Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

Sed tunc pascebant herbosa Palatia vaccae
Et stabant humiles in Iovis arce casae.
Lacte madens illic suberat Pan ilicis umbrae
Et facta agresti lignea falce Pales,
Pendebatque vagi pastoris in arbore votum,
Garrula silvestri fistula sacra deo,
Fistula, cui semper decrescit arundinis ordo:
Nam calamus cera iungitur usque minor.
At qua Velabri regio patet, ire solebat
Exiguus pulsa per vada linter aqua.
Illac saepe gregis ditis placitura magistro

Ad iuvenem festa est vecta puella die,
Cum qua fecundi redierunt munera ruris,
Caseus et niveae candidus agnus ovis.)
'Impiger Aenea, volitantis frater Amoris,
Troica qui profugis sacra vehis ratibus,
Iam tibi Laurentes assignat Iuppiter agros,
Iam vocat errantes hospita terra Lares.
Illic sanctus eris, cum te veneranda Numici
Unda deum caelo miserit Indigetem.
Ecce super fessas volitat Victoria puppes,
Tandem ad Troianos diva superba venit.
Ecce mihi lucent Rutulis incendia castris :
Iam tibi praedico, barbare Turne, necem.
Ante oculos Laurens castrum murusque Lavini est
Albaque ab Ascanio condita longa duce.
Te quoque iam video, Marti placitura sacerdos
Ilia, Vestales deseruisse focos,
Concubitusque tuos furtim vittasque iacentes,
Et cupidi ad ripas arma relicta dei.

vis parva feruntur, Non tamen expe-
diit transiluisse Remo.'

26. Iovis arce] The Capitol. 28. falce] Pruning knife.' Cf. Propert. v. 2. 59, Stipes acernus eram properanti falce dolatus.'

29. Hic arguta sacra pendebit fistula pinu,' Virg. Bucol. vii. 24. 32. usque minor] 'Continually lessening.'

41. Laurentes-agros] The territory of Latinus.

43, 44. Numici-Indigetem] Cf.

[blocks in formation]

Liv. i. 2, 'Situs est, quemcunque eum dici ius fasque est, supra Numicium flumen. Iovem indigetem appellant.'

49. Lavini] Oppidum_condunt. Aeneas ab nomine uxoris Lavinium

appellat,' Liv. i. 1.

50.] Novam ipse (Ascanius) aliam sub Albano monte condidit; quae ab situ porrectae in dorso urbis, Longa Alba appellata. Liv. i. 1.

51. Te quoque] Cf. Ovid. Fast. iii. 9-24.

Carpite nunc, tauri, de septem montibus herbas,
Dum licet hic magnae iam locus urbis erit.
Roma, tuum nomen terris fatale regendis,

Qua sua de caelo prospicit arva Ceres,
Quaque patent ortus et qua fluitantibus undis
Solis anhelantes abluit amnis equos.
Troia quidem tunc se mirabitur et sibi dicet
Vos bene tam longa consuluisse via.
Vera cano: sic usque sacras innoxia laurus
Vescar, et aeternum sit mihi virginitas.'
Haec cecinit vates et te sibi, Phoebe, vocavit,
Iactavit fusas et caput ante comas.

Quicquid Amalthea, quicquid Marpessia dixit,
Herophile Phoebo grata quod admonuit,
Quasque Albana sacras Tiberis per flumina sortes
Portarit sicco pertuleritque sinu,

(Hae fore dixerunt belli mala signa, cometen,
Multus ut in terras deplueretque lapis:

Atque tubas atque arma ferunt strepitantia caelo
Audita et lucos praecinuisse fugam,

Et simulacra deum lacrimas fudisse tepentes

57. terris fatale regendis] 'Destined by the fates to rule the world.' Supply est.

60. amnis] The current of the ocean. Nosque ubi primus equis Oriens afflavit anhelis, Illic sera rubens accendit lumina vesper,' Virg. Georg. i. 250, 251.

