Lollius for Aedile
C • LOLLIVM • FVSCVM AED • D • R • OVF G(ium) Lollium Fuscum aed(lem), d(ignum) r(e pblicae) (r) v(s) f(acitis).
CIL 4.7874: Lollius’ candidacy dated to A.D.. 78, the year before Pompeii’s destruction; this programma was painted on the same wall as the one for Ceius Secundus you read in Capvt VI, and we know from another notice (CIL 4.7863) that the same Asellina who supported Ceius for duumvir also backed Lollius.
aedlis, aedlis, m., aedile, Roman or provincial magistrate in charge of public works and entertainments.—dignus re pblicae, worthy of the republic, i.e., qualified to serve the state, was a standard and commonly abbreviated formula in these programmata.—r vs facitis: I ask you to make (elect), another formula common in these campaign notices (cf. “…or Maybe Polybius,” Capvt V).
Programma for Lollius Fuscus, regio IX, insula XII, Pompeii, Italy (CIL 4.7874)
Robert I. Curtis
PRVERBIA ET DICTA
Ibi semper est victria, ubi concordia est. (Publilius Sent.: concordia, -ae, f., agreement, harmony; “concord,” “concordant.”)
bons bona disce. (Erasmus Ad. 4.8.37; how are the two adjectives used?)
Hannibal, crd, erat ad ports. (Cicero Phil. 1.5.11: Hannibal, Hannibalis, m., Hannibal, Carthaginian leader in Rome’s 2nd Punic War.—crd, crdere, crdid, crditum, to believe, trust; “credible,” “creed.”)
Inqua numquam rgna perpetu manent. (Seneca Med. 196: inquus, -a, -um, unfair, unjust; “iniquity.”—rgnum, -, n., rule, authority, kingdom, government; “reign,” “interegnum.”—perpetu, adv. from perpetuus, -a, -um; “perpetual,” “perpetuate.”)
Laudem virttis necessitt damus. (Quintilian Inst. 1.8.14: necessits, necessittis, f., inevitability, necessity; “necessitate.”)
Magna d crant, parva neglegunt. (Cicero Nat. D. 2.167: cr [1], to care for, attend to; heal, cure; care about, worry about; “curator,” “curative.”—negleg, neglegere, neglx, neglctum, to disregard, neglect; “negligent,” “negligible.”)
Rvlittem nn amat Victria. (Publilius Sent.: rvlits, rvlittis, f., rivalry.)
More of Dionysius Cato’s advice to his son (see Capvt II):
8. Nunc t, fl crissime, docb. (t, pron., you, here acc.—crissimus, -a, -um, dearest, very dear; “caress,” “cherish.” This sentence concludes Cato’s introduction to his whole set of moral imperatives.)
9. Litters disce.
10. Cognts cole. (cogntus, -, m., kinsman, relative; “cognate.”—col, colere, colu, cultum, to cultivate; cherish; “culture.”)
11. Magistrum metue. (metu, metuere, metu, to fear, dread; revere, admire; “meticulous.”)
12. Librs lege. (leg, legere, lg, lctum, to pick out, choose; read; “legible,” “select.”)
GRAMMATICA
Verba: Identify and list all the 3rd-conjugation verb forms, then transform the singulars to plural and vice versa. Review the Summrium Frmrum at the back of this book, if necessary, and use it to check your answers.
CAPVT IX
A Princely Patron, a Seller of Dung, and Loiterers All Forewarned
A mix of inscriptions here: a monument to Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Augustus’ heir apparent, from his clients in Pompeii; a note to another Marcellus from his lady “Lucky” an ad for dung, in case you’re in the market; and a “No Loitering” sign, with scary snakes, in case you were thinking of hanging around! More wisdom from the ancients too, including the age-old reminder that no man, alas, is a prophet in his own land. And are you remembering to read the texts aloud, in the fashion of the Romans, and to read for comprehension before attempting to translate?
Grammatica nova: The demonstratives hic, iste, and ille; special “UNUS NAUTA” -us adjectives.
NSCRPTINS
To the Nephew of Augustus
M • CLAVDIO C • F • MARCELLO PATRONO M(rc) Claudi G(i) f(li) Mrcell patrn.
