Book 10
5.2
Now the city which belongs to Delos, as also the temple of Apollo, and the Letöum,Temple of Leto. are situated in a plain; and above the city lies Cynthus, a bare and rugged mountain; and a river named Inopus flows through the island—not a large river, for the island itself is small. From olden times, beginning with the times of the heroes, Delos has been revered because of its gods, for the myth is told that there Leto was delivered of her travail by the birth of Apollo and Artemis: for aforetime,says Pindar,itDelos. was tossed by the billows, by the blasts of all manner of winds,There was a tradition that Delos was a floating isle until Leto set foot on it. but when the daughter of CoeüsLeto. in the frenzied pangs of childbirth set foot upon it, then did four pillars, resting on adamant, rise perpendicular from the roots of the earth, and on their capitals sustain the rock. And there she gave birth to, and beheld, her blessed offspring.Pind. Fr. 58 (Bergk)The neighboring islands, called the Cyclades, made it famous, since in its honor they would send at public expense sacred envoys, sacrifices, and choruses composed of virgins, and would celebrate great general festivals there.i.e., in honor of Apollo and Leto (see Thuc. 3.104).
