A while back I posted the preliminary translation that Giulia Rossetto prepared of the Orphic hexameters found in a palimpsest from the library of Saint Catherine’s monastery at Sinai. It was a very tentative translation since there are a number of problematic passages due to the poor condition of the manuscript and other issues I’m not going to bother detailing here.
Boris Kayachev has published a supplementary translation for the Archiv für Papyrusforschung which clarifies some of those issues, provides alternative readings of certain passages, and is generally (without taking anything away from Rossetto’s groundbreaking discovery and the difficult labor of putting together that initial translation) more readable. (Note some portions were too fragmentary for Kayachev to include in this translation, which is a shame as they can be pretty evocative.) I am not sure I agree with all of his corrections and conclusions, but it’s a huge step forward. For instance I do not believe that Γίγαντες instead of Τῑτᾶνες is necessarily an errata, and I remain agnostic on whether these fragments come from the Sacred Discourses in 24 Rhapsodies or some other Orphic text; there are also a couple other points I want to tease out but for now I will simply share Kayachev’s emended translation with immense gratitude to both him and Giulia Rossetto for the work they put into this. Anyone without access to the Archiv für Papyrusforschung hit me up and I’ll send you a PDF.
Fragments 1 & 2 concern an otherwise unattested katabasis of Aphrodite in search of Dionysos, and a conversation she has with the Queen of the Underworld. (There’s also a delightful pun, transforming the Hesiodic epiklesis “laughter-loving” into “penis-loving.”) Fragments 3 & 4 are about the Giants’ attempt to seduce and lure Dionysos away from the throne of Zeus, which is unsuccessful until they deploy “childish toys and gentle words.” Earlier attempts were thwarted by the Korybantes — Akmon made noise at a forge to drown out their enthralling song (creating, notably, a bronze axe) and Kyrbas and Proteus draw their scimitars and fight off the opponents, including a gross pedophile who wants to rape the bibulous baby Bakchos. Good stuff!
Fragment 1:
ὣc φάτο Φερcεφό̣νη{ι} καὶ ἀπὸ θρόνου ὦρτο φαεινοῦ·
c̣ε̣ύ̣ατ’ ἔ̣π̣ε̣[ιθ’ ὅθι … ἔcω κ]ρυφίοιο μελ[ά]θρου
{ἐ}κλήϊc̣ε̣ν̣ Δ̣ιό̣ν̣υ̣cον ἐρίβρομον εἰραφιώτην,
⟨ε⟩ἴκελον [αὐ]γ̣ῆ̣ιc̣ιν̣ ̣μηνὸc περιτελλομέν̣ο̣ιο̣ ̣
εἵμαcί τε cτ̣[ιλβ]ο̣ν̣τα κα̣ὶ̣ ἱμερτοῖc cτεφάνοιc̣ιν̣ ̣.
πα̣ῖδ’ ̣ἐν χε̣ρc̣ὶ[ν] ̣ἀ̣ν̣ε̣ῖλ̣ ̣ε̣ν̣, ἑὸν περικαλλὲc ἄ̣γ̣α̣λ̣μ̣α̣,
αἰνό̣[ν], καρποφ̣όρον, Χαρίτων ἄπο κάλλοc ἔχ[οντα,
καὶ̣ ῥ’ ἐ̣πὶ γ̣ο⟨ύ⟩να̣c̣ι θ̣ῆ̣κ̣ε̣ φιλ̣̣ο̣μ̣μη̣δοῦc Ἀφρο̣[δίτηc.
Thus Persephone spoke, and rose from her lustrous throne. She then hastened to the place where inside a secret chamber she had locked up Dionysos, the loud-roaring bull God, similar to the radiance of a rising Moon and shining with clothes and lovely wreaths. She took up the child in her arms, her most beautiful pride, awesome, fruit-bearing, endowed with the Graces’ beauty, and put him on the knees of penis-loving Aphrodite.
Fragment 2:
ὅν ποτε κιccοφ[ό]ρου Νύc[ηc ἐ]νὶ δαcκίωι ἄντρωι
ἔτρεφον ἀμβ[ροcί]η͙ι κ͙α͙ὶ {επ} ἐκόcμεον εἵμα̣c̣ι καλοῖc.
…
cῶι δὲ πόθωι χ[θόνα π]ᾶ̣cαν [ ]ν αἰθέρα θ’ ἁγνόν
πόντον τ’ ἠδ’ [Ἀχ]έροντοc [ὑπὸ χ]θονὶ χεῦμα κελαινόν.
…
ἔ̣τλην δ’ ε̣ἰc̣ Ἀΐδαο δόμουc cκοτ[ίο]υc καταβῆναι,
ἠελίου προλιποῦcα φάοc λαμπράν τε cελήνην
οὐράνιόν τε πόλον, διὰ cὸν πόθον, ἄ̣μ̣β̣ροτε κοῦρε.
ὣc φάτο Κύπριc ἄναccα, φίλον δ’ ἄ̣[ρα] π̣ο̣λ[λά]κ̣ι π̣αῖδα ̣
ἀ̣cπα̣cίωc ἀγάπαζε, χέραc περὶ γυῖα [β]α̣λο̣ῦcα.