61, 62. et sibi dicet, &c.] And will declare that you have well consulted her interests. by causing her to make so long a voyage,' i. e. from Asia Minor to Italy.

63. laurus] The bay contains prussic acid, and is poisonous.— innoxia, 'unharmed.' Cf. Lucan. ix. 892, 'gens a saevo serpentum innoxia morsu.'-Vescor generally takes an ablative. So utor often takes an accusative, especially in the comic poets.

67, 68. Amalthea] Not the nymph who nourished the infant Jupiter with goat's milk, but a Sibyl.Marpessia, from Marpessus, a town

[blocks in formation]

of the district Troas, the Sibyl of the Hellespont.-Herophile, a priestess of Apollo Smintheus. But Dissen removes the comma after dixit, and adopts Lachmann's conjecture of Phaeto Graiaque quod monuit for Phaebo Graia quod admonuit, making Marpessia and Herophile one person.

69. Albana] Scaliger proposes Albuna. Albunea was a local goddess, or nymph, worshipped at Tibur. Her image was said to have been found in the Anio, with her prophetic writings in its hand, which were transferred by the Senate to the Capitol.

71. cometen] The one seen after the death of Julius Caesar. Heynius considers Tibullus to refer to two occasions when these prodigies were seen; at the beginning of the war between Caesar and Pompey, and at the death of Caesar. Lucan. i. 524 sqq. and Virg. Georg. i. 466 sqq.

Cf.

Fataque vocales praemonuisse boves,
Ipsum etiam Solem defectum lumine vidit
Iungere pallentes nubilus annus equos),
Haec fuerant olim: sed tu iam mitis, Apollo,
Prodigia indomitis merge sub aequoribus,
Et succensa sacris crepitet bene laurea flammis,
Omine quo felix et sacer annus erit.
Laurus ubi bona signa dedit, gaudete coloni:
Distendet spicis horrea plena Ceres,
Oblitus et musto feriet pede rusticus uvas,
Dolia dum magni deficiantque lacus.
Ac madidus Baccho sua festa Palilia pastor
Concinet: a stabulis tunc procul este lupi.
Ille levis stipulae solemnis potus acervos
Accendet, flammas transilietque sacras,
Et fetus matrona dabit, natusque parenti
Oscula comprensis auribus eripiet,
Nec taedebit avum parvo advigilare nepoti
Balbaque cum puero dicere verba senem.
Tunc operata deo pubes discumbet in herba,
Arboris antiquae qua levis umbra cadit,
Aut e veste sua tendent umbracula sertis

Vincta, coronatus stabit et ante calix.
At sibi quisque dapes et festas extruet alte
Cespitibus mensas cespitibusque torum.
Ingeret hic potus iuvenis maledicta puellae,
Post modo quae votis irrita facta velit:
Nam ferus ille suae plorabit sobrius idem
Et se iurabit mente fuisse mala.
Pace tua pereant arcus pereantque sagittae,

79.] These things are past and gone. May better times ensue.

81. crepitet bene laurea] It was a good omen for the bay leaf to give a loud crack. Cf. Theocr. Idyll. ii.

24.

[blocks in formation]

ebria turba pedes.'

[subsumed][subsumed][subsumed][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small]

91, 92.] Interea dulces pendent circum oscula nati,' Virg. Georg. ii. 523.

95. operata deo] Supr. ii. 1. 9. 101, 102.] For an account of a lover's quarrel, see Theoc. Idyll. xiv. 34 sqq.

[ocr errors]

104. mente-mala] Out of his wits.'

