RIDDLE POSTS BY ARCHIVE DATE: NOV 2020

Bern Riddle 1: De olla

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Thu 26 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 1: De olla
Original text:
Ego nata duos patres habere dinoscor:
Prior semper manet; alter, qui vita finitur.
Tertia me mater duram mollescere cogit
Et tenera giro formam adsumo decoram.
Nullum dare victum frigenti corpore possum,
Calida sed cunctis salubres porrego pastos.
Translation:
I am distinguished by being the daughter of two fathers:
the first always remains; the second is limited in life.
A third, my mother, turns me from hard to soft,
and when soft, I assume a suitable form in a spin.
I can give no nourishment from a cold body,
but, when warmed, I offer up wholesome foods to everyone.
Click to show riddle solution?
Pot


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 737-8.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 547.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 2: De lucerna

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Thu 26 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 2: De lucerna
Original text:
Me mater novellam vetus de germine finxit
Et in nullo patris formata sumo figuram.
Oculi non mihi lumen ostendere possunt,
Patulo sed flammas ore produco coruscas.
Nolo me contingat imber nec flamina venti.
Sum amica lucis, domi delector in umbras.
Translation:
My old mother formed me fresh from a seed,
and when born, I take a form unlike my father.
Eyes cannot show me the light,
but I produce trembling flames from an open mouth.
I do not wish to meet with the rain or a blast of wind.
I am a friend of light, most pleasing in the shadows at home.
Click to show riddle solution?
Lamp


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 738.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 548.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 3: De sale

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Thu 26 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 3: De sale
Original text:
Me pater ignitus, ut nascar, creat urendo,
Et pia defectu me mater donat ubique.
Is, qui dura soluit, hic me constringere cogit.
Nullus me solutam, ligatam cuncti requirunt.
Opem fero vivis opemque reddo defunctis;
Patria me sine mundi nec ulla valebit.
Translation:
My fiery father brings about my birth by burning,
and my dutiful mother gives me away everywhere in her absence.
He who unbinds hard things forces me to bind together.
No one needs me loose; everyone needs me bound.
I bring help to the living and I give help to the deceased.
No worldly homeland will thrive without me.
Click to show riddle solution?
Salt


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 738.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 549.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 4: De scamno

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Thu 26 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 4: De scamno
Original text:
Mollibus horresco semper consistere locis,
Ungula nam mihi firma, si caute ponatur.
Nullum, iter agens, sessorem dorso requiro:
Plures fero libens, meo dum stabulo versor.
Nulla frena mihi mansueto iuveni pendas,
Calcibus et senem nolo me verberes ullis.
Translation:
I always dread to stand in squishy places,
for I have a firm hoof if it is carefully placed.
I do not need anyone to sit on my back when travelling:
I happily carry many while I dwell in my ‘stable.’
Do not hang bridles on me, tamed as a youth!
And as an oldie, I do not want you to kick me!
Click to show riddle solution?
Bench


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 739.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 550.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 5: De mensa

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Thu 26 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Riddle 5: De mensa
Original text:
Pulchra mater ego natos dum collego multos,
Cunctis trado libens quicquid in pectore gesto,
Oscula nam mihi prius qui cara dederunt,
Vestibus exutam turpi me modo relinquunt.
Nulli sicut mihi pro bonis mala redduntur:
Quos lactavi, nudam me pede per angula versant.
Translation:
A beautiful mother when I gather up many sons,
I happily give everyone whatever I am carrying in my breast,
for they who once gave dear kisses to me
now shamelessly abandon me, stripped of my clothes.
No one is repaid for good with bad as I am;
Those I have suckled tip me over by my foot, naked, in the corner.
Click to show riddle solution?
Table


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 739.

Line 6 follows the preferred reading in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 551.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 6: De calice

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Thu 26 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 6: De calice
Original text:
Nullus ut meam lux sola penetrat umbram
Et natura vili miros postpono lapillos.
Ignem fero nascens, natus ab igne fatigor.
Nulla me putredo tangit nec funera turbant:
Pristina defunctus sospes in forma resurgo
Et amica libens oscula porrego cunctis.
Translation:
No one penetrates my shadow like light does,
and, cheap by nature, I have no time for wondrous gems.
Being born, I carry fire. Once born, fire wears me out.
No rottenness affects me, nor do funerals upset me.
When dead, I rise again, unharmed and in a pristine form,
and I willingly offer friendly kisses to all.
Click to show riddle solution?
Cup


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 739.

