Pausanias_Travel_Writing_in_Ancient Greece [Maria_Pretzler]

9
Pausanias and his Readers
We cannot refrain from expressing the hope that we may yet see a worthy
English translation of the Periegesis. No edition annotated by the light of
modern archaeological discovery exists, we believe, in any language. When
we recall the splendid illustrations that the excavations of the last quarter
century – nay, even the last decade – have prepared for such a work, we
cannot fail to perceive what a fine field of research and erudition awaits the
scholar who should undertake an edition of Pausanias on the lines of Canon
Rawlinson’s Herodotus. To be worthily executed such a work would demand
the labour of more years than most men are willing to devote to a single
object; but once accomplished, it would ensure its author an honourable and
lasting name in literature.’ (G.F. Bowen in Murray (1884) 94)
This demand to make Pausanias finally accessible to those without a full
classical education was made in the introduction to one of the earliest
modern travel guides to Greece. 1 The author was thinking of the value of
the Periegesis for interested travellers, but he expected that its impact
would not be confined just to this specialised sphere. Little did he know
that in the same year J.G. Frazer had just started to work on his translation
and commentary that were to answer his wishes in a more than
adequate manner, although the completion of his work was to take fourteen
years. Bowen’s statement illustrates the general interest, partly
fuelled by new archaeological discoveries in Greece, that would lead to
about twenty years of intensive research and scholarly discussion of the
Periegesis. The story of Pausanias appreciation, however, began much
earlier. After his work came to Europe in the early fifteenth century it was
translated into several languages, including English. In fact, the earliest
translation into Latin appeared in 1500, several years before the first
printed edition of the original text (Musurus, 1516). Another Latin translation
was published around 1547, followed by an Italian one in 1593. The
eighteenth century saw further translations into French (1731-3), German
(1765-6, 1798-9), two into English (1780 and 1793), and a new Italian
version (1792-3), with further editions and translations in the nineteenth
century. 2
Pausanias clearly had many readers long before it became
relatively easy to test the qualities of his description by visiting Greece.
Many who wanted to find out more about ancient Greek culture, particularly
mythology, art and religion, read the Periegesis with interest.
A full study of Pausanias’ readers and their reactions to the Periegesis
since its re-discovery in the early Renaissance is beyond the scope of this
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