Scribblers, Sculptors and Scribes Page 4

  Grammatica nova: 2nd-declension neuter nouns and adjectives and their uses, including substantives and predicate nouns and adjectives; the present tense indicative of sum.

  NSCRPTINS

  Hands Off!

  CLAVDIO • NON SVM TVA Claudi nn sum tua!

  CIL 12.498: This admonition was inscribed on a lamp, found in a burial on the Esquiline Hill; inscriptions on ceramic and other household items often are written in first person, with the object “speaking” to the viewer, here a “hands off” warning any potential thief! The engraver’s script was rather inelegant, but he thoughtfully provided a punctum.

  Inscription from a lamp, Rome, Italy (CIL 12.498)

  Kay Stanton (from CIL)

  Claudius, -, m., Claudius, a common Roman nomen; while possession was more often indicated by the gen. case, the dat. here can be construed as possessive, also a common construction.

  Marcus Junius Owns Me

  M • IVNI • INSVLA • SVM M(rc) Ini nsula sum.

  CIL 4.4429: Graffito near the entrance to a residence; like the lamp in the preceding inscription, the house addresses the viewer, here any potential visitor. The parentheses in the text here, and throughout this book, indicate expansion of one of the many abbreviations that were common time- and space-savers in Latin inscriptions, including graffiti (see Introduction, above, INTRODVCTIO).

  nsula, -ae, f., island; apartment building, apartment; “insular,” “insulate,” “isolate,” “peninsula.”

  Gladiators Have Sex Appeal!

  SVSPIRIVM Susprium puellrum: Celadus T(h)r(acus).

  PVELLARVM

  CELADVS TR

  CIL 4.4397: Graffito from one of the gladiators’ barracks at Pompeii, and one of numerous such gladiatorial “advertisements” found in this and other cities of the empire.

  susprium, -, n., sigh; a person sighed over, heartthrob; “inspire,” “expire,” “respiratory.”—Celadus, -, m., Celadus (here and below, a popular Pompeian fighter).—Thrcus, -a, -um (or Th raex/Traex, 3rd decl.), from Th race (a country east of Macedonia), Thracian; “Thracian gladiators” were a class of fighters equipped with helmet, greaves, a small shield, and curved sword.

  Terracotta figurines of two gladiators, first–second century A.D.., British Museum, London, Great Britain

  Erich Lessing / Art Resource, NY

  PVELLARVM DECVS Puellrum decus Celadus T(h)r(acus).

  CELADVS TR

  CIL 4.4345: Our same Pompeian heartthrob!

  decus, decoris (3rd decl.), n., high esteem, honor, glory; often = a person who by his presence confers honor or glory on others, glorification; “decor,” “decorous.”—decus Celadus: sc. est; forms of the verb to be, sum, esse, fu, futrum, were frequently omitted in ordinary Lat. speech, because easily understood, a feature of the language known as ELLIPSIS.

  Shoplifters, Watch Out!

  …]VR • CAVE […]ALVM [F]r, cav [m]alum!

  CIL 10.8067: Discovery of two nearly identical inscriptions on what appear to be lead weights at Pompeii make the above restoration certain.

  fr, fris (3rd decl.), m., thief; “furtive,” “furtively.”—cave, cavre, cv, cautum to beware of, avoid; “caveat,” “cautious.”

  And Other Villains Better Watch Out Too!

  CACATOR Cactor, cav malu!

  CAVE • MALV

  CIL 4.3832: A dipinto (pl., dipinti), which, unlike a graffito, was painted on a surface rather than incised; this coarse but commonplace warning was painted on a wall near a latrine along with a picture of two serpents threatening a man defecating.

  cactor, cactris, m., defecator.

  The Joys of Capitalism

  LVCRVM GAVDIVM Lucrum gaudium!

  CIL 10.875: A floor mosaic from Pompeii; for the sentiment, compare “Profit Is Good,” Capvt I.

  lucrum, -, n., material gain, profit; “lucrative.”—gaudium, -, n., joy, delight; “gaudy” sc. est.

  Floor mosaic, Pompeii, Italy (CIL 10.875)

  Robert I. Curtis

  PRVERBIA ET DICTA

  Vcnum habre malum magnum est malum. (Plautus Merc. 764: vcnus,-, m., neighbor; “vicinity.” The entire infin. phrase vcnum habre malum is subj. of est, and magnum malum is PRED. NOM.)

