The Geography of Strabo, Volume 3 (of 3): Literally Translated, with NotesStrabo
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The Geography of Strabo, Volume 3 (of 3): Literally Translated, with Notes
Strabo
Geography -- Early works to 1800
A translation in French was published at Paris in five vols. 4to, from
the year 1805 to 1819. The first three books are translated by De la
Porte du Theil and Coraÿ together. The 4th, 7th, 8th, 12th, 13th, 14th,
and 15th books are by Coraÿ; the 5th, 6th, 9th, 10th, and 11th, by De la
Porte du Theil; on the death of the latter, Letronne undertook the
translation of the 16th and 17th books. The whole is accompanied by very
copious notes by the translators, and others on geographical and
mathematical subjects, by Gossellin. As might be expected from the
united labour of such distinguished men, this translation, which was
undertaken at the command of Napoleon I., has been held in high
estimation. De la Porte du Theil, for the purpose of conveying to the
reader a more accurate idea of the state of the text of the ninth book
than could be given by description or notes, has prefaced his
translation by a copy, page for page and line for line, of the original
manuscript. The number of mutilated passages amounts to two thousand.
For the purpose of restoring the text, recourse has been had to other
manuscripts, to conjectures, to extracts from the Epitomes, and to
quotations of Strabo’s work contained in the Geographical Lexicon of
Stephanus of Byzantium, composed before the seventh century, and in the
Commentaries of Eustathius on Homer, which were written towards the end
of the twelfth century. It is an example of Kramer’s just remark, that
no work of any ancient author, which has descended to our time, has
suffered more from various causes.
A translation by F. Ambrosoli, forming part of the “Collana degli
Antichi Storici Greci,” was published in 1832, 4 vols. 8vo, Milan, and
is founded on the French translation. A translation of the third book
(Spain) by Lopez, was published at Madrid, 1788, and is well spoken of.
The best translation of the whole work—and too much cannot be said in
praise of it—is in German, by Groskurd, 4 vols. 8vo, Berlin, 1831-1834.
The last volume contains a very copious index.
In conclusion, I have to acknowledge considerable obligations to the
notes and prefaces of Groskurd, Kramer, the French translators, and
others.
The part of the translation for which I am responsible commences at
chap. iv. book vii., vol. i. p. 473, to the end of the work, and is
partly based on an incomplete translation in MS. by my late father, the
Rev. Dr. T. Falconer. The previous portion is the work of Hans C.
Hamilton, Esq., F.S.A., to whom I am indebted for his continued interest
in the translation throughout, for his care in correcting the press, and
for valuable suggestions.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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