I’m Hungry!
QVISQVE ME • AD CENAM
VOCARIT V Quisque m ad cnam vocrit, v(aleat)!
CIL 4.1937: Graffito from the basilica, on the Via Marina, Pompeii.
quisque: here, as often, = quisquis.—vocrit: variant for vocverit; in a common sort of contraction, “intervocalic” v, i.e. v positioned between two vowels, was commonly dropped, along with the following vowel, in both pronunciation and spelling.
“NOT YOURS,” SAID THE POT!
Shoplifters, Beware
NOLI ME
TOLLERE
HELVEITI • SVM Nl m tollere: Helvit sum.
CIL 12.2376: Both this warning and the next were found on vases, this one on the foot of a vessel from Rome and belonging to Helvetius (whose name, here in the genitive case, the scribe has misspelled). In both inscriptions the pot itself “addresses” the viewer—and would-be thief: compare “Hands Off” in Capvt IV.
QUAESTI: How would the genitive of Helvetius’ name ordinarily be spelled in classical Latin?
Touch Me Not!
EPAPHRODITI SVM TANGERE ME NOLI Epaphrodt sum—tangere m nl!
CIL 4.6251: On the belly of a vase at Pompeii—clearly one its owner Epaphroditus treasured!
PRVERBIA ET DICTA
Bene dormit, qu nn sentit quam male dormiat. (Publilius Sent.)
Nsse volunt omns; mercdem solvere nm. (Juvenal Sat. 7.157: nsse: contracted form of nvisse, from nsc, nscere, nv, ntum, to get to know, learn; the perf. forms often, as here, have pres. force; “cognition,” “recognize.”—mercs, mercdis, f., payment, wage, fee; “merchandise,” “merchant.”—solv, solvere, solv, soltum, to loosen, untie; pay; “solution,” “dissolve,” “insolvent.”)
Quis dves?—qu nl cupiet. Quis pauper?—avrus. (Pseudo-Ausonius Sept. Sap. 1.1.3: nl = nihil.)
S vs amr, am! (Seneca Ep. 9.6.)
Humilis nec alt cadere nec graviter potest. (Publilius Sent.: alt, adv., high, far; “altitude,” “altimeter.”—graviter, adv., heavily; violently, harmfully; “gravely,” “grievously.” Cf. the Eng. maxim, “The bigger they are, the harder they fall.”)
Idem velle atque idem nlle, ea dmum frma amcitia est. (Sallust Cat. 20.4: dmum, adv., at last, in the end; alone, only.—frmus, -a, -um, firm, strong; reliable; “affirm,” “confirm.”)
Cum s ipse vincit, sapins minim vincitur. (Publilius Sent.)
Dummodo sit dves, barbarus ipse placet. (Ovid Ars. Am. 2.276: place, placre, placu, placitum, + dat., to be pleasing [to], please; “placid,” “placate.”)
Facile omns, cum valmus, rcta cnsilia aegrots damus. (Terence An. 309: rctus, -a, -um, straight, direct; proper, right; “rectitude,” “correct.”—aegrtus, -a, -um, physically ill, sick, diseased.)
Inop beneficium bis dat, qu dat celeriter. (Publilius Sent.: inops, gen. inopis, poor, needy.—bis, adv., twice (as much).—celeriter, adv., swift ly, quickly; “celerity,” “accelerate.”)
Male facere qu vult, numquam nn causam invenit. (Publilius Sent.: numquam nn: a double negative, essentially = semper.)
Etiam proxim su pauper odisus erit; amc vr dvitum mult. (Proverbs 14.20: proximus, -, m., neighbor; close relative; friend; “proximity,” “approximate.”—odisus, -a, -um, distasteful, off ensive; “odious.”—amc…mult: sc. sunt or erunt.)
Nlte idicre ut nn idicmin. (Matthew 7.1: idic [1], to judge, consider; “judicial,” “adjudicate.”)
Nlte idicre et nn idicbimin nlte condemnre et nn condemnbimin dmittite et dmittmin date et dabitur vbs. (Luke 6.37–38: condemn [1], to condemn; blame, censure; “condemnation.”—dmitt, dmittere, dms, dmissum, to send away, dismiss; disregard, forgive; let go, drop.)
Qur sit summa in ire dcend sevrits, dummodo ea n varitur grti sed cnservtur aequbilis. (Cicero Q. Fr. 1.1.20: in ire dcend: in speaking of the law = in your judicial decisions.—sevrits, sevrittis, f., sternness, strictness; “severity.”—vari [1], to vary, alter, change; “variation.”—grti: ABL. OF CAUSE.—aequbilis, -e, equal; equitable, fair, just; “equity.”)
LITTER TRA
FIVE ELEGIACS BY MARTIAL
Plagiarize Me, for a Fee!
