅρος γὰρ εἷς μὴν ὡς τύπῳ</w>:</emph> 'for in general the limit (of its revolution) is one month', i.e. a lunar month. <emph rend="bold"><w lang="el-GR">πρὸς αἴσθησιν τοιοῦτοι πάντες</w>:</emph> 'all months are perceptibly alike'.

Polybius, Histories

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