The part of the city on the other side of the river faces south, and
has one of the most remarkable theatres in Greece, and in it is a
perennial spring. And not far from the theatre are the foundations of a
council-chamber, which was built for 10,000 Arcadians, and called from
its builder Thersilium. And next is a house which in my time belonged
to a private man, but was originally built for Alexander the son of
Philip. And there is a statue of Ammon near it, like the square Hermæ,
with ram’s horns on its head. And there is a temple built in common
for the Muses and Apollo and Hermes, of which a few foundations only
remain. There are also statues of one of the Muses, and of Apollo,
like the square Hermæ. There are also ruins of a temple of Aphrodite,
of which nothing remains but the vestibule and three statues of the
goddess, one called the Celestial, the second the Common, the third
has no title. And at no great distance is an altar of Ares, who had
also it is said a temple there originally. There is also a racecourse
beyond the temple of Aphrodite, in one direction extending towards the
theatre, (and there is a spring of water there which they hold sacred
to Dionysus,) and in another part of it there was said to be a temple
of Dionysus, struck with lightning by the god two generations before
my time, and there are still a few vestiges of it. But a joint-temple
to Hercules and Hermes is no longer in existence, except the Altar.
And in this direction there is a hill towards the east, and on it a
temple of the Huntress Artemis, the votive offering of Aristodemus,
and on the right are precincts sacred to the Huntress Artemis. Here
too are a temple and statues of Æsculapius and Hygiea, and as you
descend a little there are gods in a square shape called Workers, as
Athene Ergane and Apollo Agyieus. And Hermes, Hercules, and Ilithyia,
have special fame from Homer, for Hermes is the messenger of Zeus and
conveys the souls of the departed to Hades, and Hercules is famous for
the accomplishment of his many Labours, and Ilithyia is represented in
the Iliad as presiding over childbirth. There is also another temple
under this hill, of Æsculapius as a Boy, the statue of the god is erect
and about a cubit in height, and there is also an Apollo seated on a
throne about six feet high. There are here also stored up some bones
too large to belong to a man, they are said to have belonged to one of
the giants, whom Hopladamus called in to aid Rhea, the circumstances
I shall narrate later on. And near this temple is a well, which
contributes its water to the Helisson.