Lines 1 and 4 follow the preferred reading in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 552.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 7: De vesica

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Thu 26 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 7: De vesica
Original text:
Teneo liquentem, sequor membrana celatum,
Verbero nam cursu, visu quem cernere vetor.
Impletur invisis domus, sed vacua rebus.
Permanet, dum cibum nullum de pondere gestat.
Quae dum clausa fertur, velox ad nubila surgit,
Patefacta nullum potest tenere manentem.
Translation:
I hold liquid and I follow that which is hidden by skin,
and on the road, I beat that which I am forbidden to see.
My home is filled by the unseen, but it is empty of stuff.
It endures when it holds a weightless citizen.
When it is sealed up, it rises swiftly to the clouds.
Opened, it can hold no leftovers.
Click to show riddle solution?
Bladder


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 740.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 553.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 8: De ovo

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 8: De ovo
Original text:
Nati mater ego, natus ab utero mecum;

 Prior illo non sum, semper qui mihi coaevus.

 Virgo nisi manens numquam concipere possum,

 Sed intacta meam infra concipio prolem.

 Post si mihi venter disruptus ictu patescat,

 Moriens viventem sic possum fundere foetum.
Translation:
I am the mother of a son, born from a womb with me.

 I am not older than him; he is always the same age as me.

 I cannot ever become pregnant unless I remain a virgin,

 but, virginal, I conceive my child within.

 If my belly opens afterwards, burst by a stab,

 dying, I can give birth to a living child.
Click to show riddle solution?
Egg


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 740.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 554.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 9: De mola

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 9: De mola
Original text:
Senior ab aevo, Eva sum senior ego,
Et senectam gravem nemo currendo revincit.
Vitam dabo cunctis, vitam si tulero multis.
Milia prosterno, manu dum verbero nullum.
Saturamen victu, ignem ieiuna produco,
Et uno vagantes possum conprehendere loco.
Translation:
I am older that this age, I am older than Eve,
and no one stops the running of my heavy old age.
I will bring life to everyone if I extract life from many.
I destroy thousands but I punch no one.
Sated, I bring food; hungry, I bring fire,
and I can keep the wanderers in one place.
Click to show riddle solution?
Millstone


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 740.

Lines 2 and 5 follow the preferred reading in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 555.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 10: De scala

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 10: De scala
Original text:
Singula si vivens firmis constitero plantis,
Viam me roganti directam ire negabo;
Gemina sed soror meo si lateri iungat,
Coeptum valet iter velox percurrere quisquis.
Unde pedem mihi nisi calcaverit ille,
Manibus quae cupit numquam contingere valet.
Translation:
If I lived alone and stood with firm feet,
I would not let myself go upon a straight path when asked.
But if my twin sister joins my side,
anyone can go upon a speedy journey.
And so, if he does not step upon my foot,
he can never reach that which he wants in his hands.
Click to show riddle solution?
Ladder


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 741.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 556.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 11: De nave

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 11: De nave
Original text:
Mortua maiorem vivens quam porto laborem.
Dum iaceo, multos servo; si stetero, paucos.
Viscera si mihi foris detracta patescant,
Vitam fero cunctis victumque confero multis.
Bestia defunctam avisque nulla me mordet,
Et onusta currens viam nec planta depingo.
Translation:
Dead, I carry a greater burden than alive.
When I lay down, I store many; if I am upright, few.
If my insides are removed and revealed,
I bring food to everyone and nourishment to many.
When dead, no beast or bird bites me,
and when laden and moving, I leave no footprint on the road.
Click to show riddle solution?
Ship


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 741.

Line 5 follows the preferred reading in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 557.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 12: De grano

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 12: De grano
Original text:
Mortem ego pater libens adsumo pro natis
Et tormenta simul, cara ne pignora tristent.
Mortuum me cuncti gaudent habere parentes
Et sepultum nullus parvo vel funere plangit.
Vili subterrena pusillus tumulor urna,
Sed maiori possum post mortem surgere forma.
Translation:
A father, I willingly accept death for my young,
and tortures too, lest my beloved children are grieved.
All parents are glad to have me dead
and no one mourns me as I am buried or at my humble funeral.
Miniscule, I am buried underground in a cheap urn,
but I can rise after death in a greater form.
Click to show riddle solution?
A grain


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 741.

