Scribblers, Sculptors and Scribes
Page 19
Amc frm nihil em melius potest. (Publilius Sent.: frmus, -a, -um, firm, strong; reliable; “firmament,” “affirm,” “confirm.”—em, emere, m, mptum, to buy, purchase; “redeem,” “redemption,” “caveat emptor.”)
Ignis aurum probat, miseria forts virs. (Seneca Prov. 5.9: aurum, -, n., gold; “aureole,” “Au.” [abbreviation for the element gold].—miseria, -ae, f., wretchedness, affliction, distress; “misery.”)
Melius est nmen bonum quam dvitiae multae. (Proverbs 22.1.)
Discipulus est priris posterior dis. (Publilius Sent.: posterus, -a, -um, occurring hereafter, future, later [i.e., temporally]; back, behind [spatially]; “posterity,” “posterior.”)
racundiam qu vincit, hostem superat maximum. (Publilius Sent.: racundia, -ae, f., proneness to anger [ra], irascibility.)
Malus bonum ubi s simulat, tunc est pessimus. (Publilius Sent.: bonum…s: sc. esse.—simul [1], to pretend [that]; “simulate,” “simulation.”—tunc = tum.)
Malus animus in scrt peius cgitat. (Publilius Sent.: scrtum, -, n., seclusion, retirement; privacy, concealment; secret.)
Nlla homin maior poena est quam nflcits. (Publilius Sent.: nflcits, nflcittis, f., misfortune, unhappiness; “infelicitous,” “infelicity.”)
Fermcerrima proximrum odia sunt. (Tacitus Hist. 4.70: fer and ferm, adv., approximately, practically; in most cases, usually, generally.—proximus, -a, -um, superl. adj. from the adv. prope [near; compar. propius], nearest, closest, here referring to relatives or close associates; “proximate,” “proximity.”)
Ubi peccat aets maior, male discit minor. (Publilius Sent.: pecc [1], to sin, do wrong; “peccadillo.”—male, adv., badly, ill, wrongly; “malady,” “malevolent.”)
Nec scrbere tantum nec tantum legere dbmus (Seneca Ep. 84.2.)
LITTERTRA
Love Is Blind—Really!
Frmsam sn, sed caecus, dligit Asper;
pls erg, ut rs est, quam videt Asper amat.
Martial Epig. 8.51: In poor Asper’s case, love is quite literally blind!
frmsus, -a, -um, shapely, beautiful, attractive; “formalize.”—sn, adv., soundly; sensibly; modifying adjectives and other adverbs, very, decidely, quite.—sed caecus: sc. est.—Asper: the man’s cognomen has unfortunate connotations.—erg, adv., therefore.—ut rs est: an idiom rather like our “as things stand.”
Quaesti: In what sense does poor Asper’s predicament apply to all infatuated lovers?
French Toast sans Eggs?
Aliter dulcia:
Silgines rss frangis, et buccells mairs facis; in lacte nfundis, frgis et in ole, mel super-fundis et nfers.
Apicius Coq. 7, Politeles (“Extravagant Dishes”), 11.3: Recipe for a dessert you can try making with your left-over bread! For the Roman gourmet Apicius and his cookbook, see “Something Fishy?” in Capvt XIV.
aliter, adv., in another way, in other ways, otherwise, differently; “alias,” “alibi.”—dulcia: here used as a SUBSTANTIVE.—silgineus, -a, -um, (made of) wheat (silg, a type of soft wheat); sc. pns, from pnis, pnis, m., bread; “pantry,” “companion.”—rd, rdere, rs, rsum, to scrape (off ); “abrade,” “abrasive” by rss Apicius means you should remove the crust.—frang, frangere, frg, fractum, to break, shatter; “frangible,” “fragile,” “fracture.”—buccella, -ae, f., small mouthful of food, bite-sized portions; DIMINUTIVE of bucca, cheek, mouth; “buccal.”—lac, lactis, n., milk; “lactose,” “lactation.”—nfund, nfundere, nfd, nfsum, to pour in/ into; “infusion.”—frg, frgere, frx, frctum, to roast, parch, fry; “fry,” “Fritos.”—oleum, -, n., olive oil; “oleomargarine.”—mel, mellis, n., honey; “mellifluous.”—superfund, superfundere, superfd, superfsum, to pour over; “superfuse.”—nfer, nferre, irreg., 3rd conj., to bring in; serve; “infer,” “inference,” “off er.”
GRAMMATICA
Adiectva: List all the adjectives in this chapter’s readings that have irregular comparative and/or superlative degree forms; for those that are positive degree in the readings, identify the comparative and superlative degree forms; for those that are comparative, give the positive and superlative forms; for the superlatives, give the positive and comparative. Consult the Summrium Frmrum appendix, if necessary.
