ELEGY XXIII. In this clever little poem Propertius laments the loss of his tablets, and offers a reward for their recovery. V. 5. Puellas, vulgo; puellam, Kuinoel and Lachmann. ELEGY XXIV. The poet renounces Cynthia. V. 2. Oculis-meis. Cf. Ov. Her., xvii. 125: Contenta est oculis hominum mea forma probari. V. 7, 8. Cf. iii. 9, 26; and see note. V. 15. Ecce coronatae portum tetigere carinae. Ceu pressae cum jam portum tetigere carinae, V. 20. Exciderunt, Mueller; exciderant, multi; exciderint, alii. Farewell to Cynthia. ELEGY XXV. V. 4. Ungue-morso. Cf. ii. 4, 3. V. 15: Exclusa, inque vicem fastus patiare superbos Cf. Ov. A. A., iii. 69, 70:— Tempus erit, quo tu, quae nunc excludis amantes, BOOK V. ELEGY I. The first half of this elegy (vv. 1-70) seems to have been designed by Propertius as an introduction to a work of an archæological and legendary character, in imitation of the Aria of Callimachus, and similar to what we have in the 'Fasti' of Ovid. After a few brilliant efforts-the second, fourth, ninth, and tenth elegies, infra, ―he seems to have relinquished the task, and to have added at a later period vv. 71-150 to the present elegy, as an excuse for devoting himself to the cultivation of a different field of poetry. In the first portion of the piece the poet gives a spirited description of early Rome; in the second, the persona loquens is a Babylonian seer, who dissuades Propertius from engaging in a work which he assures him is beyond his powers and ill-suited to his genius. But for this latter portion we should have been in utter ignorance of the early life, training, and personal history of the poet. V. 3. Navali Phoebo. "Actian Apollo." See v. 6, passim; and iii. 23, and notes thereon. V. 4. Evandri-boves. See the story in Ov. Fast., i. 471, sq. V. 7. Tarpeius-pater. "The temple of Jupiter Tonans on the Tarpeian rock had not yet been erected." V. 8. Advena. Cf. Ov. Fast., ii. 68; iii. 524; v. 268. V. 9. Domus-Remi. Commonly called "Casa Romuli." V. 11. Curia. There was no proper Curia before the one erected by Tullus Hostilius. A new one was built by Augustus on a different site. V. 13. Bucina. Originally a horn made from a sea-shell, used by neat-herds to collect their droves. V. 19. Annuaque : que (after the negative in v. 17) = sed. Paley erroneously renders it "or." Parilia. See v. 4, 73, and note. V. 20. Curto-equo. The "October" horse. See Art. Palilia in Smith's 'Dict. of Gr. and Rom. Antiquities.' V. 21. Coronatis-asellis. Cf. Ov. Fast., vi. 311, 312. V. 23. Parva-compita. Alluding to the simplicity with which the festival of the Compitalia was celebrated in early times. V. 26. Fabius-Lupercus. The priests of Lupercus were called Fabii and Quintilii, after the gens of the founders of the respective orders. V. 29. Lycmo, Lycmon, Lygmon, Lucmo, Lucumo (cf. Lycomedius, v. 2, 51), are different forms of an Etruscan term originally signifying "one possessed" or "inspired;" afterwards a "prince" or "priest." V. 31. The original tribes, the Tities, Ramnes, and Luceres. V. 33-36. As these verses are utterly unintelligible as they stand in the ordinary editions, I have followed Mueller's reconstruction of them, and admitted Lachmann's conjecture, eminus for minus, in v. 33: Quippe suburbanae parva eminus urbe Bovillae Et stetit Alba potens, albae suis omine nata, V. 51. Pergameae-vatis. "Cassandra." V. 52. I have followed Mueller in placing vv. 87, 88, after v. 52. V. 57. Moenia namque pio conor disponere versu (vulgo). Munere namque pio conor disponere versus (Mueller). V. 61. Ennius. See iv. 3, 6, and note thereto. V. 62. Bacche. Cf. iv. 2, 7; v. 6, 76. V. 64. Callimachi. Cf. iv. I, I; iv. 9, 43. V. 73. At certis lacrimis cantas, Munro; aversis lacrimis, Mueller; aversis Charisin, the conjecture of Heinsius, adopted by Barth, Kuinoel, Paley, and Wratislaw; Aversis Musis, Jacob, Haupt, and Keil; arcessis lacrimis Charites, Scaliger; accersis lacrimis, Naples MS.; arcessis lacrimis, Gron. MS. V. 