Λίβερνος

Libernos, Libernus

Translated by Ross Scaife ✝7 Feb 2004Vetting: high7 revisions

3 notes · 203 words

Name of a place; from a certain story.¹ For in Rome when Quintus Servilius was consul² a chasm developed in the midst of the forum, as the earth split open. The Romans knew from a Sibylline oracle that the earth would seal itself back together if the most valuable thing among humankind was pitched into the chasm, so some of them brought gold, and others silver, others their crops, and others whatever the most valuable thing was, and they supposed they understood the oracle. But as the chasm remained no smaller, Curtius, a man both finest to be seen and noblest of soul, said he understood the Sibylline oracle better than the others: for the most highly valued thing in the city was a man's excellence, and the words disclosed by the oracle really asked for this. So saying, he donned his armor and mounted his war horse. As everyone gawked at what he was doing, he drove headlong into the chasm. After the earth sealed itself back together, the Romans vowed to offer this man heroic rites annually in the midst of the forum, and they named the spot Libernus, and erected an altar there; from this Vergil too made his beginning.³

Greek original · Adler’s text

Λίβερνος· ὄνομα τόπου· ἀπό τινος ἱστορίας. ἐν γὰρ τῇ Ῥώμῃ ὑπατεύοντος Κοΐντου τοῦ Σερβιλίου χάσμα κατὰ μέσην ἀγορὰν δια- στάσης τῆς γῆς γέγονε. γνόντες δὲ οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι ἐκ τῶν Σιβύλλης λογίων, ὅτι συνελεύσεται ἡ γῆ, ἢν τὸ τιμιώτατον ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἐμβληθείη τῷ χάσματι, ἐπέφερον οἱ μὲν χρυσόν, οἱ δὲ ἄργυρον, οἱ δὲ καρπούς, οἱ δὲ ὅτι μάλιστα τιμιώτατον εἶναι, καὶ συμβαίνειν τῶν ὑπὸ τῶν λεγομένων ἱερῶν ὑπελάμβανον. μένοντος δ' οὐδέν τι μεῖον τοῦ χάσματος, Κούρτιος ἀνὴρ ὀφθῆναί τε κάλλιστος καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἄριστος, ἔφη συνιέναι βέλτιον τῶν ἄλλων τοῦ Σιβυλλείου· τιμιώτατον γὰρ εἶναι χρῆμα πόλει ἀνδρὸς ἀρετὴν καὶ ταύτην ἐπιζητεῖν τὰ ἐκ τῶν λογίων δηλούμενα. καὶ τοῦτο εἰπὼν τά τε ὅπλα περιέθετο καὶ τὸν πολεμικὸν ἵππον ἀνέβη. πάντων δὲ θαυμαζόντων τὸ δρώμενον, ἀτρέπτως ἐλαύνει κατὰ τοῦ χάσματος. συνελθούσης δὲ τῆς γῆς, ἡρωϊκὰς τιμὰς τῷ ἀνδρὶ κατὰ μέσην ἀγορὰν Ῥωμαῖοι ἀνὰ πᾶν ἔτος ἐπιτελεῖν διέγνωσαν τόν τε τόπον Λίβερνον ἐπεκάλεσαν, βωμὸν οἰκοδομήσαντες· ἐξ οὗ δὴ καὶ Βεργίλλιος τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐποιήσατο.