CAPVT XXVIII
Curses, Comestibles, and a Birthday Surprise
This chapter’s readings include a slave collar inscription, a father’s epitaph for his young daughter and a son’s for his father (the latter with a curious warning), graffiti scribbled by folks beseeching the gods’ blessings on themselves or their lovers, and by two Pompeians cursing a political candidate and some other poor wretch. Among the literary selections are Apicius’ recipe for asparagus, a note to accompany a gift of cheese, an epigram by Martial praising a stenographer’s quick hand, and a celebratory poem about her birthday plans composed by Sulpicia, the only Roman woman whose formal verse has survived from antiquity. The chapter’s proverbs and maxims illuminate Roman views on a range of topics, from society’s tendency to subvert the law in times of war, to the familiar dictum against gluttony, that we should eat to live, not live to eat.
Grammatica nova: Subjunctive mood; present subjunctive; jussive and purpose clauses.
NSCRPTINS
A Fugitive Slave
TENE ME NE FVGIA • ET • REVO CA ME AD DOMNVM EVVIVENTIVM • IN ARA CALLISTI Ten m n fugia
CIL 15.7193: From a bronze collar pendant worn by a slave of Viventius, with instructions on where to return him in case he is apprehended as a runaway; some scholars suppose the object is from a dog collar, but it is more likely from a slave identification collar, a large number of which, with similar formulaic language, survive from antiquity, some found in Christian catacombs. Such collars were not worn by all slaves but by previous, or likely, off enders.
Bronze slave collar pendant, Rome, Italy, third–fourth century A.D.. (CIL 15.7193). British Museum, London, Great Britain
© The Trustees of the British Museum
revoc (1), to call back, recall; bring back, return; “revoke,” “revocation.”—dominus, -, m., master, lord; “dominate,” “dominion.”—rea, -ae, f., open space, forecourt, courtyard; “area” the rea Callist, known only from this collar tag, has been identified as located near the church of Santa Maria in the Trastevere district of Rome, established in the 3rd cent. A.D.. by the Christian bishop and martyr Callistus.
TWO EPITAPHS:
For Egnatia Florentina
EGNATIA • FLORENTINA H • S • E • S • T • T • L QVOD • PARENTI • FACERE • DEBVIT • FILIA • ID • IMMATVRE • FILIAE FECIT • PATER
Egntia Flrentna h(c) s(ita) e(st); s(it) t(ibi) t(erra) l(evis).
Quod parent facere dbuit flia
id immtr fliae fcit pater.
CIL 2.7.452: Epitaph from a marble stone; late 1st cent. A.D..; Cordoba. The abbreviation HSESTTL was commonly employed in funerary inscriptions. The final two lines of the edited text are in verse, the last being a perfect iambic senarius, the next-to-last somewhat irregular.
situs, -a, -um, stored, deposited; laid in the grave, buried; for hc situs (sita) est, cf. “Flavius Martialis Lies Here” in Capvt XXI; sit tibi terra levis was likewise a standard formula in epitaphs.—immtr, adv., prematurely, too soon, too early; “immature.”
QUAESTINS: The verse couplet exhibits a number of poetic features: identify the most striking sound effects, and also comment on the arrangement parent facere…flia X fliae fcit pater and on how this word order is appropriate to the circumstances of the girl’s death focused upon in the couplet.
And for Gaius Annidienus Marcellus and Ulpia: Urinate Elsewhere!
D M C • ANNIDIENl • MARCELLI C ANNIDIENVS • FREQVENS • EVOC AVG PATRI PIISSIMO ET INCOMPARABILI ET • SIBI • SVISQ • LIB • LIBERTABVSQ • POSTERISQ • EOR VLPIAE M LIB DMOIDI • DIS • MANIB • NE QVIS HIC VRINA FACIAT • EX VISO • NVTRICIS
D(s) m(nibus) G() Annidin Mrcell G(ius) Annidinus Fre
quns, evoc(tus) Aug(ust), patr piissim et incomparbil et sibi susq(ue) lb(erts) lbertbusq(ue) postersq(ue) er(um). Ulpiae M(rc) lb(ertae) D<>mo ds mnib(us). N quis hc rna
CIL 6.3413: Inscription from the tomb of Gaius Annidienus Marcellus, set up by his son Frequens in Rome; the dedication to the elder Annidienus is followed, rather unusually, by a dedication to Ulpia Demotis, who seems to have had some connection to the household. Admonitions against desecrating funeral sites were common—the desecration feared in this instance was unpleasant, but not, apparently, unusual; indeed, other inscriptions contain prohibitions even against defecating at sacred sites.