Fma refert nostrs t, Fdentne, libells
nn aliter popul quam recitre tus.
S mea vs dc, grts tibi carmina mittam:
s dc tua vs, hoc eme, n mea sint.
Epig. 1.29: Martial expressed a related complaint about this same Fidentinus (his name, inappropriately in this context, means “Trusty”!) in 1.38, Quem recits meus est, Fdentne, libellus; / sed male cum recits, incipit esse tuus.
aliter, adv., otherwise, differently; “alien” nn aliter…quam, i.e., “just as if (they were).”—mea…dc: = ea (carmina) dc mea.—hoc: i.e., his poetry book, or the rights to the book.—em, emere, m, mptum, to buy, purchase; “redeem,” “redemption,” “caveat emptor.”
No Kisses!
Bsia ds alis, alis ds, Postume, dextram.
Dcis, “Utrum mvs?—lige.” Mlo manum.
Epig. 2.21: Postumus had two modes of greeting acquaintances.
lig, ligere, lg, lctum, to pull out; select, choose; “elect.”—mlo: as noted before, final - was often shortened in verse for metrical reasons, and as a reflection of ordinary speech.
QUAESTI: What is the term for the device of word order employed in the opening verse, and how is it especially effective here?
Chateau Mouton Rothschild, or Boone’s Farm?
Veientna mih miscs, tibi Massica pnis:
olfacere haec ml pcula quam bibere.
Epig. 3.49: We know from other sources as well of stingy hosts who poured fine wine for themselves and an inferior vintage for guests; some “ranked” their dinner guests and provided better food and drink for those more esteemed, a practice condemned by Martial, Juvenal, and Pliny the Younger.
So-called “cup of the emperor Augustus,” silver, Boscoreale, Italy, early first century A.D.. Louvre, Paris, France
Erich Lessing / Art Resource, NY
Veientnum, -, n., Veientan (wine), wine of inferior quality produced at Veii, an Etruscan city north of Rome.—mih: the final -i of this word was pronounced variously long or short.—miscs: wine was customarily mixed with water, though some drank it “neat” (merum).—Massicum, -, n., Massic (wine), named for Mount Massicus in Campania, which was famous for the quality of its wines.—olfaci, olfacere, olfc, olfactum, to detect the odor of, smell, sniff; “olfactory.”—pculum, -, n., drinking vessel, cup, bowl; “potable,” “potion.”
QUAESTINS: To which wine does haec refer?—to which pcula? (Think about the diff erence of meaning between the demonstratives ille and hic in a sentence.) Comment on the effect of the word order in the second verse, especially the positioning of the infinitives.
Promises, Promises!
Omnia prmittis, cum tt nocte bibist
mne nihil praests. Pollio, mne bibe!
Epig. 12.12: In vn vrits was clearly not Pollio’s motto!
mne, adv. and indecl. noun, early in the day, (in) the morning.
My Apophorta: Good Bathroom Reading?
Qu vs cumque loc potes hunc fnre libellum:
versibus explicitum est omne dubus opus.
Lemmata s quaeris cr sint ascrpta, docb:
ut, s mluers, lemmata sla legs.
Epig. 14.2: Second of two poems introducing Martial’s Apophoreta, his collection of two-line “party favor” epigrams (see notes to “Apophorta: Locul Ligne,” Capvt VII); Martial jokingly explains why each couplet has a title (as individual short poems typically did not).
qucumque, quaecumque, quodcumque, indef. adj., often written as two separate words and, as here, separated, whoever, whatever, any…that.—fni, fnre, fnv, fntum, to define a boundary; stop, finish; “final,” “infinite.”—explic, explicre, explicv (explicu), explictum (explicitum), to unfold; complete, accomplish; “explicate,” “explicit,” “inexplicable.”—omne…opus: i.e., each individual little poem.—lemma, lemmatis, n., title; “lemma.”—ascrb, ascrbere, ascrps, ascrptum, to write in addi
tion, insert, add; assign; “ascribe.”
The Dog and His Reflection: Canis per Fluvium Carnem Ferns
mittit merit proprium qu alinum adpetit.
Canis, per fluvium carnem cum ferret, natns
lymphrum in specul vdit simulacrum suum,
aliamque praedam ab alter ferr putns,
ripere voluit; vrum dcepta avidits
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et quem tenbat re dmsit cibum,
nec quem petbat ade potuit tangere.