CIL 10.832: Inscription on a marble pedestal base in the Triangular Forum at Pompeii which once supported a statue, now lost, of Marcus Claudius Marcellus, nephew and intended heir of Octavian, the future emperor Augustus; born in 42 B.C. to Gaius Claudius Marcellus (consul in 50 B.C.) and Octavian’s sister Octavia, Marcellus died and was buried in Augustus’ own mausoleum in 23 B.C., leaving the emperor to seek another heir and likely successor to the principate. The 4th-cent. Vergilian scholar and commentator Servius tells us that Octavia collapsed into tears while listening with Augustus to Vergil, as he recited a passage from the sixth book of the Aeneid (lines 860–883) extolling Marcellus’ prowess and lamenting his premature death.
Gius, -, m., Gaius; for this common praenomen, and its abbreviation C, see notes to “Or Maybe Polybius,” Capvt V.—Claudius, -, m., Claudius, nomen of one of Rome’s oldest patrician families (gents).—Gi fli: the father’s praenomen was routinely included in Roman inscriptions as a means of more specifically identifying an individual.—patrnus, -, m., patron; guardian, defender; often, as here, an honorific title.
* * *
No youth shall equal hopes of glory give, No youth afford so great a cause to grieve; The Trojan honor, and the Roman boast, Admir’d when living, and ador’d when lost! Mirror of ancient faith in early youth! Undaunted worth, inviolable truth!
VERGIL AENEID 6.875–878; TRANSLATED BY JOHN DRYDEN
* * *
Dedicatory inscription, Triangular Forum, Pompeii, Italy, first century B.C. (CIL 10.832)
Robert I. Curtis
To Another Marcellus
MARCELLVM FORTVNATA • CVPIT Mrcellum Fortnta cupit!
CIL 4.111: His girlfriend’s name meant “Lucky,” but it seems Marcellus himself was the lucky guy; graffito from the shop of Fortunata on Pompeii’s Via Consolare.
cupi, cupere, cupv, cuptum, to desire, wish, long for; “cupidity,” “Cupid,” “covet.”
No Loitering!
OTIOSIS • LOCVS • HIC NON EST DISCEDE MORATOR tiss locus hic nn est. Discde, mortor!
CIL 4.813: This Pompeian graffito from the Vicolo del Lupanare was accompanied by a painting of two large snakes, a further warning to loiterers; the sentence is actually a dactylic hexameter verse (with the the first i in tiss pronounced as a consonant, a sort of “contraction” common in Latin speech, so the word is a trisyllable rather than quadrisyllabic).
tisus, -a, -um, not busy, having nothing to do, idle; “otiose,” “negotiate” this adj., used here as a SUBSTANTIVE, is related to the noun tium, leisure, peace.—discd, discdere, discess, discessum, to go away, depart; “proceed,” “exceed.”—mortor, mortris, m., one who hinders, delayer; one who lingers, loiterer; “moratorium,” “demur.”
Things Every Farmer Needs
EVPEMVS STECVS • E FVNDO • ET ROTA Eupmus: ste
CIL 4.1754: Advertisement of items for sale, written on a gate (the Porta Marina) at Pompeii.
Eupmus, -, m., Eupemus, a Greek name, likely that of a freedman.—stercus, stercoris, n., manure (esp. animal manure used as fertilizer); “stercorous,” “stercobilin.”—fundus, -, m., bottom, base; country estate, farm; “fundament,” “foundation.”—rota, -ae, f., wheel (here probably for a farmer’s cart or wagon); “rotate,” “rotary.”
PRVERBIA ET DICTA
Hom semper aliud, fortna aliud cgitat. (Publilius Sent.: aliud…aliud, one thing…another.)
Vincet amor patriae. (Vergil Aen. 6.823.)
Nbilits sla est atque nca virts. (Juvenal Sat. 8.20: nbilits, nbilittis, f., nobility.—atque = et.—ncus, -a, -um, one and only, sole; unique. In a common word-order variation, the subj. virts is delayed to the end for suspense; the adjectives modify the pred. nom., nbilits.)
Sla pecnia rgnat. (Petronius Sat. 14: rgn [1], to rule, govern; “reign,” “interregnum.”)
Nsce animum tuum. (Cicero Tusc. 1.52: nsc, nscere, nv, ntum, to get to know, learn about; “notorious,” “notice.”)
Nllum homin est perpetuum bonum. (Plautus Curc. 189.)
Sine r et studi. (Tacitus Ann. 1.1: the historian’s promise
to avoid any kind of bias in his reporting of events.)
Prophta in su patri honrem nn habet. (John 4.44: prophta, -ae, m., prophet; “prophetic,” “prophecy,” “prophesy.”—suus, -a, -um, his, her, its, their own; “suicide,” “sui generis.”—honor, honris, m., honor, esteem.)
