Panegyricus Constantino Augusto

OPTATIANUS PORPHYRIUS’ PANEGYRIC ADDRESSED TO CONSTANTINE AUGUSTUS. You that once were adorned with a beautiful little book, O Thalia, bear your song into the hands of Augustus. You were to approach, gleaming with purple, marking your verses with letters shining with silver and gold, traced on a painted border, well adorned by the writer’s hand, and deservedly resplendent, fit for the sacred eyes of a gracious lord. Now, pale, your page suffused with a black color, scarcely distinguishing your songs with cheap minium, you seek the roof of the venerable hall with a trembling foot, because your present appearance is too frightful. What attire the present fortunes of a poet deserve—this place, from which you come, has at least afforded that. Yet you may go in supplication and entreat your lord; squalor and these sordid conditions befit the wretched. When the merciful one has granted pardon and restored your son and your home, you yourself will go with your hair combed, gleaming in a purple garment, resplendent within, as once before, ambitious with your writings.

You see how the Thracian lyre, dedicated to Pythian Apollo, polished by the poet’s art, sounds so beautifully; the most sacred face of Phoebus, becoming, fits these temples, where the choruses of bards, all adorned with garlands and the flowers of the Muses, are to be placed, a sweet song of Helicon. Not carelessly did the harsh craftsman polish it, having hewn and taken the summit of a white mountain, gleaming with the moon, nor with a peak of Parian marble. Not with bronze forced or compressed by the point, nor with confined prominent angles, and then soon to spread wider the second ones, and to draw down those hollows each singly, a step by a tiny path through curved lines, everywhere regulated, and then by a rule, so that a quadrangular line stretches at a thirty-foot limit, or from there to the threshold a line of verse is extended more broadly through the order. The measures of the Decamena join the modes, the number of feet never changed, always fixed, which the learned rule preserves by the precepts of the law. The elements of the song increase and decrease. These images of meters, suppliant to Phoebus, I place in the temples and choruses, and joyfully I take part in the sacred rites.

Nourishing glory of the world, highest ruler, pious Augustus, unconquered, governing peoples by your virtue, ruling the empire by justice, Constantine, pacifier of unbridled nations by your moderation, whom the divine Constantius, emperor, begot, spreading golden ages for the Romans through his son; alas, he hastened too much to heaven, had he not left behind eternal aid, unconquered, just, and pious, nourishing father of the fatherland, for us you above all, Caesar, glory of Ausonia, O pious light of the Romans. It is pleasing to the gods above, then, that in these joys of the world, through perpetual ages, it is well thus to distribute gifts; the stars give to the father, and the father’s empire, holy, to you, great gifts given, you, the golden light of Rome. This the rustic Muse of your bard sings to you in arduous verse.

The eleventh is a direct hexameter, and when reversed, with no letter or syllable removed, it becomes the same pentameter. The twelfth is heroic. The thirteenth is a pentameter, becomes heroic, and the heroic becomes a pentameter. The fourteenth and fifteenth are direct heroics, while they return as Sotadics. Verse 2. Auguste. Pith. p. 378, Augusti. Imperium. Pith. Imperii. Ni liquerit ille. Pith. ue linqueret illi. Nobis te. Pith. nobis tu. Decus o lux. Pith. decus et lux. Dant Patri. Pith. dant Patriae. Ult. Vatis. Pith. Vates. IN THE LEMMA SUBJOINED TO THE POEM. It consists of syllables, which is called Torp. s. Stymphalicus. These we do not have in the Pithoean edition. Torpalius. Ropalicus. Barth. It consists of parts of speech. Pith. omitted constat. Its order in turn. Pith. per vices ord. suum. The ninth and direct. The et is omitted by Pith. It is heroic. Pith. omits est. The tenth and direct pentameter, and equally reciprocal. Pith. The tenth direct pentameter, and reciprocal, with no letter or syllable removed, becomes the same pentameter.

The eleventh is a direct hexameter, and when reversed, with no letter or syllable removed, it becomes the same pentameter. The thirteenth is a pentameter, becomes heroic, and the heroic becomes a pentameter. And the thirteenth is a pentameter: and they are recurrent. Sotadic verses. Sotadic verses. IV. (In this and in the following poems, the letters painted in red in Welser’s edition we have distinguished with a larger character.)