Phaedrus Fab. 1.4: For Phaedrus, see Capvt XXII; like many of the fables, this one (a perennial favorite) begins with the “moral” lesson, then follows with an illustrative exemplum. Meter: iambic trimeter.
canis, canis, m./ f., dog; “canine.”—fluvius, -, m., stream, river; “fluvial,” “confluence.”—car, carnis, f., flesh (of animals), meat; “carnivore,” “carnival.”—merit, adv., deservedly, rightly; “merited,” “demerit.”—proprius, -a, -um, one’s own, peculiar, proper, personal; “property,” “expropriate.”—alinus, -a, -um, belonging to another (alius); foreign, alien; “alienate.”—appet (adpet), appetere, appetv, appettum, to try to reach, seek (to obtain); “appetite.”—nat (1), to swim; “natatorium.”—lympha, -ae, f., water nymph; water (often pl. with sg. sense); “lymph,” “lymphatic.”—speculum, -, n., mirror; reflective surface; “speculum,” “speculate.”—simulacrum, -, n., likeness, image; “simulate.”—praeda, -ae, f., booty, plunder; prey; “depredation.”—vrum, conj., but, however.—dcipi, dcipere, dcp, dceptum, to deceive, trick, disappoint; “deception” with dcepta here sc. est, a common type of ELLIPSIS.—avidits, avidittis, f., greed; appetite, hunger; “avid,” “avidity.”—cibus, -, m., food.—ade, adv., to the point; to such an extent; moreover, besides.
Roman copy of a Hellenistic marble bust, once popularly identified as “Aesop,” second century A.D.. Museo di Villa Albani, Rome, Italy
Alinari / Art Resource, NY
Hannibal Vows Eternal Enmity with Rome
“Pater meus,” inquit, “Hamilcar puerul m, utpote nn amplius VIIII anns nt, in Hispniam impertor proficscns Carthgine, Iov Optim Maxim hostis immolvit. Quae dvna rs dum cnficibtur, quaesvit m vellemne scum in castra proficsc. Id cum libenter accpissem atque ab e petere coepissem n dubitret dcere, tum ille ‘Faciam,’ inquit, ‘s mihi fidem, quam postul, dederis.’ Simul m ad ram addxit, apud quam sacrificre nstituerat, eamque cters remts tenentem irre iussit numquam m in amciti cum Rmns fore. Id ego isirandum patr datum usque ad hanc aettem ita cnservv ut nmin dubium esse debeat qun reliqu tempore edem mente sim futrus.”
Nepos Hann. 2.3–5: Cornelius Nepos (ca. 100–24 B.C.) composed brief biographies of famous military leaders and other notable figures, including Cato the Elder and Cicero’s close friend Atticus, more than two dozen of which have survived and retained a degree of popularity, not least because of their relatively easy Latin; the poet Catullus, a younger contemporary, so admired Nepos’ scholarship that he dedicated his poetry to him (Catullus Carm. 1.3). In the passage presented here, Hannibal, son of Hamilcar Barca and Carthaginian commander in the 2nd Punic War (218–201 B.C.), explains to the Seleucid king Antiochus III (“the Great”) the origins of his hatred of the Romans.
puerulus, -, m., little boy, young boy, DIMINUTIVE of puer; “puerile,” “puerility.”—utpote: here simply = ut, as.—amplius, adv., greater, more; “ample.”—VIIII: a common alternate for IX.—anns: ACC. OF DURATION OF TIME, for….—ntus, -a, -um, born (partic. of DEPONENT VERB nscor), here modifying puerul m “nativity,” “pre natal” Eng. idiom for VIIII anns nt would simply be “9 years old.”—Hispnia, -ae, f., Spain; “Hispanic.”—proficscns: pres. partic. of the DEPONENT proficscor, = setting forth, starting out; “proficient.”—Carthgine: sc. ex; prepositions were routinely omitted with the names of cities (and small islands).—Iuppiter, Iovis, m., Jupiter, Jove; “jovial,” “Jovian” often ritually addressed as Jupiter Optimus Maximus (see “To Jupiter Optimus Maximus,” Capvt XXVII).—hostia, -ae, f., sacrificial animal.—immol (1), to off er (a victim) in sacrifice; “immolation.”—quae: = haec; a rel. pron. was often employed to refer to an antecedent in a previous sentence (here the sacrificial ritual), where in Eng. we would use a demonstrative.—dvnus, -a, -um, divine, sacred.—cnfici, cnficere, cnfc, cnfectum, to do, perform; complete, conclude; consume, wear out; destroy, kill; “confection.”—castra, -rum, n. pl., fortified camp; side (in a conflict); “castle.”—proficsc: pres. infin. of proficscor, = to set forth.—libenter, adv., with pleasure, gladly; “libido.”—n dubitret: JUSSIVE NOUN CLAUSE, dependent on petere, = that he not… or not to….—postul (1), to ask for, demand “postulate,” “expostulate.”—simul, adv., in company, together; at the same time, at once; as soon as; “simultaneous.”—ra, -ae, f., altar.—addc, addcere, addx, adductum, to lead to; “adduce.”—sacrific (1), to perform a sacrifice; “sacrificial.”—nstitu, nstituere, nstitt, nstittum, to set up, establish; set about, begin; “institute,” “institution.”—remove, removre, remv, remtum, to move back, move away, remove; “remote.”—ir (1), to take an oath, swear; “abjure,” “perjure.”—fore: = futrum esse.—isirandum, -, n., oath; “perjury.”—dubium, -, n., doubt, uncertainty; “dubious,” “indubitable.”—qun, conj., (but) that; + subjunct. in a DOUBT CLAUSE, introduced by dubium and any negative word, e.g., nn fuit dubium qun, there was not a doubt that….—reliquus, -a, -um, the rest of, the remaining; “relic,” “relinquish.”—edem mente: ABL. OF DESCRIPTION, of the….—sim futrus: FUT. ACT. PERIPHRASTIC, a construction used, since Lat. had no actual fut. subjunct., to unambiguously indicate fut. action in a subjunct. clause.