“(You) whom once in a shaded cave on Nysa grown over with ivy I nourished with ambrosia and adorned with beautiful clothes. … Out of love for you, I traversed all the Earth, and the hallowed Heaven, and the Sea, and even the black stream of Acheron under Earth.… I dared to descend into the dark abode of Hades, leaving behind the light of Sun, the bright Moon and the vault of Heaven, out of love for you, divine child.” Thus Lady Kypris spoke, and again and again joyfully greeted her sweet child, embracing him with her arms.
Fragment 3:
ἀλλ’ ὅτε δὴ̣ τ̣ά̣δ̣ε̣ πάντ̣α διαμπερέωc ἐτέλεccαν,
ἂψ δ̣’ ἀ̣πὸ πα̣[ιδ]ὸ̣c̣ ἕ̣λ̣οντ’ ὄccω̣ν κ̣εφα̣λῆc̣ τε̣ κ̣ά̣λ̣υ̣μ̣μα,
καὶ τότε δ̣ὴ τομὸν ε̣ὔ̣[χαλ]κ̣ον πέλ̣εκυν τολυπεύων
Ἄκμων παιδ̣ ̣ὸc {δ’} ἔναντα κατε̣cτ̣άθ̣η̣. ἦ̣λ̣θ̣ε̣ δ. . α̣μ̣ε̣ο̣c
ἀ̣θ[ανάτ]ουc̣ τ̣’ ἤ̣ε̣ιδ[ε]ν ἀνώϊcτ’ ἔργα τελ̣οῦντα̣c̣.
αὐτὰρ ἔπειτ’ [±2]κρατα θενε̣ον̣ c͙χ͙εδ͙ὸν ἦλθε μ̣ὲ̣ν̣ Οἴνου,
πάντα φόβον προϊεὶc ε̣[ἴ] πωc̣ προλ̣[ίποι] Διὸc ἕδρη̣[ν·
Κύρβαc δ͙’ ἀντήμυνεν, ἐ̣γ̣{ε̣}ίνετο δ’ ἔργ̣’ ὑπ̣έροπ̣[λα.
Πρωτε̣ὺc δ’ εἰcήϊξ’ ἅρπην μετὰ χ̣ερcὶ τιτ[αίνων,
φάσγ̣ανα δ’ ἄλλοθεν ἄλλοc͙ ⟨ἔ⟩χ̣εν̣ περι[̣
ἀ͙λ͙λ̣’ οὐδ̣’ ὣ̣ c̣ἀ̣πέλειπε Διὸc [θρόνον
κιcc̣̣ο[ῦ] δ’ ε̣ὐπλέκτοιο̣
But when they performed all these things from beginning to end, and took again off the child the veil covering his eyes and head, after that Akmon stood in front of the child, finishing a sharp axe of fine bronze. Then came … and sang of the Gods performing unexpected deeds. … he (?) came close to Dionysos in the hope that, letting all fear go, he would abandon the throne of Zeus; but Kyrbas defended him, and there took place deeds of martial arrogance. Proteus rushed in, holding out a scimitar in his hands, and they pointed swords from everywhere around. … But not even so did he leave the throne of Zeus. … of nicely twisted ivy…
Fragment 4:
ἐκ θ]ρ̣όνου ἀν[c]τ̣ῆναι, πατρ̣ὸc δ’ ἐφράccατο βουλά[c,
ἅc ο]ἱ τ̣ ὸ πρῶτ[ον . . .] πέφραδε μητίετα Ζεύc,
ὁππότ’ ἀπ’ ὠκεαν[οῖο] ῥοῆc εἰc οὐρανὸν ἦγεν.
ὡc δ’ οὐ πεῖθον παῖδα Διὸc καὶ Φερcεφονείηc
δώροιc παντοίοιc ὁπόcα τρέφει ε̣ὐ̣[ρ]ε̣ῖα χθών,
οὐδ’ ἀπάτη⟨ι⟩c δολίηιcι παρ̣α̣[ι]φαcίηιcί τε μύθων,
ἐκ θρόνου ἀνcτῆναι βαcιληίου, αὐτίκ’ ἄρ’ οἵ γε
κόcμηcαν κεφαλὴν cτεφάνο̣ιc̣ἀνθῶν ἐ̣ρο̣έ̣ντων
παιδὸc Ζηνὸc ἄνακτοc ἐριγδούπο̣ιο γίγαντεc
κ̣ύ̣κλωι δ’ ἐcτιχόωντο ⟨ ⟩
μει]λιχίηι κα͙ὶ πᾶcιν ἀθύρμαcι νηπιάχοιcι
μύθοιcίν] τ’ ἀγανοῖcι παραιπε⟨π⟩ιθε{μ}ῖν μεμαῶτεc.
(Dionysos was about) to stand up from the throne, but he pondered his father’s counsels, which all-wise Zeus first gave him when he led him from the stream of Ocean into Heaven. When they did not persuade the child of Zeus and Persephone with all kinds of gifts which the wide earth breeds, nor with treacherous wiles and words of persuasion, to stand up from the royal throne, then at once they, the Giants, adorned with wreaths of lovely flowers the head of the child of Zeus, the loud-thundering Lord; they marched in circle … wishing to persuade him with kindness and all sorts of childish toys and gentle words.