The hidden divine signs are revealed to the pious reader, Constantine, light of the world, golden age of the heavens. The first, mixed with nectar, sings of pious trophies. The exultant leader, with my page and vows, rivaling the famous offspring of Calliope, composed such a work in the mind, pouring forth the joys of Helicon with verse. The clement new mind turns over in the breast; for I, great-minded, will sing the numbers and the scepters of the leader, for Gaza and Eno give Greek gifts, and you, with the Blemmyes, strengthen the ages with a peaceful limit. Roman light, worthy of new flourishing vows, I write with songs, but the sea and the rock cover the hidden. I, with the lyre, always delight the citizen, so that the equal may be seen, the father sought in the ether. Now happy, with my own peace, I have examined the cares. I, stimulated by the signs, exult to mark the joys. The laurel, happy through the song, now Apollo has woven, and the woven work, with a new song, with the laurel plectrum. The painted arts, happy for the ages, rejoice. Thus the seething wave, satisfied, has deceived the Carpathian. Now you, the proud, despise the sum; I, the ruler, break the Sicilian sea with the oar, and I stretch the sail, carrying the woven ship, the Muses join in the famous vow. The mind, weary, does not break the journey. My praise, standing with the foot, I lead the great work. The signs, Palamedian, most joyful, with the sacred mind, do not despise the sum mixed with itself. After the fruit, the vow will return the clement Mars. The chosen sign, by which the golden ages increase, soon, with the Viennense, you will return the twenty-year vows. The songs, which the painted work forms with a wondrous name, the flourishing vow, with varied page, gives a happy page, remembering the offspring of Augustus, the distinguished fates. Judge, with the pious, the worthy parents.

The virtues of the pious join together in happy deeds. In this poem, the beginning of the reading arises from the monogram of Jesus, so that the obscurity may be lifted from the heart. In it, two verses are in Greek, beginning from the left side of the monogram, of which one, serving the remaining parts of the same sign, ends with the middle letter N, (Ste), The other then descends to the channel of the ship, concluding the form of a rudder at the end of its part. Which is as follows: The verses, however, which either begin from the prow, or from the beak, or from the oars, or under the prow, terminated at the extreme point of the stern, have woven the text, others enclose the vows. Which are as follows: Now the sailor, safe, may despise the highest storms, Now the black, safe, may despise the highest storms, Safe, he may despise the highest storms, with trophies heaped up. With an evil mind cast out, he may despise the highest storms. With hope also, good Rome, he may despise the highest storms. Rome, happy, flourishes always with your vows. This poem is not in Pith.

I would fashion the arms of the Muses, I would linger, but the face of the poem is the image of the parent, perfect in its gifts. The vows seek not in vain the ordered path of Phoebus. The songs bear what the placid mind, with its lot, grants to the gifts of this poem. Raising and turning the verse, stirring the orator's song, you inspire the mind, you rejoice always, you call the holy, you who see the learned song. Granting the dicta, you, joyful, fulfill the vows. The fates have granted your rule, gentle ruler of Olympus. The times preserve the eternal piety. The golden ages, victor, renew the centuries. Constantine, the pole joined with the laws of the sun, the rhythm moves the great throngs of the Muses. My songs, with painted images, cover the poems of Phoebus. Calliope rejoices in the measures; may she fulfill the vows. The woven song, with a similar path, the Muse begins. The verses, marking the golden ages, are borne. But for you, the devoted mind hastens to the joys. The daring eloquence goes through the devoted vows. The Aonian sisters, restrained, and the true words, bound by laws, the whole mind of faith. The bard calls you, great prince, so great. The songs bear new Pegasean poems. They exercise the bond and wish to sound the new. The noble rule and the gift of the mind join. And the high verses help to shape the rough work of the mind, the meter to weave the song. For various courses, the art scarcely glides on the limit. The tangled knots of art, bear this through. And yet the eloquence, the great swelling of the mind, the song, thus given back, returns to you. Such a singing law, our single page, from Helicon, will complete a single love. The painted elements, the varied work of the Muses, the text.