105. Pace tua] 'If you will pardon the expression.'

Phoebe, modo in terris erret inermis Amor.
Ars bona: sed postquam sumpsit sibi tela Cupido,
Heu heu quam multis ars dedit illa malum!
Et mihi praecipue. Iaceo cum saucius annum
Et faveo morbo, cum iuvat ipse dolor,
Usque cano Nemesim, sine qua versus mihi nullus
Verba potest iustos aut reperire pedes.
At tu (nam divum servat tutela poetas),
Praemoneo, vati parce, puella, sacro,
Ut Messalinum celebrem, cum praemia belli
Ante suos currus oppida victa feret,
Ipse gerens lauros: lauro devinctus agresti
Miles 'io' magna voce 'triumphe' canet.
Tum Messala meus pia det spectacula turbae
Et plaudat curru praetereunte pater.
Annue: sic tibi sint intonsi, Phoebe, capilli,
Sic tua perpetuo sit tibi casta soror.

LIBER TERTIUS.

I.

Martis Romani festae venere kalendae

(Exoriens nostris hic fuit annus avis), Et vaga nunc certa discurrunt undique pompa

110. faveo morbo] 'I hug the disease.'

[ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small]

110

115

120

gave presents to their wives and lovers to their mistresses. 'Munera foemineis tractat secreta Kalendis.' Juven. ix. 53.

2. Exoriens] Numa is said to have added the two months of January and February, and to have lengthened the months so that the whole year consisted of 355 days. But long afterwards March remained the first month. Dissen observes, that, since from the consulship of Q. Fulvius Nobilior and T. Annius Luscus A. U.C. 601 the consuls entered upon their magistracy in the month of January, this month by degrees began to be held as the commencement of the year.

3. certa pompa] These gifts were carried with great state and proces sion to definite (certis) peOps.

Perque vias urbis munera perque domos:
Dicite, Pierides, quonam donetur honore

Seu mea, seu fallor, cara Neaera tamen.
Carmine formosae, pretio capiuntur avarae:
Gaudeat, ut digna est, versibus illa meis.
Lutea sed niveum involvat membrana libellum,
Pumex cui canas tondeat ante comas,
Summaque praetexat tenuis fastigia chartae,
Indicet ut nomen littera facta tuum,
Atque inter geminas pingantur cornua frontes:
Sic etenim comptum mittere oportet opus.
Per vos, auctores huius mihi carminis, oro
Castaliamque umbram Pieriosque lacus,
Ite domum cultumque illi donate libellum,
Sicut erit: nullus defluat inde color.
Illa mihi referet, si nostri mutua cura est
An minor, an toto pectore deciderim.
Sed primum meritam larga donate salute
Atque haec submisso dicite verba sono.
'Haec tibi vir quondam, nunc frater, casta Neaera,
Mittit et accipias munera parva rogat,
Teque suis iurat caram magis esse medullis,
Sive sibi coniunx sive futura soror.

Sed potius coniunx: huius spem nominis illi
Auferet extincto pallida Ditis aqua.'

8. meis] Probably tuis is the right reading. If we adopt this, the lines 7-14 will be the reply of the Muses to the poet's request.

9. membrana] The parchment covering of the roll of papyrus. This covering was stained yellow (lutea).

[ocr errors]

10. comas] The ragged edges,' 'Arida modo pumice expolitum,' Catull. i. 2.

11. Summa-fastigia] 'The top extremity.'

12. littera facta] 'An inscription.' Dissen supposes that littera facta means a ticket attached with the title.-tuum. The name of Neaera, if meis, that of the author if tuis be read in 8.

13. inter geminas-frontes] 'Projecting from the two ends.'-cornua,

[blocks in formation]

the extremities of the umbilicus or stick round which the MS. was rolled. Cf. Catull. xxii. 6 sqq., 'Chartae regiae, novi libri, Novi umbilici, lora rubra, meinbrana Directa plumbo et pumice omnia aequata.'

15. Per] Cf. Tib. iv. 5. 7, Mutuus adsit amor, per te dulcissima furta Perque tuos oculos per Geniumque rogo.

19.] si with the indic. utrum or num with the subj. It is here followed by an with the subj. as if utrum had preceded.

21. larga donate salute] i.e. 'salvere iubete longum.'

28. Auferet, &c.] i. e. 'only with his death will he resign the hope of that name.'

« ZurückWeiter »