Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws

Use in the book

The golden scepter first appears in Socrates' report of the Nekyia, where Homer represents Minos judging (319d). It contributes to the positive portrayal of Minos and to his contrast with Rhadamanthys in that Homeric scene. The text does not quote a detailed set of judgments, identify the laws applied, or derive Minos' justice merely from possessing a costly object. The scepter belongs to the represented exercise of authority.

The Cretan account then distinguishes the originating kingly craft from judicial and custodial functions. Rhadamanthys presides in courts and guards the laws in the town; Talos makes a circuit of the villages and guards them there. The rules are not only held in the ruler's mind. They are written on tablets and carried into the territory where they operate. In the earlier craft analogy, writings express what experts know; here writing also permits the laws to be present in their guardian's rounds.

The bronze explanation is carefully material. Talos is called bronze because he carries laws inscribed on bronze tablets. The adjective attached to the tablets and the epithet attached to the man form the explanatory link. Reading the passage as though Socrates simply repeated the bronze-bodied guardian of another version would miss this transformation.

Hesiod's scepter receives a more explicit interpretation at 320d. Socrates says it means nothing other than Zeus' education, by which Minos guided Crete. The material emblem becomes the sign of an acquired capacity to direct. The verb euthynein, to guide or straighten, continues the association of rule with right direction. This is Socrates' explanation of the verse, not the literal replacement of the word scepter with “education” inside Hesiod's quotation.

These details qualify any reading in which the dialogue's definition of law as discovery renders enactment and administration irrelevant. Expertise remains the claimed source of good law, but the exemplar has courts, written rules and guardians. Their presence does not, however, settle the dialogue's remaining problem about the precise benefit distributed to souls.

Places to read

1. 319dδικάζοντα χρυσοῦν σκῆπτρον ἔχοντα — Minos is represented judging with a golden scepter
2. 320cδικαστὴς ἀγαθὸς ἐλέχθη εἶναι — Rhadamanthys was called a good judge
3. 320cνομοφύλακι γὰρ αὐτῷ ἐχρῆτο ὁ Μίνως — Minos uses Rhadamanthys as guardian of the laws
4. 320cἐν χαλκοῖς γραμματείοις ἔχων γεγραμμένους τοὺς νόμους — Talos carries laws written on bronze tablets
5. 320cὅθεν χαλκοῦς ἐκλήθη — The equipment explains the designation “bronze”
6. 320dπαιδείαν τὴν τοῦ Διός, ᾗ εὔθυνε τὴν Κρήτην — Socrates identifies the scepter's meaning with education that guided Crete

Translation in this edition

The translation retains “scepter,” the edition's American spelling, “guardian of the laws,” and “bronze tablets.” “Kingly craft” remains distinct from its service. The scepter's educational interpretation is kept in Socrates' prose after the verse.

Bronze — χαλκοῦς (chalkous)

χαλκοῦς (chalkous)

Bronze. Made of bronze; first describes the law tablets, and then, by Socrates' explanation, supplies Talos' epithet. Attested: χαλκοῖς (320c). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Courts — δικαστήριον (dikastērion)

δικαστήριον (dikastērion)

Courts. Places or institutions of judgment, in which Rhadamanthys has learned to preside. Attested: δικαστηρίοις (320c). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Golden — χρυσοῦς (chrysous)

χρυσοῦς (chrysous)

Golden. Made of gold; describes the scepter held by Minos in Socrates' report of the Nekyia. Attested: χρυσοῦν (319d). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Guardian of the laws — νομοφύλαξ (nomophylax)

νομοφύλαξ (nomophylax)

Guardian of the laws. A keeper or guardian of laws; the function in which Minos uses Rhadamanthys in the town. Attested: νομοφύλακι (320c). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Guarding — φυλάττειν (phylattein)

φυλάττειν (phylattein)

Guarding. To guard or preserve; Talos' recurring task is keeping the laws in the villages he visits. Attested: φυλάττων (320c). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Guided — εὐθύνειν (euthynein)

εὐθύνειν (euthynein)

Guided. To guide or direct straight; Socrates says Zeus' education was the means by which Minos directed Crete. Attested: εὔθυνε (320d). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Judge — δικαστής (dikastēs)

δικαστής (dikastēs)

Judge. One who gives judgment; Rhadamanthys is called good in this office through his education for judicial service. Attested: δικαστὴς (320c). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Judging — δικάζειν (dikazein)

δικάζειν (dikazein)

Judging. To give judgment; Socrates describes Homer as depicting Minos exercising this activity while holding the golden scepter. Attested: δικάζοντα (319d). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Nekyia — Νέκυια (Nekyia)

Νέκυια (Nekyia)

Nekyia. The calling-up of the dead, the ancient name used for Odyssey 11 in the supplied note; Socrates refers to its Minos scene. Attested: Νεκυίᾳ (319d). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Odyssey — Ὀδύσσεια (Odysseia)

Ὀδύσσεια (Odysseia)

Odyssey. The Homeric poem whose Nekyia supplies Socrates' reported picture of Minos giving judgment with a golden scepter. Attested: Ὀδυσσείας (319d). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Scepter — σκῆπτρον (skēptron)

σκῆπτρον (skēptron)

Scepter. A staff marking authority, golden in Homer's depiction; Hesiod's scepter of Zeus is subsequently interpreted by Socrates as divine education. Attested: σκῆπτρον (319d). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Tablets — γραμματεῖον (grammateion)

γραμματεῖον (grammateion)

Tablets. Writing tablets on which Talos carries the laws; their bronze material explains his designation as bronze. Attested: γραμματείοις (320c). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Written — γράφειν (graphein)

γράφειν (graphein)

Written. To write or inscribe; the perfect passive participle describes the laws as already written on Talos' bronze tablets. Attested: γεγραμμένους (320c). Scepters, courts, and guardians of written laws.

Hence he was called bronze (contextual phrase)

320c: ὅθεν χαλκοῦς ἐκλήθη. “Hence” points backward to Talos carrying laws written on bronze tablets. Socrates explains the epithet by the material of the legal record, within this account. Replacing that causal explanation with a bronze body imports another version of the myth and removes the present passage's connection between written law and guardianship. See Scepter and guarding.