Lines 4 and 7 of the Homeric Hymn to Pan

The purpose of this study is to examine the terminal words of line 4 and line 7 of the Homeric Hymn to Pan. Nineteen surviving manuscripts contain the hymn, most of which present these lines in the following form, adopted by most modern editors:

4 αἵ τε κατ’ αἰγίλιπος πέτρης στείβουσι κάρηνα

7 καὶ κορυφὰς ὀρέων καὶ πετρήεντα κέλευθα.

However, Köchly (1881) and Ludwich (1908) swap the terminal words, i.e., 4 κέλευθα and 7 κάρηνα. It is probable that this swapping is correct, even though it is not found in any manuscripts. Scribes might have swapped the order (4 κέλευθα, 7 κάρηνα) into the order in the existing manuscripts in the process of transmission. In line 4, κέλευθα is more appropriate than κάρηνα as the object of the verb στείβουσι. In line 7, which describes the places concerned with the god Pan, κάρηνα (“summits”) is more appropriate than κέλευθα (“roads”). Therefore, it is best to adopt 4 κέλευθα and 7 κάρηνα.