75. Haut (or haud), Jacob, Haupt, Keil, Mueller, Wratislaw; aut, Barth, Kuinoel, Lachmann, Paley. V. 86. Lotus, most editors; laetus, Barth and Kuinoel. V. 101. Facite, most editors; facito (Burmann's conjecture), Mueller and Paley. V. 103. Harenosum Libyae Jovis antrum. "The sand-circled grotto of Jupiter Ammon in Libya." V. 109. Calchas. A famous soothsayer, and high priest of the Greeks before Troy. Aulide: Aulis, a sea-port in Boeotia, where the Greeks were detained by contrary winds till Agamemnon, at the bidding of Calchas, consented to the sacrifice of his daughter Iphigenia. Cf. iv. 7, 23, 24. V. 114. Euboicos-sinus. Cf. iv. 7, 39; and see note. V. 117. Ajax, son of Oileus, ravished Cassandra in the temple of 'Minerva, though she clung to the statue of the goddess for refuge. V. 121, sq. The allusions in the remaining lines of this poem are discussed at length in the Life of Propertius, ante. V. 125. Asisi, recent editors; Asis and axis, MSS.; arcis, Barth and Kuinoel. V. 143. Illius arbitrio noctem lucemque videbis. Paley compares i. 5, 11. Wratislaw very happily explains the verse : "You will say black is white and white black.” V. 150. Cancri. Alluding to the horoscope of Cynthia, whose grasping and avaricious disposition caused so much grief to the poet. ELEGY II. The origin and attributes of the god Vertumnus. Cf. with this poem passim, Ov. Met., xiv. 641, sq. V. 2. Vertumni. Vertumnus (from vertomenus, an old participle of verto; like Auctumnus, from auctomenus), the god of the changing year. The different etymologies given in the elegy are verto, amnis, v. 10; verto, annus, v. 12; verti in omnes, vv. 21-48; vertere omnes (in fugam), v. 54. V. 4. Volsinios. Volsinii, a city in Etruria. The form Volsanos, which Barth, Lachmann, and Paley adopt, seems to have the best MS. authority. V. 11. Praecepimus, vulgo; praecerpimus, Mueller. V. 17. Pomosa-corona. "With an apple-crown." clear whether of blossoms or fruit. It is not V. 33. Harundine. "The fowling-rod." Cf. calamus, iv. 13, 46. V. 39. Pastorem ad baculum possum curare, MSS., Barth, Keil, Haupt, Mueller; pastor me—curvare, Kuinoel and Paley; pastorem ad baculum curvare (=curvum pastorem agere), Wratislaw; pastor ego et baculum possum rurale, Lachmann. V. 51. Lycomedius, most editors; Lucumonius, Kuinoel, Lach mann. The allusion is to the aid given to the Romans against the Sabines by the Tuscans under Caeles Vibenna. V. 61. Mamurius Veturius was a famous modeller in the reign of Numa Pompilius. ELEGY III. Epistle from Arethusa to Lycotas. See on iv. 12, supra. 2. Munito-equo, "with V. 3, 4. Si-meis. Cf. Ov. Her., iii. 3, 4; xi. I, V. 6. Mueller marks this verse as corrupt. V. 7. Neuricus, vulgo; Noricus, Keil. mail-clad steed." Cf. iv. 12, 12; and see note thereon. V. 9. Getae. A Thracian tribe on the Danube. V. 10. Eoae decolor—aquae, Munro; Eoa decolor—aqua, Lachmann; Eoa discolor-aqua, Haupt, Keil, Paley, Wratislaw; Eoo decolor-equo, Barth, Kuinoel, Mueller. V. II. Hae pactae sunt mihi noctes, vulgo; et pactae, &c., Keil and Wratislaw. For sunt mihi, Mueller reads gaudia; Haupt, in savia. V. 17. Portis. The city gates where the Lares Viales were worshipped (Hertzberg). V. 18. Texitur haec castris quarta lacerna tuis. Cf. Ov. Fast., ii. 745, 746. V. 21. Ocno. See Pausan., lib. x. cap. 29; and Plin. Nat. Hist., XXXV. II. V. 37. Conor, Hertzberg and Paley; cogor, vulgo. V. 43. Hippolyte, queen of the Amazons. V. 45. Romanis-puellis. Cf. ii. 7, 15. V. 46. Essem militiae sarcina fida tuae. Cf. Ov. Her., iii. 68. V. 48. Africus, most editors, with the MSS.; Aetheris, Mueller, who takes Pater = Jupiter; Arctoo, Lachmann; Tetricus, Haupt. V. 51. I have followed the early editors in the punctuation of this verse. V. 54. Clausos-Lares. the Lararium. The Lares were kept in a closet called V. 60. Tangi-mero. If a lamp sputtered, wine was dropped on the wick to secure a favourable omen. V. 66. Versis—equis. Cf. iii. 1, 13; and see note thereon. |