Qu nimium mults “Nn am” dcit, amat. (Ovid Rem. Am. 648: qu, rel. pron., [he] who.)
Sapere aud. (Horace Epist. 1.2.40: sapi, sapere, sapv, to have good taste; have good sense, be wise; “sapient,” “insipid.”)
Iste meus stupor nl videt. (Catullus Carm. 17.21: stupor, stupris, m., numbness; dullness, stupidity; stupid person; “stuporous.”—nl = nihil.)
Nn tamen ista mes mtbunt saecula mrs. (Propertius El. 2.25.37: mt [1], to change, alter; “mutable,” “mutation.”—saeculum, -, n., generation; age, time; “secular.”)
Ille crucem sceleris pretium tulit, hic diadma. (Juvenal Sat. 13.105: crux, crucis, f., wooden frame on which criminals were exposed to die, cross; “crux,” “crucify.”—scelus, sceleris, n., evil deed, crime, sin.—pretium, -, n., price, value, reward; “precious” here, with sceleris, as the…of….—fer, ferre, tul, ltum, to bear, endure; receive; tulit is perf. tense; “infer,” “collate.”—diadma, diadmatis, n., diadem, crown.)
Laudant illa, sed ista legunt. (Martial Epig. 4.49.10: leg, legere, lg, lctum, to pick out, choose; read; “select,” “elect,” “collect.”)
GRAMMATICA
Prnmina (“pronouns”): List all forms of the demonstratives hic, iste, and ille in the chapter’s readings, identify the number, gender, case, and case usage of each, and then transform singulars to plural and vice versa. Consult the Summrium Frmrum appendix, if necessary, and use it to check your work.
Adiectva: Nine common 1st/ 2nd-declension adjectives, the so-called “UNUS NAUTA adjectives,” are irregular in their genitive and dative singular forms. Find the UNUS NAUTA adjectives in this chapter’s readings, identify their number, gender, and case, and then give their genitive and dative singular forms.
CAPVT X
Love and Loathing, Electioneering, and the Hostile Advance of Death
You’ll read in this chapter of paupers and ballplayers getting out the vote, of women who’ll love you, loathe you, or just leave you alone, and of Death who comes on like an enemy. From the chapter’s proverbs and dicta you’ll learn, inter alia, that even in olden times clothes “made the man”!
Grammatica nova: 4th-conjugation verbs and -i verbs of the 3rd conjugation.
NSCRPTINS
Let’s Vote!
MODESTVM • AED…]TARI ET PAVPER […] FACITE Modestum aed(lem), [prl]tri<> et pauper[s], facite!
CIL 4.9932a: One of countless electoral notices from Pompeii urging specific constituents to vote for a particular candidate (“Teamsters, vote Obama!”).
Modestus, , m., Modestus, Roman cognomen from an adj. meaning “temperate” or “unassuming” another notice for the man’s election reads MODESTVM AED • O • V • F, where the last three letters, as we have seen before, are the standard abbreviation for r vs facitis, I ask you to make (elect), and in another inscription we have the candidate’s full name, Marcus Samellius Modestus.—aedlis, aedlis, m., aedile, Roman or provincial magistrate in charge of public works and entertainments.—prltrius, -, m., proletarian, a member of the lowest citizen class; restored here for the connection with paupers, though some editors read unguentri, ointment makers/ sellers, based on other inscriptions at Pompeii.—pauper, pauperis, m., poor man; “pauper,” “poverty.”
Yankees for Vettius!
A • VETTIUM • FIRMVM
AED • O • V • F • D • R • P • O • V • F • PILICREPI • FACITE
A(ulum) Vettium Frmum aed(lem) (r) v(s) f(acitis) d(ignum) r(e) p(blicae) (r) v(s) f(acitis), pilicrep, facite!
CIL 4.1147: Never mind Modestus and the poor folks—the pilicrep (including that hairless Epaphra?—see Capvt V) are supporting Aulus Vettius Firmus, whose candidacy has been dated to the Neronian period. The person who painted, or commissioned, this programma got carried away and accidentally repeated O. V. F., which had become so formulaic that the redundancy with facite didn’t seem to bother anyone either. From the Praedia (a hotel in fact) of Julia Felix.
dignus, -a, -um, appropriate, suitable, worthy; “dignify,” “indignant” dignus re pblicae, worthy of the republic, i.e., qualified to serve the state, was another standard and commonly abbreviated formula in these programmata.—pilicrepus, -, m., ballplayer or referee.
Lady of the Night
LVCILLA EX CORPORE LVCRVM FACIEBAT Lcilla ex corpore lucrum facibat.