This poem has thirty-five letters in every line. And the first line is in a winding pattern, from the first letter to the last letter of the first line: *Fingere Musa queat tali si carmine vultus*; in a similar winding pattern through the acrostic downward, from the second letter to the penultimate, *Augusti*, with the law of meter and line preserved; likewise in a similar winding pattern the last line from its first letter to its last, *Picta elementorum vario per musica textu*; and equally again in a parallel winding pattern in the telestich from the second letter and downward to the penultimate, *Vincere Apelleas ardebit pagina ceras*. Likewise from the eighteenth letter of the first line, descending straight downward through the middle, *Grandia quaerentur si vatis laeta Camena*. Likewise at the eighteenth letter of the acrostic through the middle straight downward, *Orsa juvet, versu consignans aurea saecla*. On this page there are four hexagons with an equal number of letters, and eight orthogons likewise with an equal number of letters, increasing and decreasing by individual letters.

Fragrarem. Pith. p. 351. flagrarem. Laetus. Pith. saetus. Incorrect. Devia vota. Pith. d. voto. IN THE HEADING OF THE POEM. Tali se carmine. Pith. tuli si carm. Incorrect. Penultimam. Pith. poene ultimam. Ad ultimam sui. Pith. ad ult. sic. Penultimam. Pith. poene ultim. Tanto cui munere. Pith. t. cur mun. Cito perferat. Pith. cata perf. Reddere detur. Pith. r. retur. Likewise to the eighteenth. Pith. Again from the eighteenth. Orthogona. Pith. octogona. And decreasing. Pith. or discrescentia. VI.

Holy and eternal is Caesar, merciful and serene. Augustus omnipotent, all-powerful, the whole of Italy and the world, delighting the divine powers, grants us joys in the name of Constantine. Your happy songs from this place lead the Muses; sad cares are removed. Your distinguished deeds now reveal the fates' harshness. Then better, O Lord, your voice, secure and resounding, the ruler of virtues, scarcely able to sing of your power. Now, in this way, I may at least speak of sad things. Scarcely can I, with a different song, avoid the consciousness of my guilt. The year has granted my prayer; the fates allow me to speak. I compose a song of equal measure, so that all may resound in harmony. Let it be known as the first of its kind, and let it be considered the last of such a kind. As the middle of the first runs, so it is fitting to the end. To the boundary of the side and the part that divides the authors, the middle part is equal to the verse that follows. Holy and eternal is Caesar, merciful and serene. Nourishing salvation of the Roman world, glorious fame, better by piety, parent to martial victory, milder in granting pardon, softening harsh laws. Eternal justice and glory of the ages. Hope given, full of good, and happy abundance. Exalted pillar of ancient virtue and equal to the gods. Great parent of Rome, avenger of the Roman citizen, and highest grace, measuring the clear heavens. Salvation sent to affairs, peace through the best leader, and in wars secure, holy through all things. The sun, with its own most faithful right hand, and the yoke of partnership offers shared life. Look upon me, falsely accused, greatest of crimes, an exile afflicted by punishment and other causes. Now I, a venerable divine power, am cast before you. Conquer with piety and surpass the usual fates. Holy and eternal is Caesar, merciful and serene.

In this poem all the lines are of thirty-five letters each, and the first letter of the first line, that is S, is shared with the acrostich; the last letter of the first line, that is S, is shared with the telestich; the last letter of the acrostich, that is S, is shared with the last line; the middle letter of the first line, that is the eighteenth, S, is the head of the middle line descending through the middle of the last line; the middle letter of the acrostich, which is the eighteenth, S, is the head of the middle line going straight; these middle lines can either go straight or be bent, sounding the same. Moreover, there is a line which sounds through all these parts: Holy be to your bard, Caesar, merciful and serene. Four squares closed by the same line have throughout all parts sixteen letters each, in which squares the middle eight letters, written in red, make a straight line: Thus you arrange golden ages throughout the whole world.

