f the
Lacedemonians he fled to Thessaly, and when he had fled, a price was
proclaimed for his life by the Deputies, 212 when the Amphictyons
met for their assembly at Pylai. 213 Then some time afterwards having
returned to Antikyra he was slain by Athenades a man of Trachis. Now
this Athenades killed Epialtes for another cause, which I shall set
forth in the following part of the history, 214 but he was honoured for
it none the less by the Lacedemonians.

214. Thus Epialtes after these events was slain: there is however
another tale told, that Onetes the son of Phanagoras, a man of Carystos,
and Corydallos of Antikyra were those who showed the Persians the way
round the mountain; but this I can by no means accept: for first we must
judge by this fact, namely that the Deputies of the Hellenes did not
proclaim a price for the lives of Onetes and Corydallos, but for that
of Epialtes the Trachinian, having surely obtained the most exact
information of the matter; and secondly we know that Epialtes was an
exile from his country to avoid this charge. True it is indeed that
Onetes might know of this path, even though he were not a Malian, if he
had had much intercourse with the country; but Epialtes it was who led
them round the mountain by the path, and him therefore I write down as
the guilty man.

215. Xerxes accordingly, being pleased by that which Epialtes engaged
to accomplish, at once with great joy proceeded to send Hydarnes and the
men of whom Hydarnes was commander; 215 and they set forth from the camp
about the time when the lamps are lit. This path of which we speak
had been discovered by the Malians who dwell in that land, and having
discovered it they led the Thessalians by it against the Phokians, at
the time when the Phokians had fenced the pass with a wall and thus were
sheltered from the attacks upon them: so long ago as this had the pass
been proved by the Malians to be of no value. 216 And this path lies
as follows:--it begins from the river Asopos, which flows through the
cleft, and the name of this mountain and of the path is the same, namely
Anopaia; and this Anopaia stretches over the ridge of the mountain and
ends by the town of Alpenos, which is the first town of the Locrians
towards Malis, and by the stone called Black Buttocks 217 and the seats
of the Kercopes, where is the very narrowest part.

217. By this path thus situated the Persians after crossing over the
Asopos proceeded all through the