  Bella, horrida bella! (Vergil Aen. 6.86: horridus, -a, -um, rough, harsh; horrible, dreadful; “horridity.”)

  Vir mal nn cgitant idicium. (Proverbs 28.5: idicium, -, n., judgment; “judicial,” “judicious.”)

  Fmam crant mult, pauc cnscientiam. (Publilius Sent.: cr [1], to care for, attend to; heal, cure; care about, worry about.—cnscientia, -ae, f., consciousness, awareness; conscience; “conscientious.”—the ABBA arrangement seen in fmam…mult, pauc cnscientiam is a good example of a rhetorical device known as CHIASMUS, which was commonly employed by Roman writers, as here, to emphasize contrasting ideas.)

  Vrae amcitiae sempiternae sunt. (Cicero Amic. 9.32: amcitia, -ae, f., friendship; “amicable,” “amity.”—sempiternus, -a, -um, perpetual, everlasting, enduring; “sempiternal” cf. the adv. semper.)

  More of Dionysius Cato’s advice to his son (see Capvt II):

  6. Datum serv. (datum, -, n., what has been given, gift, present; “date,” “dative.”)

  7. Fora par. (forum, -, n., forum, marketplace; business; Lat. often used pl. for sg., esp. when generalizing.—par [1] to furnish, provide; prepare, prepare [oneself] for; “preparation.”)

  8. Cum bons ambul. (cum, prep. + abl., with.—ambul [1], to walk; “ambulatory,” “ambulance,” “amble.”)

  9. Isirandum serv. (isirandum, -, n., oath; “jurist,” “abjure.”)

  10. Vn temper. (vnum, -, n., wine; “vine.”—temper [1], to moderate, be moderate [in]; “temper,” “intemperate” supporters of the “Temperance Movement” would have agreed with Cato.)

  LITTERTRA

  Because the modus operand of this book is to present you with only authentic, unadapted, unsimplified Latin, you won’t be reading extensive, formal literary texts until the later chapters, but here’s a snippet from one of the most popular of all classical Latin writers, Martial. (By the way, if you don’t know the English phrase “modus operandi” from your favorite detective novels or television cop shows, look it up in a good dictionary—it’s one of thousands of Latin words and phrases that have come into modern English without any spelling change whatsoever.)

  Martial (like most free Roman males, he had three names—praenomen, nomen, and cognomen—Marcus Valerius Martialis) published between A.D.. 80 and 104 more than 1,500 short but lively poems in 15 volumes titled Epigrammata. These epigrams, many of them just two to eight verses long, are mostly humorous squibs aimed at individuals, real or fictitious and usually named, though typically with pseudonyms and sometimes with punning names—nearly always with a satiric punch line at the end.

  NO KISSES FOR YOU!

  Cr nn bsio t, Philaen? Calva es.

  Cr nn bsio t, Philaen? Rfa es.

  Cr nn bsio t, Philaen? Lusca es.

  Martial Epig. 2.33: The Epigrams are usually referenced, as here, by book and poem number; this poem, targeted at poor Philaenis, had an obscene denouement in its fourth and final verse, which I have dutifully omitted! The striking repetition, the technical term for which is ANAPHORA, was a favorite poetic and rhetorical device, typically used to achieve some sort of emphasis. Meter: hendecasyllabic, an “11-syllable” verse rhythm often employed by Catullus and Martial.

  cr, adv., why?—bsi (1), to kiss. Final - was often shortened in poetry, as here, both to suit the meter and as a reflection of actual speech patterns.—t, pron. (here acc.), you.—Philaenis, Philaenidos, voc. Philaen, f., Philaenis (a Greek female name, hence the case endings are Greek).—calvus, -a, -um, bald.—rfus, -a, -um, red, tawny, red-haired (cf. the name of our Mr. Magoo in Capvt III).—luscus, -a, -um, blind in one eye, one-eyed.

  GRAMMATICA

  Adiectva: Identify each of the predicate adjectives, a very common adjectival usage, in the chapter’s readings. And can you find any substa
ntive adjectives?

  Nmina: Identify the number, gender, case, and case usage of each 1st- and 2nd-declension noun in the readings.

  Verba: Find all the present tense forms of sum, esse, fu, futrum, and identify the person and number. Consult the Summrium Frmrum appendix, if necessary.