Betacode

*li/bernos: o)/noma to/pou: a)po/ tinos i(stori/as. e)n ga\r th=| *(rw/mh| u(pateu/ontos *koi/+ntou tou= *serbili/ou xa/sma kata\ me/shn a)gora\n dia-  sta/shs th=s gh=s ge/gone. gno/ntes de\ oi( *(rwmai=oi e)k tw=n *sibu/llhs logi/wn, o(/ti suneleu/setai h( gh=, h)\n to\ timiw/taton e)n a)nqrw/pois e)mblhqei/h tw=| xa/smati, e)pe/feron oi( me\n xruso/n, oi( de\ a)/rguron, oi( de\ karpou/s, oi( de\ o(/ti ma/lista timiw/taton ei)=nai, kai\ sumbai/nein tw=n u(po\ tw=n legome/nwn i(erw=n u(pela/mbanon. me/nontos d' ou)de/n ti mei=on tou= xa/smatos, *kou/rtios a)nh\r o)fqh=nai/ te ka/llistos kai\ th\n yuxh\n a)/ristos, e)/fh sunie/nai be/ltion tw=n a)/llwn tou= *sibullei/ou: timiw/taton ga\r ei)=nai xrh=ma po/lei a)ndro\s a)reth\n kai\ tau/thn e)pizhtei=n ta\ e)k tw=n logi/wn dhlou/mena. kai\ tou=to ei)pw\n ta/ te o(/pla perie/qeto kai\ to\n polemiko\n i(/ppon a)ne/bh. pa/ntwn de\ qaumazo/ntwn to\ drw/menon, a)tre/ptws e)lau/nei kata\ tou= xa/smatos. sunelqou/shs de\ th=s gh=s, h(rwi+ka\s tima\s tw=| a)ndri\ kata\ me/shn a)gora\n *(rwmai=oi a)na\ pa=n e)/tos e)pitelei=n die/gnwsan to/n te to/pon *li/bernon e)peka/lesan, bwmo\n oi)kodomh/santes: e)c ou(= dh\ kai\ *bergi/llios th\n a)rxh\n e)poih/sato.

Notes (3)

For a brief summary of the issues surrounding the Lacus Curtius (Curtian Lake) in the Roman Forum, and images of the relevant monuments, see web address 1.
1Perhaps from John of Antioch, Adler suggested; now his fr.94 Roberto. See also Livy 7.6.1-6: Eodem anno, seu motu terrae seu qua ui alia, forum medium ferme specu uasto conlapsum in immensam altitudinem dicitur; neque eam uoraginem coniectu terrae, cum pro se quisque gereret, expleri potuisse, priusquam deum monitu quaeri coeptum quo plurimum populus Romanus posset; id enim illi loco dicandum uates canebant, si rem publicam Romanam perpetuam esse uellent. Tum M. Curtium, iuuenem bello egregium, castigasse ferunt dubitantes an ullum magis Romanum bonum quam arma uirtusque esset, et silentio facto templa deorum immortalium, quae foro imminent, Capitoliumque intuentem et manus nunc in caelum, nunc in patentes terrae hiatus ad deos manes porrigentem, se deuouisse; equo deinde quam poterat maxime exornato insidentem, armatum se in specum immisisse; donaque ac fruges super eum a multitudine uirorum ac mulierum congestas lacumque Curtium non ab antiquo illo T. Tati milite Curtio Mettio sed ab hoc appellatum. See also 1.12.10, 1.13.5. ↩
2362 BCE. ↩
3The Roman poet Vergil appears, with his name differently transliterated, at omicron 832. ↩

External resources

Web address 1 livius.org

Linked from1 entry

η541ἩροφίλαHerophila, HerophileAlso [called] Erythraean Sibyl, daughter of Theodorus. She wrote 3 books of Divinations, in epic hexameters; and she came to Rome in the time of the consuls (though others say that of Tarquinius), expecting to make…

Neighbouring entries

λ489Λιβανωτόςfrankincense λ490ΛίβερναLiburnian, liburnian λ491ΛίβερνοςLibernos, Libernus λ492ΛιβερτῖνοιLibertinoi, Libertini λ493ΛιβύηLibya

Revision history7 revisions · last 28 May 2020

28 May 2020tweaked link — Catharine Roth
29 Jan 2015Revised — David Whitehead
18 Apr 2013Revised — David Whitehead
27 Mar 2011augmented n.1; more keywords — David Whitehead
8 Feb 2004minor additions to notes; more keywords; cosmetics — David Whitehead
7 Feb 2004minor change to translation — Ross Scaife ✝
7 Feb 2004added cross-reference — Catharine Roth
7 Feb 2004Translated — Ross Scaife ✝

Translation

Greek original · Adler’s text

Notes (3)

External resources

Linked from1 entry

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