ratas utraque diva preces.
Bella diu tenuere viros: erat aptior ensis
Vomere: cedebat taurus arator equo.
Sarcula cessabant, versique in pila ligones,
Factaque de rastri pondere cassis erat. 700
Gratia dîs domuique tuae! religata catenis
Jampridem nostro sub pede bella jacent.
Sub juga bos veniat, sub terras semen aratas.
Pax Cererem nutrit: pacis alumna Ceres.
At quae venturas praecedet sexta Kalendas, 705
Hac sunt Ledaeis templa dicata deis.
Fratribus illa deis fratres de gente deorum
Circa Juturnae composuere lacus.
Ipsum nos carmen deducit Pacis ad aram.
Haec erit a mensis fine secunda dies. 710
Frondibus Actiacis comptos redimita capillos
Pax ades, et toto mitis in orbe mane.
Dum desunt hostes, desit quoque causa triumphi.
Tu ducibus bello gloria major eris.
Sola gerat miles, qnibus arma coërceat, arma, 715
Canteturque fera, nil nisi pompa, tuba,
Horreat aeneadas et primus et ultimus orbis:
Si qua parum Romam terra timebit, amet.
Tura, sacerdotes, pacalibus addite flammis,
Albaque percussa victima fronte cadat: 720
Utque domus, quae praestat eam, cum pace perennet,
Ad pia propensos vota rogate deos.
Sed jam prima mei pars est exacta laboris,
Cumque suo finem mense libellus habe.
1. Tempora in Virgil. (Ecl. iii. 42. Geor. i. 257,) is the seasons, here it denotes the festivals and other remarkable days of the year.– Latium, adj. Latin, Latius annus is the solar year.
2. Lapsa ortaque signa. The subject of the poem is the Roman festivals, and the rising and setting of the constellations. See Introduction, § 1.
3. Caesar Germ, son of Drusus Claudius Nero, and nephew of Tiberius, by whom he was adopted at the desire of Augustus. See Tacit. Annal II. 73. Suet. Calig. 1-4.—Pacato vultu, etc. as if he were a deity.
5. Heinsius and Burmann, following some of the best MSS. read officii … In tibi devoto munere, which gives a good sense. Lenz, Mitscherlich and Krebs, prefer the present reading.
7, 8. See Introd. § 4.
9. Vobis, your family, i.e. the Claudii, or rather the Julii, into which he had been adopted.
10. Pater, Tiberius; avus, Augustus, who had adopted Tiberius.
11. Germanicus and his brother, the poet says, will perform actions and receive honors similar to those of Augustus and Tiberius. Drusus was the son of Tiberius; and therefore, only the adoptive brother of Germanicus. —Pictos. the Fasti, were like all other books, adorned with various colours.
13. Aras. The altars dedicated by Augustus, perhaps the altars raised to him, Hor. Ep. II. 1. 15. The following line shows the former sense to be preferable.
15-20. All the terms annue, etc. used here, are such as would be addressed to a deity.—Laudes, praiseworthy deeds.—Tuorum, like vobis, v. 9.—Pagina for liber.—Movetur scil; with awe. He personifies the book.—Clario Deo. There was a celebrated oracle of the Clarian Apollo, near Colophon, in Asia Minor, which Germanicus himself once consulted. Tac. Annal. xii. 22.
21, 22. Germanicus had pleaded causes publicly with success, Suet. Cal. 4. Dion. 56. 26.
23-25. He had written Greek comedies, Suet, ut sup. He also made a version of Aratus which is still extant,
26. Totus annus, i. e. the whole poem on the year.
27. Tempora, the parts of the year, i. e. months and days.—Cond. urb. Romulus.
28. See Introd. § 2.
33, 34. That is ten lunar months.
35, 35. This is putting the effect for the cause, the mourning was for ten months, because that was the length of the original year.—Tristia signa, the signs of grief, such as avoiding society, wearing mourning, &c.
37. Trabeati, Romulus wore the trabea. Liv. I. 8.
38. Populis, i. e. civibus.—Annua jura daret, i.e. regulated the year, v. 27.
40. Princeps head or origin. Venus was the mother of aeneas, Mars the father of Romulus.
41. See the beginning of Books III and IV.
42. Quinctilis, Sextilis, September, &c.
43. Nec avitas, see below II. 19. et seq.
45-62. See Introd. § 3.
50. Qui jam, &c. a half holiday, the latter part of the day might be devoted to business.
52. Honoratus, as bearing office. It was applied with peculiar propriety to the Praetor whose edicts were called the Jus honorarium.
53. The Dies comitiales on which cum populo licebat agi, i. e. laws might be proposed, &c.—Septis the wooden palings, within which the people were assembled in the Campus Martius, to pass laws.
54. The Nundinae. Every ninth day the country people came into Rome to attend the market. By the Hortensian law, these days were made fasti in order that their rustic disputes might be settled.
55. On all the Kalends the Pontifex Minor and the Regina Sacrorum sacrificed to Juno who was by some regarded as the moon. For the name Juno see my Mythology, p. 461.—Junonis, Heinsius would read Junonia.
56. A sacrifice of a lamb was offered on the Capitol to Jupiter on the Ides of each month.
57. The Nones were not under the care of any deity.
57-60. The days following the Kalends, Nones and Ides were termed Atri, black or unlucky, as on these days, the Romans had met with their most memorable defeats at the Cremera, the Allia, and elsewhere. A public calamity on any particular day of any one month rendered ater, that day in every other month.
61, 62. I say it once for all.
63. For the mythology of Janus, see Mythology, p. 466, et seq.
65. An. tac lab. denotes the noiseless pace of time.—Origo as the year began with January.
66. See his figure. Mythology, Plate xii. 4.
67. Ducibus, perhaps Tib. and Germ, after the victory gained by the latter over the Catti and Cherusci, and other German tribes, A.U.C. 770; it may, however, include Augustus and other generals.
68. Terra ferax, the [Greek: zeidoros arera] of Homer.
69. Tuis, Burmann would read tui as it seems awkward to say the Patres Jani and the Populus Quirini. Quirinus was a name of Janus (Janum Quirinum ter clusit Suet. Aug. 22.) and Gierig thinks the true reading might have been Quirine. After all it was perhaps the constraint of the metre that made the poet express himself thus.
70. Candida templa, either as being built of marble, or on account of those who frequented them on festival days, being clad in white. Gierig inclines to the latter, I should prefer the former sense.
71. Lin. anim. fav. [Greek: euphaemeite] by using no words of ill omen and by admitting no thoughts but what were good.
75. Odor. ig. with the frankincense, cinnamon, saffron, &c. which were