Stelle Ὅτι διαθρυλληθὲν κατὰ τὴν Τουρκίαν,...; (Historia (continuation of Agathias) (557 - 582), Fr. 10.4-10.5 (pp. 124-127)) [5448]

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ID 5448
Text Historia (continuatio Agathiae) (557 - 582) Menander, the Guardsman
Quotation Ὅτι διαθρυλληθὲν κατὰ τὴν Τουρκίαν, ὅσοι ἀγχίθυροι ἦσαν, ὡς Ῥωμαίων ἐνδημοῦσι πρἐσβεις καὶ ὡς πορεύονται τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ Βυζάντιον ἅμα πρεσβείᾳ Τούρκων, ὁ τῶν ἐκείνη ἐθνῶν ἡγεμὼν ἐδήλωσε τῷ Σιζαβούλῳ ξὺν ἱκετείᾳ ὡς ἂν καὶ αὑτὸς ἐκ τοῦ σφετέτου τινὰς ἀποστείλαι ἒθνους ἐπὶ θέαν τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς πολιτείας· καὶ τοίνυν ὁ Σιζάβουλος ἐφίετο. καὶ ἕτεροι δὲ προεστῶτες ἐθνῶν ταῦτα ἐζήτουν· ὁ δὲ οὐδενὶ ξυνεχώρησε τῶν πάντων ἢ μόνον τῷ τῶν Χλιατῶν ἡγεμόνι. καὶ οὖν καὶ τοῦτον παρειληφότες οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι διὰ τοῦ λεγομένου ποταμοῦ Ὠὴχ καὶ ἀτραπὸν διανύσαντες οὐδαμῶς ὀλίγην ἐγένοντο κατὰ δὴ τὴν λίμνην τὴν ἄπλετον ἐκείνην καὶ εὐρεῖαν. ἐνταῦθα ὁ Ζήμαρχος ἐνδιατρίψας ἡμέρας τρεῖς στέλλει Γεώργιον, ὃς ἀνεῖτο ἐς τὴν τῶν ἑπιτομωτέρων συλλαβῶν ἀπαγγελίαν, προδηλώσοντα τῷ βασιλεῖ τὴν σφῶν αὑτῶν ἐκ Τούρκων ἐπάνοδον. Καὶ οὖν ὁ Γεώργιος ἅμα Τούρκοις δέκα πρὸς τοῖς δύο ἀπήρξατο τῆς ἐπὶ τὸ Βυζάντιον ὁδοῦ ἀνύδρου τε μάλα οὔσης καὶ πάντη ἐρήμου, ὅμως δ’ οὖν ἐπιτομωτέρας. ὁ δὲ Ζήμαρχος κατὰ δὴ τὸ ψαμαθῶδες τῆς λίμνης παροδεύων ἐπὶ ἡμέρας δέκα καὶ δύο δυσβάτους τέ τινας χώρους παραμειψάμενος ἐγένετο κατὰ τὰ ῥεῖθρα τοῦ Ἰχ, οὑ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ τὸν Δαΐχ, καὶ διὰ λιμνῶν ἐτέρων αὖθις ἐς τὸν Ἀττίλαν· πάλιν ὡς Οὐγούρους, οἳ δὴ καὶ σφίσιν ἀπήγγειλαν ὠς εἰς τὰ περὶ τὸν Κωφῆνα ποταμὸν ἐς τὰ λάσια τέσσαρες χιλιάδες Περσῶν ἐπιτηροῦσι προλελοχισμένοι, ὡς ἂν χειρώσωνται παριόντας αὐτούς. ταύτῃ τοι ὀ τῶν Οὐγούρων ἡγούμενος, ὃς διέσωζεν ἐκεῖσε τοῦ Σιζαβούλου τὸ κράτος, πληρώσας ὕδατος ἀσκοὺς παρέσχετο τοῖς περὶ Ζήμαρχον, ὡς ἂν ἔχοιεν ὅθεν ὑδρεύσοιντο διὰ τῆς ἀνύδρου ἰόντες. εὗρον δὲ καὶ λίμνην, καὶ παραμειψάμενοι τὸ μέγα τοῦτο ὑδροστάσιον ἀφίκοντο ἐς ἐκείνας τὰς λίμνας, ἐν αἷς ἐπιμιγνύμενος ἀπόλλυται ὁ Κωφὴν ποταμός. ἐξ ἐκείνου δὴ τοῦ χώρου πέμπουσι διοπτῆρας προδιασκεψομένους εἴ γε ὠς ἀληθῶς οἱ Πέρσαι ἐνεδρεύουσιν· οἳ δὴ ἀνιχνεύσαντες ἀπήγγειλαν μηδένα ἰδεῖν. ὅμως ξὺν μεγίστῳ φόβῳ ἀφίκοντο ἐς Ἀλαμίαν, κατὰ τὸ μᾶλλον δεδιότες τὸ φῦλον τῶν Ὀρομουσχῶν. 5 Ὅτι γενόμενοι ἐν Ἀλανίᾳ παρὰ Σαρώσιον τὸν ἐκείνη ἡγεμόνα καὶ ἅμα τοῖς ἑπομένοις Τούρκοις ἐσφοιτῆσαι βουλόμενοι, ὁ Σαρώσιος τὸν μὲν Ζήμαρχον καὶ τούς οἱ ἑπομένους ἑδέξατο ἀσμένως, τοὺς δὲ δὴ πρέσβεις τῶν Τούρκων ἔφασκε ηὴ πρότερον τῆς ὡς αὐτὸν εἰσόδου τυχεῖν ἤ καταθεμένους τὰ ὅπλα. τοιγάρτοι καὶ ἅμιλλα αὐτοῖς ἐγένετο περὶ τούτου ἐπὶ ἡμέρας τρεῖς, καὶ Ζήμαρχος ἦν τῶν φιλονεικουμένων διαιτητής. τέλος ἀποθέμενοι τὰ ὅπλα οἱ Τοῦρκοι, ὡς Σαρωσίῳ ἐδόκει, ὡς αὐτὸν ἐσεφοίτησαν. ὁ δὲ δὴ Σαρώσιος παρενεγύησε τοῖς περὶ Ζἠμαρχον διὰ τῆς τῶν Μιυσιμιανῶν ἀτραποῦ ἣκιστα ἰέναι, τῷ κατὰ τὴν Σουανίαν τοὺς Πέρσας ἐνεδρεύειν· ἄμεινον δὲ εἶναι διὰ τῆς λεγομένης Δαρεινῆς ἀτραποῦ οἴκοι ἀποχωρεῖν. ταῦτα ἐπεὶ ἔγνω ὁ Ζήμαρχος, διὰ τῆς Μιυσιμιανῆς ἔστειλεν ἀχθοφόρους δέκα μέταξαν ἀποφερομένους ἀπατήσοντας Πέρσας τῷ προεκπεμφθῆναι τὴν μέταξαν καὶ προτερῆσαι τῇ ὁδῷ, ἐκ τούτου τε ὑποτοπῆσαι ὡς ἐς τὸ αὔριον παρέσται καὶ ὁ Ζήμαρχος. καὶ οἱ μὲν ἀχθοφόροι ᾤχοντο ἀπιόντες, Ζήμαρχος δὲ διὰ τῆς Δαρεινῆς παρεγένετο ἐς Ἀψιλίαν, τῇ Μιυσιμιανῇ χαίρειν εἰπὼν ἐς τὰ εὐώνυμά τε ἐάσας αὐτήν, ᾗ ἐπίδοξοι ἦσαν ἐπιθήσεσθαι οἱ Πέρσαι. καὶ ἧκεν ἐς τὸ Ῥογατόριον, εἶτα καυὰ δὴ τὸν Εὔξεινον Πόντον, εἶτα ναυτιλίᾳ χρησάμενος ἐς Φάσιν ποταμόν, πάλιν ἐς Τραπεζοῦντα· οὕτω τε δημοσίῳ ἵππῳ ἐς Βυζάντιον παρὰ βασιλἐα εἰσελθὼν ἔφρασε τὸ πᾶν. Ζημάρχῳ μὲν οὖν ἐν τοιοῖσδε ἔληξεν ἡ πορεία καὶ ἀποπορεία ἐπὶ Τούρκους.
