Aldhelm Riddle 71: Piscis
ALEXANDRAREIDER
Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022Me pedibus manibusque simul fraudaverat almus
Arbiter, immensum primo dum pangeret orbem.
Fulcior haud volitans veloci praepetis ala
Spiritus alterno vegitat nec corpora flatu.
Quamvis in caelis convexa cacumina cernam,
Non tamen undosi contemno marmora ponti.
The blessed creator withheld feet and hands from me
At the same time, when he first arranged the immense world.
I am not supported, flying, by a bird’s swift wing
And breath in alternating blows does not strengthen my body.
Although I discern vaulted summits in the heavens,
I nevertheless do not disdain the marbly surface of the surging sea.
Notes:
This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.
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