Symphosius Riddle 79: Scopa

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022
Original text:

Mundi magna parens, laqueo conexa tenaci,
Vincta solo plano, manibus conpressa duabus
Ducor ubique sequens et me quoque cuncta sequuntur.

Translation:

Great mother of the world, fastened by a tenacious knot,
Bound on the flat ground, held in two hands,
Following, I am led everywhere, and all things also follow me.

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Broom


Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

  • line 2: Vincta > iuncta


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