Vers. 3. Grant us joys. Pith. page 349, grant us for joys. At least thus to the sorrowful one. Pith. sorrowful ones here at least. He nods assent. Pith. He nods to. To the sides. Pith. to the side. Eternal, strengths and. Pith. eternal, to whom things and. And the praise of the highest, pleasing. Pith. And the right of the highest, pleasing. Right hand of salvation. Pith. right hand of the husband. IN THE LEMMA SUBJOINED TO THE POEM. Of thirty years. Pith. of thirty years. With the acrostich; the last letter of the first line, that is S, is shared with the telestich: the last letter of the acrostich, that is S, is shared with the last line of the poem. Pith. with the first letter of the acrostich, that is S, is shared with the last letter of the telestich, that is S, is shared with the last line of the poem. Eighteenth. Pith. eighteenth. Downward descends the last line of the poem. Pith. omits. The eighteenth S is the head of the middle line in a straight line: which middle verse. Pith. the eighteenth into the middle line of the capitals. which middle verse. These parts. Pith. these parts.

Clausae. Pith. inclusae. Scriptum fac. Pith. scriptae f. Disponas. Pith. disponis. VII. Constantine, father of the world, glory, consul. Behold, you give fourfold gifts through all labor. Through countless peoples, soon the eastern realms. To all peoples you bring pious laws, and you alone solve everything. Augustus, you scatter throughout the world, and in the last name. The sun will make the blessed there, hope of perpetual life. The good arts, justice, and the neighboring honors of the gods. The largesse of good men flows into the useless light. The vows which they wished, piety drinks beneath. The holy earth gives back the Bacchic vine. You give gifts, not with fury, nor with urban flames. The seas, the straits, with the prince known. The watchful right hand marks the stars with its own signs. The last, united, raise the right hand to the stars. Greatest, the light of justice, the name of concord. The whole world desires you, peaceful, with sacred shores. The weary thing knows peace; you will join the serene. The vows of the world, thriving, join themselves willingly. In this poem there are thirty-five letters. But the acrostic joined with the telestich makes a verse: "Certain salvation of things, unconquered offspring of the Thunderer.

In which the second letter of the ninth line designates: You renew for the world the happy times of the age. Likewise from the second letter of the tenth line, ascending twice and descending twice to the penultimate of the same by rubric, it contains this verse: You give golden emblems of justice to the lands. Verse 2: You will give. Pith. ibid. he will give. Soon dear. Pith. Soon rare. To the world. Pith. of the world. Ibid. Name. Pith. divinity. Its signs. Pith. what signs. Concord as an omen. Pith. omen of concord. Last: Join to yourself. Pith. join to you. IN THE LEMMA SUBJOINED TO THE POEM. The letters are. Pith. All the letters are. Of the ninth line designates. Pith. of the ninth line, ascending and descending obliquely by rubric to the penultimate of the same line, designates: To the world you. Rubric, it contains this verse. Pith. the rubric contains this verse. VIII.

FortiafactadvCistotodominantiaiamnvnC OrbecanamqvisLaetasvosvbprincipetantO RvrsvmromatenEtmvndicapvtinclitacarmeN TvvatemtvdivaMonelaceratacrventiS IimperiisparsfEessapolodivvlsagemebaT SiqvafidestanTisromanvmglorianomeN InsignittitvlIsdominosedliberaqvaervnT MoestaqveivreSvotrepidatplagamaximamvndI 1VndeivbarlvciSprimvmradianshyperioN SideribvspvlsIsrvtilodiffvnditabortV IndetvvmnomenMvltvmvenerabilecvnctiS MaximebellantVmdomitorlvxvnicamvndI PerpetvisvotiScvpivntmemorabilenvmeN ExoptantserviRevolvntmirabiledictV RemqvelaremqvEsvvmtantaesttibigloriaivstI 2AvgvstoivvateCcetvosvbfoedereiamnvnC TotvmorbemposTtotcaedesqvasfessagemebanT OmnianvncnvllOtandemtrepidantiamotV RomvleisserviRepiispaterincliteivssiS In this poem the acrostic has written: Fortissimus Imperator; the fourteenth letters: Clementissimus Rector; the last: Constantinus invictus.

You, the poet. See Valesius on Eusebius, *Historia Ecclesiastica*, page 169. Polo divulsa. Pithoeus: polo divisa. Libera quaerunt. Pithoeus: liber.... quaerunt. Res. i.e. Respublica, as in verse 17. Memorabile numen. Pithoeus: memorabile dictu. Incorrectly. Laremque. Pithoeus: Laremque. Incorrectly. Augusto. Pithoeus: Augusti. IX.

