27. Befriarn Dionysos. Dionysus, the god of wine and vineyards and of dramatic poetry, was styled Liberator (from care). Note the effective application of the same epithet in the personifications following.
39. som Dodonas gamla ek. The simile refers to the famous oracle at Dodona, in Epirus, dedicated to Zevs. The oracular answers were supposed to be derived from the whispering of the breezes in the crown of a great sacred oak.
Dodonas ekar talade fordomdags,
ur helga skuggor stammades ödets dom.
(Dodona's oaks aforetime their message spake;
Prom sacred shadows stammering Fate's decree.)
TEGNÉR'S "Träden."
42. The three great commanders and statesmen here named flourished about 500-450 B.C. and their achievements were still fresh in the memory of the Athenians after more than two hundred years, hence, (43) de leva ännu—de stå mig när. Great as these heroes were, the hyperbole in line 41, då en värld befriades, is obvious.
45. Kerameikos, the old Potters' Quarter in Athens, transformed into one of the finest parts of the city, with a wide square or plaza which is here specifically meant.
46. pyrririsk vapendans—the ancient Pyrrhic dance was performed to the music of flutes, by armed men simulating a hand to hand battle.
63. ett panateneiskt festtåg—the Panathenaea was the most ancient and important festival of Athens, celebrated in honor of the goddess Athena, in part by a festive procession to her temple in the center of the Acropolis.
75. falang—the Greek phalanx was a body of heavily armed infantry formed in close ranks and files varying from four to twenty-five ranks deep.