Translation When the news had spread through the land of the Turks to the nearby tribes that envoys from the Romans had arrived and that they were returning to Byzantium with a Turkish embassy, the leader of these tribes begged Sizabul that he be allowed to send some of his own people to see the Roman Empire. Sizabul agreed, but when other tribal leaders sought this also, he consented to none of the requests except that of the leader of the Kholiatai. The Romans received him across the river Oekh and having travelled for a long distance, came to that enormous, wide lake. Zemarchus rested there for three days and sent off George, whose task was to convey a brief letter informing the Emperor that they were returning from the Turks. George set off for Byzantium with twelve Turks by a route that was waterless and wholly desert, but shorter. Zemarchus travelled along the sandy shore for twelve days and when he had skirted some difficult terrain came to the river Ikh, then to the Daikh and, after passing some other lakes, to the Attila. Then they came to the Ugurs, who told them that in a wooded area by the river Kophen four thousand Persians were waiting in ambush to take them prisoner as they passed. Therefore, the leader of the Ugurs, who maintained Sizabul’s authority there, filled skins with water and gave them to Zemarchus and his companions so that they might have something to drink while they crossed the desert. They came upon a lake and when they had passed this great body of water, they reached those lakes into which the river Kophen empties. From this place they sent forward scouts to see if the Persians were really lying in wait for them. They searched out the area thoroughly and reported that they could see no one. Nevertheless, they proceeded with great trepidation to the land of the Alans, because they greatly feared the tribe of the Oromuskhi. 5. When they came to the land of the Alans and wished, together with the Turks who were with them, to be granted an audience with their ruler Sarosius, he gladly received Zemarchus and his companions but refused to admit the Turkish envoys until they had disarmed. They argued about this for three days until Zemarchus acted as referee in the dispute. Finally, the Turks laid down their weapons, as Sarosius wished, when they came before him. Sarosius advised Zemarchus and his companions not to take the road through the land of the Miusimians because the Persians were lying in wait for them in Suania; it would be better for them to make a detour home by the road called Dareine. When he learned this Zemarchus sent ten porters carrying silk through Miusimia to deceive the Persians into thinking that the silk had been sent ahead and was travelling first along the road, so they would assume that he would appear on the next day. When the porters had left, Zemarchus travelled through Dareine to the land of the Apsilii, leaving Miusimia, where the Persians were thought to be lying in ambush, behind on the left. Zemarchus reached Rogatorium, then came to the Black Sea, where he took ship to the river Phasis, and took another ship to Trapezus. He took the public post to Byzantium, came before the Emperor and told him everything. Thus ended the journey of Zemarchus to the Turks and his return.
Summary Description of the return journey of the magister militum Zemarchus on a complicated route, passing by several different places and peoples.
Quotation source Fr. 10.4-10.5 (pp. 124-127)
Temporal Coverage 571 - 571
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