You trample the savage jaws of the underworld with your foot. O you who were sent, and you who now seek the temples of fire, you have seen the pole of light, you reign over the deep. Your virtue, eternal, and God, Christ, all things. Then the Father, having begun, the mass, overgrown with sluggish squalor, emerged; it placed itself, and smiled upon the uncovered. Before you, the holy man of men, the Thunderer, the secret powers, which you, the one mind of the begetter, the prudent solace, and the inner God of the beginning, the offspring of the principle, no one of the vast gaping void. What death ruled, the joy of Lethe poured forth; the innermost penalty, eternal, broken. The banished men pleased the birth of the fatherland; you, prostrate, the life of the slain, yet once the presaging warning, the fates, they sang. You, whom the eloquent poet, the error, drove forth, the sum of counsel, the restorer of the matter, the father of wisdom, Christ, the rich, the word exerted, the unconquered bond of death. Soon the man, the equal, the one salvation, the lowest, deign that your order, right, that the stricken, the bent, yourself the falling, not the earthly body, for you the weight drawn back, the high, the virgin, the womb, the seed, the offspring, not the sluggish journey, the nature, but the joined heaven, the bodily face, the God, the act, the use, both, inviting the commands, the examples, the man, and dedicated, the equal lord, who the sacred, the sounding, the leader, the dictations, the human, the hope, the divine, the imitator, yourself the title, the man, you advanced, and the profane, the greatest, the Jews, the punishing, after the pious thousand, the world, you permit, the joyful, the healthful, you set, nor the human, the blood, the penalty, the hanging, the father, the seat, the nature, receives, and carries, the eternal, the salvation, the sign, gives, the machine, the sacred.

Almighty Father, and you, O mixed division. Son and Father, and the Holy Spirit, one: Favor the vows. This poem is absent from Pith.

Dissonant nexus, I hear, and I compose words: the mind of the whole, bearing good, I join in the tongue. The Muses, modulating, renew greater gifts. In turn, the verse has begun, which the Latin tongue bears. Never elsewhere, with Greek songs, do I lead the mind. In order, I now bind a double voice, linking the letter. Now, with happy result, the Muses resound the renowned songs of Phoebus. I sing the hope of things, both just and highest, of salvation. Of the Lord, the good gifts, of the great Parent. I rule the Roman and Greek world, the greatest ruler. All things, which you strive for, inspire peace and rest. May hostile triumphs be wholly pleasing. All things are full of good, Constantine, for the citizens. If they believe nothing else, the glory of the world is dearer to you. You preserve the conquered, you avenge with your right hand. For you, the Lord, the tranquil citizens exult, dearer to the city. Africa, with its times, serves you, preserved in peace. Now it is happy, now it is under your divine laws. Safe, because Carthage, with its venerable dignity, judges that so great a destiny, the renowned light, provides. Noble is your name, hope and glory are the highest. All the barbarian shores, with their horrid gold, love peace. And you, faithful, always bear arms well. You manage affairs with your virtues, your fierce peoples. You drive out and slay, holding dear the due. And your victorious ones receive the standards, and for you, the brave. And for you, the leader, the unconquered cohorts raise the standards. Everywhere, accompanied by you, they pray for the highest. For all, the avenger precedes, with faith. And they look upon the high, responding to the vows. Everywhere, peace is established, the greatest savior of things. Joys will be present, twice victorious in the world. Of virtues, you will be the victor, receive the eternal vows. The ages have grown, the hope of the divine, Caesar, is certain. And you, holy Parent, after so many trophies.

The scepter of the grandson is arranged in the name of the Sun. In this poem, the acrostic has the inscription: "To our Lord Constantine, the Eternal Augustus." The tenth letters of all the verses, and the nineteenth, and the twenty-eighth, descending straight down, have three verses in Greek letters. And in the tenth letters of all the verses, this verse is: ; in the nineteenth, this: ; in the twenty-eighth, however, this verse: . But when these are read downwards in this order in Greek, the same letters, when read by those who read in a different order, offer their service to the Latin verses through the duty of Latin letters: So that this diversity exists, that they both express their meanings in Greek and also in Latin. Verse 7. "Fecundae resecent." Pith. page 369, "fec. referent." "You, Lord, good," etc. Pith. "You, Lord, the good gifts of God, you, great parent." "And of the Greek world, etc., greatest Ruler." Pith. "and of the grateful world, always greatest to itself." "Complacidi sp. hostiles." Pith. "When the calm ones look upon us such.

