BRIBERY IN CLASSICAL ATHENS Kellam ... - Historia Antigua

Conover Bribery in Classical Athens Introduction
In the Shadows of Democracy:
Bribery in Classical Athens
In the early summer of 367 BCE two Athenians, Timagoras and Leon, set out on
an embassy to negotiate the terms of an alliance between Athens and Persia. Envoys
from both Athens and Sparta were making the three-month journey to the Persian capital
at Susa to discuss a most pressing concern: the recent aggression of Athens’ northerly
neighbor Thebes. Just a few years prior, Thebes had overwhelmingly defeated Sparta
and thereby set into motion a seismic shift in alliances. Renouncing her former alliance
with Athens and turning instead to ravage Sparta’s allies in the Peloponnese, Thebes
quickly became the dominant force in Greek politics. Understandably, Athens and Sparta
were uneasy, and they were sending envoys in the hopes that the Persian King might help
limit the Thebans’ strategic gains. 1
For the Athenians, the Congress at Susa was not without its complications.
Timagoras was apparently not at full health, and the trip to Susa in the summer heat
would have been hard on the Athenian. When he arrived, he inexplicably refused to
room with his fellow ambassador Leon, and the two spent an entire month sleeping in
separate quarters. Nor was this clash of personalities Athens’ only cause for concern.
Within a few weeks of Timagoras and Leon’s departure, Thebes got wind of the embassy
to the King and sent forth her own ambassador, the renowned general Pelopidas, together
with envoys from her new allies in the Peloponnese. Given Timagoras’ sickness and
1 Xen. Hell. 7.1.33-8; Dem. 19.31, 137, 191; Plut. Pelop. 30.6-7, Art. 22.4-6; Athen. 6. 251b; Val. Max.
6.3.ext.2. Mosley (1968), Perlman (1976: 228-9), Buckler (1980: 153-8), Lewis (1989: 228-9), Heskel
(1997: 101-8), Mitchell (1997: 128-9). For the chronology of this embassy, see especially Heskel (1997:
105-7). Thebes’ ascendancy during the 360’s: Davies (1978: 217-27), Buckler (1980).
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