  CAPVT V

  Would-be Mayors, a Minor-Leaguer, and a Rebel without a Clue

  The chapter’s readings include some painted “programmata,” campaign notices supporting two candidates for Pompeii’s chief political post of duumvir, two graffiti targeted at a balding ballplayer named Epaphra (yes, the Romans played ballgames!), and a selection of quotable quotes, among them the historian Sallust’s sardonically understated condemnation of the notorious conspirator Catiline as “reasonably eloquent but not very bright.”

  Grammatica nova: The future and imperfect tenses of 1st- and 2nd-conjugation verbs; 1st/ 2nd-declension -er adjectives.

  NSCRPTINS

  Balbus for Mayor…

  BRVTTIVM • BALBVM • II VIR • GEN • R HIC • AERARIVM • CONSERVABIT Bruttium Balbum ((duum))vir(um) Gen(ilis) r(ogat). Hic aerrium cnservbit.

  CIL 4.3702: Electoral notice (programma, pl. programmata) from the wall of an apartment at Pompeii; Genialis is lobbying for election of Bruttius Balbus to political office. Like this one, most electoral programmata from Pompeii were dipinti, i.e., painted not incised. Bruttius had in A.D.. 56–57 held the post of aedile, a commissioner of public works.

  duumvir (duovir), -, m, duumvir; often abbreviated II VIR or II V (in fact, though not so printed in this book, numerals commonly appeared in inscriptions with a line across the top, to distinguish them from abbreviations for other words; e.g., —II VIR); duumvirs were any board of two magistrates performing some political function or specifically, as here, the two chief magistrates in a colony or municipality; the two men shared authority, like the two consuls in Rome.—rog (1), to ask, ask for; in electoral campaigning, ask to elect, ask approval for; “interrogate,” “prerogative.”—hic, pron., this man, he.—aerrium, -, n., treasury, money in the treasury.

  Programmata on wall of the taberna of Asellina, Via dell’Abbondanza, Pompeii, Italy

  Alinari / Art Resource, NY

  QUAESTI: Why in the first sentence does the direct object precede the subject?—think about how you would design a campaign ad.

  …or Maybe Polybius?

  C I POLYBIVM G(ium) I(lium) Polybium ((duum)) vir(um)

  II VIR • OVF (r) v(s) f(acitis).

  CIL 4.7204: Gaius Julius Polybius was another Pompeian with political ambitions; of imperial freedman stock, he had previously also run for aedile.

  Programma from regio I, insula VII, Pompeii, Italy (CIL 4.7204)

  Mathew Olkovikas (from CIL)

  Gius, -, m., Gaius, another common Roman prae nomen, which was ordinarily abbreviated C, for Cius, as the letter C from Greek “gamma” in the early Lat. alphabet represented in certain positions the voiced, hard “G” sound.—r vs facitis, I ask you to make (elect), was a standard formula in these campaign notices, and regularly abbreviated as seen here.

  Give Me a Head with Hair!

  EPAPHRA • GLABER • ES Epaphra, glaber es!

  CIL 4.1816: Graffito from the basilica at Pompeii.

  Epaphra: a man’s name, as is clear from the gender of the adj.—glaber, -bra, -brum, hairless, beardless, smooth, bald; effeminate.

  Strike Three—You’re Out!

  EPAPHRA • PILICREPVS NON • EST Epaphra pilicrepus nn est.

  CIL 4.1926: The man probably was a pilicrepus, despite the hostile chap who scribbled this insult on the basilica at Pompeii; a true fan came along later and marked through the graffito, nearly obscuring it.

  pilicrepus, -, m., ballplayer or ballgame referee/ scorekeeper, from pila, -ae, f., ball. The term is known from a few other sources, both epigraphical (see Capvt X) and literary (Seneca, Ep. 56.1, used the term for someone who came into a game and started counting the balls); one favorite ballgame, called “trigon,” involved three players in a triangular arrangement.

  PRVERBIA ET DICTA

  Vacre culp magnum est slcium. (Cicero Fam. 7.3: vac [1], + abl., to be free [from/ of]; “vacancy,” “vacation.”—slcium, -, n., comfort, relief; “solace,” “consolation” what are the case and grammatical function of slcium here?)