Line 3 follows the preferred reading in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 558.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 13: De vite

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 13: De vite
Original text:
Uno fixa loco longinquis porrego victum.
Caput mihi ferrum secat et brachia truncat.
Lacrimis infecta plura per vincula nector,
Simili damnandos nece dum genero natos.
Sed defuncti solent ulcisci liberi matrem,
Sanguine dum fuso lapsis vestigia versant.
Translation:
Fixed in one place, I offer food to foreigners.
A sword cuts off my head and chops off my limbs.
Tear-stained, I am bound with many bindings,
whilst I give birth to children condemned to a similar death.
But the dead children usually avenge the mother,
and, when blood has been spilt, they subvert the footsteps of the fallen.
Click to show riddle solution?
Vine


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 742.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 559.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 14: De oliva

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 14: De oliva
Original text:
Nullam ante tempus inlustrem genero prolem
Annisque peractis superbos genero natos.
Quos domare quisquis valet industria parvos,
Cum eos marinus iunctos percusserit imber.
Asperi nam lenes sic creant filii nepotes,
Tenebris ut lucem reddant, dolori salutem.
Translation:
I never give birth to noble children before my due date,
and after the years have ended, I give birth to excellent children.
Anyone can tame those little ones if they try,
whenever the sea-storm beats those siblings.
For hard sons create soft grandchildren
So that they give light to darkness and safety to trouble.
Click to show riddle solution?
Olive tree


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 742.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 560.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 15: De palma

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 15: De palma
Original text:
Pulchra semper comis locis consisto desertis,
Ceteris dum mihi cum lignis nulla figura.
Dulcia petenti de corde poma produco
Nullumque de ramis cultori confero fructum.
Nemo, qui me serit, meis de fructibus edit,
Et amata cunctis flore sum socia iustis.
Translation:
I always have beautiful hair and I exist in desert places,
although I do not look like the other trees.
I produce sweet fruits from my heart to those who seek them
and I bear no crop for the farmer from my branches.
No one who sows me feasts upon my fruits,
and when in flower, I am a beloved girlfriend to the just.
Click to show riddle solution?
Date palm


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 742

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 561.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 16: De cedride

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 16: De cedride
Original text:
Me pater ut vivam spinis enutrit iniquis;
Faciat ut dulcem, inter acumina servat.
Tereti nam forma ceram confingo rubentem
Et incisa nullam dono de corpore guttam.
Mellea cum mihi sit sine sanguine caro,
Acetum eructant exta conclusa saporem.
Translation:
Father brings me up to live in painful thorns;
to make me sweet, he keeps me between needles.
I fashion together red wax into a round form,
and I give not a drop when my body is cut.
Although my flesh has no sweet blood,
my enclosed insides give a bitter taste.
Click to show riddle solution?
Juniper/cedar berry


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 743.

Line 1 follows the preferred reading in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 562.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 17: De cribro

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 17: De cribro
Original text:
Patulo sum semper ore nec labia iungo.
Incitor ad cursum frequenti verbere tactus.
Exta mihi nulla; manu si forte ponantur,
Quassa mitto currens, minuto vulnere ruptus,
Meliora cunctis, mihi nam vilia servans;
Vacuumque bonis inanem cuncti relinquunt.
Translation:
My mouth is always open and my lips are never sealed.
I am urged on my course by a well-used whip.
I have no insides. If they are placed by hand,
I, moving and broken by tiny wounds, will send them out, shaken,
keeping the worst for me and the best for all;
everyone abandons the hollow and empty one for the good things.
Click to show riddle solution?
Sieve


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 743.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 563.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 18: De scopa

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 18: De scopa
Original text:
Florigeras gero comas, dum maneo silvis,
Et honesto vivo modo, dum habito campis.
Turpius me nulla domi vernacula servit
Et redacta vili solo depono capillos;
Cuncti per horrendam me terrae pulverem iactant,
Sed amoena domus sine me nulla videtur.
Translation:
I bear flowering foliage when I live in the woods,
And I live in a respectable way when I dwell in the fields.
At home, no servant has a filthier job than me,
and, led about the vile floor, I shed my hair.
Everyone drags me through the earth’s wretched dust,
but no home looks nice without me.
Click to show riddle solution?
Broom


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 743.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 564.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 19: De cera/De pice

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 19: De cera/De pice
Original text:
Dissimilem sibi me mater concipit infra
Et nullo virili creta de semine fundor.
Dum nascor sponte, gladio divellor a ventre.
Caesa vivit mater, ego nam flammis aduror.
Nullum clara manens possum concedere quaestum;
Plurem fero lucrum, nigro si corpore mutor.
Translation:
My mother—I am unlike her—conceives me within,
and I am born and made from no manly seed.
While I am born willingly, I am ripped from the womb with a sword.
Cut, my mother lives on, for I am burnt by flames.
Retaining my shine, I can give no profit;
I carry more value if my body is turned dark.
Click to show riddle solution?
Wax or pitch


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 744.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 565.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 20: De melle