ds mnibus: if you don’t recall the meaning, see the epitaph of Lucius Annius Octavius Valerianus in Capvt XXII.—voctus, -, m., military officer (originally meaning a recruit, or a soldier called back to service after retirement, the term was later applied to special lieutenants, senior officers, veterans of the praetorian and urban cohorts, etc.); “evoke.”—Augustus, -, m., Augustus, honorific cognomen (= “venerable,” “august”) of Rome’s first emperor, nephew and adoptive son of Julius Caesar, and of subsequent emperors.—piissimus, -a, -um, superl. of pius, -a, -um, dutiful, devoted; “pious,” “piety.”—incomparbilis, -e, beyond comparison, unequalled, matchless; “incomparable.”—sibi: reflexives sometimes refer to the person focused on in a clause, in this case the deceased, and not necessarily to the subject; cf. “Epitaph for a Patron,” Capvt XIII.—lbertus, -, m., freedman, and lberta, -ae, f., dat. and abl. pl. (following the pattern of dea and flia), lbertbus, freedwoman; “libertine.”—posterus, -a, -um, occurring hereafter, later, future; m. pl. as noun, descendants; “posterity” for the formulaic inclusion of the deceased person’s descendants in dedicatory funerary inscriptions, see “Epitaph to His Wives,” in Capvt XXVI.—Dmotidis: the restoration assumes Ulpia’s cognomen was Demotis, from Dmotis, gen. Dmotidis; the relationship of Ulpia to Frequens and his father is unclear.—quis, quid, while generally interrog. (who? what?), is indef. after s, nisi, n, and num, = anyone, anything, someone, something.—rna, -ae, f., urine; “urinate” omission of final -m, as a reflection of actual speech, was common in griffiti, somewhat less so in engraved inscriptions, and so it is bracketed here as an “error.”—vsum,-, n., something seen, appearance; vision, dream.—ntrx, ntrcis, f., child’s nurse, wet-nurse; “nutrient,” “nutrition” the appended phrase ex vs ntrcis would ordinarily suggest that an action was somehow inspired by a dream or vision a person had experienced, but the exact meaning here is unclear: had Ulpia Demotis herself been a nurse in the household?
EXHORTATIONS, GOOD…
God Bless Us!
IC ABITAMVS FELICES NOS DII FACIANT
CIL 4.8670: Graffito from a column (#75) in the colonnade of the Large Palaestra near the amphitheater, Pompeii.
habit (1), to live (in), dwell; “habitat,” “inhabit.” The omitted h- here in (h)c (h)abitmus is not so much a spelling “error” as a reflection of the writer’s pronunciation; h represented a weak breathing sound, or “aspirate,” that was barely pronounced at all by some speakers and commonly omitted in graffiti (cf. the cock-ney dialect of Shaw’s flower girl in Pygmalion, who, before her speech lessons, called her elocution teacher “’Enry’Iggins”).—di: variant spelling for de.
What a Doll!
TV PVPA SIC VALEAS SIC HABEAS VENERE POMPEIANAM PROPYTIA MVNN VVVV T ppa, sc vales, sc habes Venere
CIL 4.4007: Graffito from a column in the peristyle of a Pompeian house on the Vicolo di Paquio Proculo.
ppa, -ae, f., girl; doll; “pupa,” “pupal.”—Venus, Veneris, f., Venus, goddess of grace, charm, love, and lovers; “venereal.”—Pompeinus, -a, -um, resident of Pompeii, Pompeian.—propytiam: variant for propitiam, from propitius, -a, -um, favorably inclined, propitious, well-disposed; “propitiate.”—MVNN: this portion of the graffito, an abbreviation perhaps, is not understood (a reality with many of the graffiti from Pompeii); it may simply be a bit of decorative doodling, along with the VVVV following, though multiple V’s are seen in other inscriptions for a series of “fare thee well’s.”
…AND NOT SO GOOD
No Vote for Barca!
N VEI • BARCA • TABESCAS N(umer) Ve Barca, tbscs!
CIL 4.75: We know from other inscriptions that Numerius Veius Barca was running for the office of duumvir at Pompeii (for the duumvirate, see “Balbus for Mayor,” Capvt V ). The fellow who scribbled this graffito near one of the entrances to the amphitheater was clearly not among his supporters—perhaps he didn’t like the candidate’s “barbaric” name (the cognomen Barca was Punic in origin)!
tbsc, tbscere, tbu, to waste away, dwindle; decompose, rot; “tabescence,” “tabescent” the verb was commonly used in curses, including one in Martial Epig. 12.39 (Capvt XXXI, below).
