Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 4 (MELPOMENE) Complete

Translated by G. Macaulay.

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53. Fourth is the river Borysthenes, which is both the largest of these after the Ister, and also in our opinion the most serviceable not only of the Scythian rivers but also of all the rivers of the world besides, excepting only the Nile of Egypt, for to this it is not possible to compare any other river: of the rest however the Borysthenes is the most serviceable, seeing that it provides both pastures which are the fairest and the richest for cattle, and fish which are better by far and more numerous than those of any other river, and also it is the sweetest water to drink, and flows with clear stream, though others beside it are turbid, and along its banks crops are produced better than elsewhere, while in parts where it is not sown, grass grows deeper. Moreover at its mouth salt forms of itself in abundance, and it produces also huge fish without spines, which they call antacaioi, to be used for salting, and many other things also worthy of wonder. Now as far as the region of the Gerrians, [51] to which it is a voyage of forty [52] days, the Borysthenes is known as flowing from the North Wind; but above this none can tell through what nations it flows: it is certain however that it runs through desert [53] to the land of the agricultural Scythians; for these Scythians dwell along its banks for a distance of ten days' sail. Of this river alone and of the Nile I cannot tell where the sources are, nor, I think, can any of the Hellenes. When the Borysthenes comes near the sea in its course, the Hypanis mingles with it, running out into the same marsh; [53a] and the space between these two rivers, which is as it were a beak of land, [54] is called the point of Hippoles, and in it is placed a temple of the Mother, [55] and opposite the temple upon the river Hypanis are settled the Borysthenites.

[51] {Gerreon}: in some MSS. {Gerrou}, "the region called Gerros."

[52] {tesserakonta}: some Editors have altered this number, but without authority or sufficient reason.

[53] {di eremou}: see note 25 on ch. 18. The region here spoken of is that between the Gerrians and the agricultural Scythians.

[53a] {es touto elos}: i.e. the Dneiper-Liman. (The Medicean and Florentine MSS. read {es to elos}, not {es to telos}, as hitherto reported.)

[54] {eon embolon tes khores}.

[55] {Metros}: i.e. the Mother of the gods, Kybele, cp. ch. 76; some less good authorities have {Demetros}.

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