Your Constantine. Pith. your Constantine. Saviors of Tyre. Pith. Saviors of Tyre. Dearer to the world. Pith. Dearer to the world. Thus in the verse in both editions. Therefore it should have been written thus here as well. Of rest. Pith. rest. Of the divinity. Pith. of the name. By the Bull. Pith. by the North Wind. Dear. Pith. ratified. Incorrectly. Chance. Pith. Fortune. The unconquered cohorts raise up. Pith. the unconquered standards raise up the cohorts. Laws and faith. Pith. More laws and faith. Nurturing one, your own look upon. Pith. Nurturing one, your own look upon. IN THE APPENDIX TO THE POEM IS SUBJOINED. Descend in a straight line. Pith. descending in a diverse order in a straight line. This verse of all the verses. Pith. This Greek verse from the letters of all the verses. In the nineteenths this. Pith. In the nineteenths this verse is. In the twenty-eighths, however. Pith. in the twenty-sevenths this verse is. But when downwards, etc. Pith. But when with this order downwards the Greek verses are read, the same letters through a diverse order in the straight reading, while they speak in the same page with Latin verses, offer their obedience to the duty of Latin letters, so that there is diversity, with this in Greek.

XI. I shall now add a few playful verses, though perhaps frivolous, and join them with these. For I have shaped these songs, dear to the Muses, in varied forms, and you, O happy one, have praised them, O divine Phoebus, and Calliope, and Titan, with bonds of care unbound. As I have bent from the first rules of discord, then from other arts of Pitho, so that the whole face of the verse is confirmed by its own standing. Whether we sing, not conquered, but wounded, I fill the varied measures of a heavier art. And at last, though scarcely permitted, I place the seated image in the middle of the twin column, preparing a swift figure, and with careful speech I say: "Do not fear the conquered; thus all things are born." But now, with rustic bass, I produce this poem, which the learned Muses of the imperial god have abandoned from their fountain. The verses are woven in order from Castalian names. In this poem, from the first letter of the first line, a rubric descends to the eighth of the eighth, and through a winding path ascends to the penultimate of the eighth of the same line, and has written: Publilius Optatianus Porfirius haec lusi. Likewise, from the first of the last line to the eighth of the ninth, through a winding path ascending and descending, to the penultimate of the ninth line, it has a heroic verse written, which when it returns becomes a Sotadic verse, and it is this:

Every type of meter I compose for you, best of Bassus. Likewise, from the first letter of the sixth verse to the third of the eighth, three letters: Hic; and from the thirteenth of the eighth to the fifteenth of the sixth: Ver; and from there to the seventeenth of the eighth: Su; and from there from the twenty-seventh of the eighth to the twenty-ninth of the sixth: Sua; and from there to the thirty-first of the eighth: Ri; and from there from the thirty-ninth to the twenty-ninth of the eleventh: Oco; and from there to the twenty-seventh of the ninth: Lo; and from there from the seventeenth of the ninth to the fifteenth of the eleventh: Red; and from there to the thirteenth of the ninth: Is; and from there from the thirteenth of the ninth up to the first of the eleventh: Par; it makes a hendecasyllable. This verse, varied in color, is disparate. Verse 3. *Ambiit*. Pithoeus, p. 371, reads *ambigit*, closing with the name of the blessed one. *Pythola*. Correctly Pithoeus: *Pithoia*. But *saucius*. Pithoeus: *sit saucius*. *Velit medio*. Pithoeus: *velit metro*. Ibid. *Dum in agmine*: the M is not elided, as in other authors of his age and later ones passim. Ibid. *Colocat*: Pithoeus: *Collocat*. IN THE LEMMA OF THE POEM SUBJOINED.