Johann Heinrich Schoenfeld (1609–1682/83), “The Oath of Hannibal.” Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Nuremberg, Germany
Scala / Art Resource, NY
GRAMMATICA
Verba: Identify and list all forms of the irregular verbs vol, nl, and ml in the chapter’s readings and then transform the singulars to plural and the plurals to singular, checking your work in the Summrium Frmrum appendix. Identify each proviso clause and the specific type of each cum clause.
Adverbia (“adverbs”): List all the positive degree adverbs that you recognize as based on adjectives, and then give their comparative and superlative degree forms.
CAPVT XXXIII
Kitchen Tricks, a Sober King, and Carrying Coals to Newcastle
In this chapter you’ll read two lovers’ “fiery” graffiti, a Roman matron’s poetic memorial to her brother, and a husband’s epitaph for his wife of two weeks. You’ll also read proverbs on fortune good and bad, the humanity of slaves, and the price to be paid for slandering others, as well as Martial’s defense of his risque verse, more of Apicius’ culinary tricks of the trade, an anecdote on Romulus’ sobriety, and Florus’ remarks on the vast extent of the Roman empire. As always, read each text for comprehension before attempting an English translation.
Grammatica nova: Conditional sentences.
NSCRPTINS
TWO LOVERS’ GRAFFITI
A Woman Hurries Her Driver
AMORIS IGNES SI SENTIRES MVLIO MAGI PROPERARES VT VIDERES VENEREM DILIGO IVVENEM VENVSTVM ROGO PVNGE IAMVS BIBISTI IAMVS PRENDE LORA ET EXCVTE POMPEIOS DEFER VBI DVLCIS EST AMOR MEVS ES […
Amris igns s sentrs, mli,
magi properrs, ut vidrs Venerem.
Dlig iuvenem venustum: rog, punge, imus.
Bibist: imus; prnde lra et excute,
Pompeis dfer, ubi dulcis est amor.
Meus es […].
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CIL 4.5092: A nicely crafted verse graffito from the House of Poppaeus Sabinus, on the Via di Nola, at Pompeii, composed by a woman (?) and expressing her eagerness to visit her lover; meter: iambic senarii.
mli, mlinis, m., mule-driver, muleteer; from mlus, -, mule.—magis, adv., more, rather; “magistracy” final -s was often omitted in speech and, hence, also in graffiti.—proper (1), to act with haste, hurry; be in a hurry.—Venus, Veneris, f., Venus, the goddess of sexual love; sex, romance;
for the usage here, cf. “Bathe, Drink, and Be Merry,” Capvt XXXI.—iuvenis, iuvenis, m./ f., young person, youth; “juvenile” the author originally wrote puerum, then (as seen in the accompanying drawing) marked through that word and substituted the metrically equivalent iuvenem just above it, considering it for one reason or another a better choice: imagine watching this writer in Pompeii, not just neatly lettering her poem on this building wall but even rethinking and revising it in the process!—venustus, -a, -um, an adj. from Venus, = attractive, charming; “venereal,” “venery” Venustus was sometimes used as a cognomen, but is not so interpreted here.—pung, pungere, pupug, pnctum, to pierce, puncture, sting; jab, poke; goad, spur on; “pungent,” “punctuate.”—imus: alternate spelling of emus, pres. subjunct. of the irreg. verb e, re, to go.—prehend (prnd), prehendere, prehend, prehnsum, to take hold of, grasp, seize; “prehensile,” “apprehend,” “comprehend.”—lrum, -, n., leather strap; rein.—excuti, excutere, excuss, excussum, to shake (out); “percussion,” “concussion.”—Pompe(i), -rum, m. pl., Pompeii; here ACC. OF PLACE TO WHICH, which, with city names, was commonly construed without a preposition.—dfer, dferre, dtul, dltum, to carry, convey, transport; “deferral” with dfer here sc. m.
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