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Fri 27 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 20: De melle
Original text:
Lucida de domo lapsus diffundor ubique,
Et quali dimissus modo, non invenit ullus.
Bisque natus inde semel in utero cretus,
Qualis in conceptu, talis in partu renascor.
Milia me quaerunt, ales sed invenit una
Aureamque mihi domum depingit ab ore.
Translation:
Falling from a bright home, I am scattered everywhere
and, banished, no one finds out how.
Born twice, then grown once in the womb,
I am born again, in conception as in birth.
Thousands seek me, but only the flyer finds me
and paints a golden home for me with its mouth.
Click to show riddle solution?
Honey


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 744.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 566.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 21: De apibus

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Sat 28 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 21: De apibus
Original text:
Masculus qui non sum sed neque femina, coniux.
Filios ignoto patri parturio multos.
Uberibus prolem nullis enutrio tantum;
Quos ab ore cretos nullo de ventre sumpsi.
Nomen quibus unum natisque conpar imago,
Meos inter cibos dulci conplector amore.
Translation:
I am a spouse who is neither man nor woman.
I am pregnant with many sons to an unknown father.
I feed an infant without using breasts;
I collected with my mouth those born out of no womb.
The children have a single name and a similar look.
With sweet love, I surround my children with food.
Click to show riddle solution?
Bees


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 744.

Line 4 follows the preferred reading in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 567.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 22: De ove

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Sat 28 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 22: De ove
Original text:
Exigua mihi virtus, sed magna facultas:
Opes ego nulli quaero, sed confero cunctis.
Modicos oberrans cibos egena requiro
Et ieiuna saepe cogor exsolvere censum.
Nullus sine meo mortalis corpore constat
Pauperaque multum ipsos nam munero reges.
Translation:
I have little courage but great resources:
I seek wealth from no one, but I give it to everyone.
Wandering and poor, I seek humble foods,
And, hungry, I am often forced to give up my wealth.
No mortal endures without my body,
And I am poor, yet I give generously even to kings.
Click to show riddle solution?
Sheep


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 745.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 568.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 23: De igne

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Sat 28 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 23: De igne
Original text:
Durus mihi pater, dura me generat mater,
Verbere nam multo huius de viscere fundor.
Modica prolatus feror a ventre figura,
Sed adulto mihi datur inmensa potestas.
Durum ego patrem duramque mollio matrem,
Et quae vitam cunctis, haec mihi funera praestat.
Translation:
My father is hard, my hard mother makes me,
for, after a great bashing, I am born from her insides.
At birth, I am taken from the womb in a tiny form
but I am given great power as an adult.
I soften my hard father and hard mother,
and that which is life to all is my funeral.
Click to show riddle solution?
Fire


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 745.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 569.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 24: De membrana

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Sat 28 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 24: De membrana
Original text:
Luctum viva manens toto nam confero mundo
Et defuncta mirum praesto de corpore quaestum.
Vestibus exuta multoque vinculo tensa,
Gladio sic mihi desecta viscera pendent.
Manibus me postquam reges et visu mirantur,
Miliaque porto nullo sub pondere multa.
Translation:
When alive, I give wealth to the whole world
and dead, I provide a wonderful profit from my body.
Stripped of clothes and stretched out by many a bond,
my insides hang out, mown by a sword.
Afterwards, kings marvel at my sight and touch,
and I carry many thousands without any burden.
Click to show riddle solution?
Parchment


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 745.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 570.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles 

Bern Riddle 25: De litteris

NEVILLEMOGFORD

Date: Sat 28 Nov 2020
Matching Commentaries: Commentary for Bern Riddle 25: De litteris
Original text:
Nascimur albenti loco sed nigrae sorores;
Tres unito simul nos creant ictu parentes.
Multimoda nobis facies et nomina multa,
Meritumque dispar vox et diversa sonandi.
Numquam sine nostra nos domo detenet ullus,
Nec una responsum dat sine pari roganti.
Translation:
We are born in a white place but we are black sisters;
Three parents create us together with one stroke.
We have various faces and many names,
different values and diverse voices.
Nobody ever detains us outside our home,
nor do any of us reply without a suitable questioner.
Click to show riddle solution?
Letters (of the alphabet)


Notes:

This edition is based on Karl Strecker, ed., Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, Vol. 4.2 (Berlin, MGH/Weidmann, 1923), page 746.

A list of variant readings can be found in Fr. Glorie, ed., Variae collectiones aenigmatum Merovingicae aetatis, Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 133A (Turnhout: Brepols, 1968), page 571.



Tags: latin  Bern Riddles