CIL 4.1948: Graffito from the basilica at Pompeii.
Lcilla, -ae, f., Lucilla (“little light,” DIMINUTIVE of lx, lcis, f., light; “lucid,” “translucent.”), a female cognomen, like our “Lucille” and “Lucy.”—lucrum: do you remember this word from the floor mosaics in Capita I and IV?—if not, think “lucrative” one wonders if the “gentleman” who scrawled this message intended the soundplay (ASSONANCE) in Lc-/ luc-?
The basilica, Pompeii, Italy
Robert I. Curtis
Getting Together
SECVNDVS CVM PRIMIGENIA CONVENIVNT Secundus cum Prmigeni conveniunt.
CIL 4.5358: These two seem to have found a “convenient” meeting place in Pompeii’s Region IX (as noted in the Introduction, archaeologists have mapped the city into a set of regins and nsulae, blocks of buildings).
conveni, convenre, convn, conventum, compound of cum/ con- + veni, to come together, assemble, meet; “convene,” “convention.”
QUAESTI: Why, strictly speaking, should the verb form be singular?—but what logic reasonably prompted the person who wrote the graffito to make it plural?
Not Getting Together
SERENA Sarra, nn bell facis: slum m relinquis, dbilis […]
ISIDORV
FASTIDIT
CIL 4.1951: Another graffito from the basilica; the roughly trochaic rhythm may only be accidental, though we have a great many verse graffiti from Pompeii, including the next one below.
Sarra, -ae, f., Sarra, a female cognomen, probably for a slave or freedwoman and perhaps from the old name for the Phoenician coastal city of Tyre.—bell, adv. (from the adj. bellus, -a, -um), beautifully, agreeably, nicely.—relinqu, relinquere, relqu, relictum, to leave behind, leave, abandon; “relinquish.”—dbilis: 3rd-decl. adj., weak, feeble, crippled; “debilitate.” The adj. here, nom. case, possibly refers to Sarra, “you, weak,…,” or it may belong with text obscured at the end of the graffito.
Abandoned
SARRA NON BELLE FACIS SOLVM ME RELINQVIS DEBILIS […Serna sidru
CIL 4.3117: These two are not getting along as well as Secundus and Primigenia, it appears; which one do you suppose scribbled out this graffito?
sidrum: for the writer’s omission of final -m, cf. “…Boy Loves Girl,” Capvt III.—fastdi, fastdre, fastdv, fastdtum, to show aversion to, loathe; scorn, turn away from; “fastidious.”
Hateful Death
DISCITE DVM VIVO MORS INIMICA VENIS Discite: dum vv, Mors inimca, vens.
CIL 4.5112: Graffito from the House of Hercules and Nessus, Pompeii; written in verse (elegiac pentameter).
mors, mortis, f., death; “mortal,” “mortuary.”—inimcus, -a, -um, unfriendly, hostile; disagreeable. “inimical.”
QUAESTINS: Why is the imperative plural?—i.e., who is addressed? We have an “amateur poet” at work here; comment on her/ his use of both PERSONIFICATION and ALLITERATION.
PRVERBIA ET DICTA
Dum Fta sinunt, vvite laet. (Seneca Herc. Fur. 178: ftum, -, n., fate; death; pl., often, the Fates; “fatalism.”—sin, sinere, sv, situm, to allow, permit.—laetus, -a, -um, happy, joyful; what must the noun laetitia, -ae, f., mean? and the name “Letitia”?)
Impedit ra animum. (Cato Dist. 2.4: impedi, impedre, impedv, impedtum, to impede, hinder, prevent; the verb lit. means to “put on the feet,” from ps, pedis, m., lower leg, foot, and he
nce to hobble or shackle—to “expedite” is just the opposite!)
Aud alteram partem. (Augustine Man. 14.22: pars, partis, f., part, share; party, side, position [in a dispute]; “partisan.”)
Effugere cupidittem rgnum est vincere. (Publilius Sent.: effugi, effugere, effg, effugitrum, to escape, avoid; “fugitive,” “refuge.”—rgnum, -, n., rule, authority, kingdom, government; “reign.”)
Vestis virum facit. (Erasmus Ad. 3.1.60: vestis, vestis, f., personal attire, dress, clothes; “vest,” “vestment,” “divest.”)
Inveniet viam aut faciet. (Seneca Herc. Fur. 276–77.)
Numquam aliud natra, aliud sapientia dcit. (Juvenal Sat. 14.321: aliud…aliud, one thing…another.)
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