Go Hang Yourself!
IN CRVCE FIGARVS In cruce fgrus!
CIL 4.2082: Graffito from the Stabian Baths on the Via dell’Abbondanza, Pompeii; references to crucifixion were common in Roman curses.
crux, crucis, f., wooden frame on which criminals were exposed to die, cross; “crux,” “crucify.”—fg, fgere, fx, fxum, to drive in, fix in; fasten, fix, nail; “crucifix,” “transfix” the misspelled personal ending in fgrus, for the regular fgris, is seen elsewhere and reflects a common and perhaps regional pronunciation variant.
Curse graffito from the Stabian Baths, Pompeii, Italy (CIL 4.2082)
Mathew Olkovikas (from CIL)
PRVERBIA ET DICTA
Silent enim lgs inter arma. (Cicero Mil. 4.10: sile, silre, silu, to make no sound, be silent; be inactive, dormant.)
Sla virts praestat gaudium perpetuum, scrum. (Seneca the Younger Ep. 3.27.3: gaudium, -, n., joy, delight.—scrus, -a, -um, free from care, untroubled, safe; “security.”)
Vigils mund sl et lna. (Lucretius Rer. Nat. 5.1437: vigil, vigilis, m., watchman, sentry, guard; “vigil,” “vigilant,” “vigilante.” An example of ELLIPSIS: what form of sum, esse might be supplied?)
Nn vincitur, sed vincit qu cdit sus. (Publilius Sent.: sus, i.e., one’s family and friends.)
fbuls ad facta venimus. (Cicero Rep. 2.4.)
Verba sapientium audiuntur in silenti pls quam clmor prncipis inter stults. (Ecclesiastes 9.17: silentium, -, n., silence.—clmor, clmris, m., shout, shouting; “clamorous,” “exclamation.”)
Sditi cvium hostium est occsi. (Publilius Sent.: sditi, sditinis, f., violent political discord; rebellion, mutiny; internal strife; “sedition.”)
Calamits virttis occsi est. (Seneca Prov. 4.6: calamits, calamittis, f., disaster, ruin, misfortune; “calamitous.”)
Mns et animus et cnsilium et sententia cvittis posita est in lgibus. (Cicero Clu. 53.146.)
Neque mitttis margarts vestrs ante porcs. (Matthew 7.6: margarta, -ae, f., pearl; “Margaret.”—porcus, -, m., pig, swine; “porcine,” “pork.”)
Accustrs mults esse in cvitte tile est, ut met continetur audcia. (Cicero Rosc. Am. 20.55: accstor, accstris, m., prosecutor, accuser; informer.—audcia, -ae, f., daring, audacity.)
Nn ut edam vv, sed ut vvam ed. (Quintilian Inst. 9.3.85: ed, edere, d, sum, to eat; “edible,” “comestible.”—edam vv…vvam ed: the ABBA word order, a device known as CHIASMUS, serves here, as often, to emphasize the contrast.)
LITTERTRA
Some Yummy Comestibles!
Xenia: Cseus Lnnsis: Luna Cheese
Cseus truscae signtus imgine Lnae
praestbit puers prandia mlle tus.
Martial Epig. 13.30: For Martial’s Xenia, 127 couplets designed to accompany holiday gifts, see the notes to “Xenia: Blt” in Capvt XVI. The elder Pliny, in his encyclopedic work titled Historia Naturalis (11.97.241), attests that the northern Etruscan town of Luna (modern Luni) was known for producing huge cheeses, weighing up to 1,000 pounds! Meter: elegiac couplet.
cseus, -, m., cheese; “casein,” “caseinate,” and the word
“cheese” itself.—Lnnsis, -e, of/from Luna.—truscus, -a, -um, of Etruria (region of Italy just north of Rome), Etruscan.—signtus, -a, -um, marked with a stamp; “sign,” “signatory,” “insignia.”—img, imginis, f., picture, likeness, image; “imagine,” “imagination.”—imgine Lnae: a kind of trademark or logo, probably a crescent.—prandium, -, n., midday meal, lunch; “postprandial” (the morning meal, breakfast, was called ientculum and the principal meal, in the evening, was the cna).
Cheese press from Balmuildy Fort, on the Antonine Wall, Scotland, ca. A.D.. 142–165. Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland
© Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, University of Glasgow
Asparags
Asparags siccbis; srsum in calidam summitts; callsirs redds.
Apicius Coq. 3, Cpros (“Kitchen gardener”), 3: Another of Apicius’ sensible and easy recipes, this one from a section of his cookbook dealing with the preparation of vegetables; for Apicius, see “Something Fishy?” in Capvt XIV.