  Domine, adiuv m! (Matthew 15.25: dominus, -, m., master, lord; Lord, God; “dominion.”)

  Hmnum amre est, hmnum autem ignscere est. (Plautus Merc. 319–20: autem, here = sed.—ignsc, ignscere, ignv, igntum to grant pardon to, pardon, forgive.—The infin., as a verbal noun, was treated as n., hence the gender of the pred. adj. hmnum.)

  Verba dat in vents. (Ovid Am. 1.6.42: in + acc., into, against.—ventus, -, m., wind; “vent,” “ventilate.”)

  In oculs animus habitat. (Pliny the Elder HN 11.54.145: habit [1], to live [in], dwell; “inhabit,” “habit.”)

  Satis loquentiae, sapientiae parum. (Sallust Cat. 5.4: loquentia, -ae, f., articulateness, eloquence.—parum, n. indecl. noun, insufficient amount, little, too little; “parvule.”—So the historian Sallust characterized the revolutionary, Lucius Sergius Catilina, who led an aborted coup d’etat and attempt on Cicero’s life that you will read more about later in this book.)

  Tacent: satis laudant. (Terence Eun. 3.2.23: tace, tacre, tacu, tacitum, to be silent; “tacit,” “taciturn.”)

  Vna dabant anims. (Ovid Met. 12.242: vnum, -, n., wine; Lat. poets often used pl. forms where one would normally expect the sg., and vice-versa; “vintner,” “vintage.”)

  Crs crd, hodi nihil. (Varro, title of one of his fragmentary Sat. Men.: crd, crdere, crdid, crditum, a 3rd-conj. verb, as seen from the short -e- stem vowel, to trust (in), believe; “credible,” “creed” the ALLITERATIVE expression crs crd is known from other sources as well, including a floor mosaic at the entrance to a flower shop in Pompeii.)

  Materiam superbat opus. (Ovid Met. 2.5: materia, -ae, f., building material; object of study; subject matter.—opus, operis, n., 3rd decl., work; workmanship; “opus,” “opera,” “operate.”)

  In prncipi erat Verbum et Verbum erat apud Deum et Deus erat Verbum. (John 1.1: prncipium, -, n., beginning; “principal,” “principle.”—apud, prep. + acc., among, in the presence of, with; at the house of.)

  Manuscript page with beginning of St. John’s gospel; eleventh century. From “The Four Gospels, in Latin, of the Vulgate Version,” add. 34890, folio 115. British Library, London, Great Britain

  HIP/ Art Resource, NY

  GRAMMATICA

  Verba: Identify and list all 1st- and 2nd-conjugation verb forms in the readings, identify the tense of each, then transform singulars to plural and plurals to singular. Consult the Summrium Frmrum appendix, if you need help and to check your work.

  Adiectva: Can you find a 1st/ 2nd-declension -er adjective in the readings? Can you decline it in all genders? Consult the Summrium Frmrum.

  CAPVT VI

  Mad Dogs, Bad Politicians, and More “Wisdom of the Ancients”

  Besides a dozen or so ancient proverbs and dicta, including the sage observation that we tend always to see the other guy’s vices and keep our own behind our backs, you’ll read in this chapter a floor mosaic with a commonplace warning, another campaign ad, this one set up by a lady tavern owner, and the text of a dedicatory inscription set up to the emperor Tiberius by his prefect in the province of Judaea, the much maligned Pontius Pltus, Pontius Pilate.

  Grammatica nova: Future and imperfect indicative of sum; present, future, and imperfect indicative of possum; complementary infinitive.

  NSCRPTINS

  Watch Out—He Bites!

  CAVE CANEM Cav canem!

  CIL 10.877: Floor mosaic from the entrance of the House of the Tragic Poet at Pompeii; comparable mosaics are found elsewhere. The Roman satirist Petronius, in Sat. 29, describes a mural at the door to a Roman house similarly labeled: see the passage in Capvt XXIII below.

  Floor mosaic from t
he House of the Tragic Poet, Pompeii, Italy (CIL 10.877)

  CAPVT VI Scala / Art Resource, NY

  cavo, cavre, cv, cautum, to take precautions, be on one’s guard, beware (of); “caveat,” “precaution.”—canis, canis, m./ f., dog; “canine” though you may not yet have been introduced to 3rd-decl. nouns like this one, both context and the ending -m clearly signal the noun’s function here.