XII. THE LOFTY OAK, WITH ITS BRANCHES SPROUTING, HANGS FROM THE SUMMIT; THE WITNESSES OF THE PLACE, THE FREQUENT FAUNS, CELEBRATE THE TEMPLES. THE UNEQUAL IVY, COMPACTED WITH MODES, AND THE SAME NUMBER OF HEMLOCKS, THE SWEET-SOUNDING PAN DELIGHTS THE MODULATIONS OF THE FORESTS. THE CHORUSES OF THE NAIADS AND DRYADS, AND THE SECRET RITES OF BACCHUS, THE REVELING SATYRS THROUGHOUT THE TEMPEAN REGIONS. PAN TAUGHT THE THYASOS THE MODULATIONS OF SONG, AND FIRST BOUND THE VARIED SOUNDS INTO CONSORTS. ATTIS, THE LOVER OF THE GREAT MOTHER, THE CYBELE, THE EROS, THE TORCH-BEARER, THE GOD WITH THE SOFT LIPS, KINDLED THE LOVES OF THE IDAEAN MOTHER. THE MUSES INSPIRED THE UNHAPPY SONGS IN ME. THE JUDGE OF BEAUTY CARRIED THE HIGH FORM IN IDA. THE WIFE, THE COMPANION, THE VOTIVE, THE NEIGHBOR, THE HUSBAND. THE SUN SINGS, INVITING AT THE ORTUS.

This is a pipe of fifteen heroic verses, decreasing by a single letter from the first line to the last. This poem is absent from Pith. Comelinus published it from Velser’s edition at the end of the Notes of Joseph Scaliger on Theocritus, p. 29, edition of 1396, in-8. XIII. Blessed prince, now under a peaceful sky, with the world favoring, serene to just peoples, bestowing a health-giving divinity, victor, you triumph, ruling with love through favorable ages, the author of salvation, rising quiet, goes there, with the right hand from above favoring the lords’ prayers, he rejoices to submit to the peaceful omen of the ruler. The virtue, radiant with vigor, grants the holy to see the remote things of the world, the health-giving divinity moderating the whole world under the orb, with favoring nod you will conquer the gods everywhere, blessed, ruling alone through every age. Now under a peaceful sky, blessed prince, with the world favoring, serene to just peoples, bestowing a health-giving divinity, victor, you triumph, ruling with love through favorable ages, the author of salvation, rising quiet, goes there, with the right hand from above favoring the lords’ prayers, he rejoices to submit to the peaceful omen of the ruler. The virtue, radiant with vigor, grants the holy to see the remote things of the world, the health-giving divinity moderating the whole world under the orb, with favoring nod you will conquer the gods everywhere, blessed, ruling alone through every age.

Verse 6. Dominis. Pith. domini. So also verse 18. Superos. Pith. supero. So also verse 23. Pithoeus’s edition prefixes these words, omitted in Velser’s: On the following page is a verse consisting of half iambic and half trochaic: it turns the trochaic part into iambic, and the iambic into trochaic. The same page has in the acrostic, Pius Augustus: In the telestich. Constantinus. The verses in Pithoeus are arranged thus on page 365. Princeps beate placide (read placido) sub axe jam nunC. Jam nunc sub axe placido beate princeps. Justis serene, etc. Mundo favente, etc. And so forth. XIV. ingemvigrAvitergraecvmmiserAtvsamicvm cvimeamensAdmissadolenscvpitOmniafari solvsvtHaecOccvltalegenssEconCitetira vndiqvEadfliXvmvinclissoNtemqvEteneri sedviTansmvltOsqvosfoedAadivrgiAcoivx volvErittestesNevcandiDafeminagrAecvm moxKarishebetetTelisnIhilimprobacYgni dePosvissevidensHeleNamcvigratiabiNis mAioradvlteriisdoNoMinacvnctalibentEr MvsasonatgrecisfriXconivxcredecadentI

XV. Victorious, strong in the constellations, your power will go to the Persians, joining the boundaries of Latium. Now the prince, received with joy, dedicates to himself the harmony of the divine. Already the Parthian peoples, united, are given to Augustus and the great father, for the joys of Constantine. The Muse favors such a great song, and you, with your verses, paint the twenty-year annals. You, once a suppliant, now a leader, famous in arms, with piety and faith, greater glory of honors. Let all be equal to your trophies. Spare the verses now; virtue proclaims the nurturing. The Indians and Arabs, far away, bring gifts, and wealthy Media, the Ethiopians, rising swiftly with the Nile. The Thetians, from the lap of the earth, give all things joyful. Constantine, now, with a good omen, shines for the age. Happy, the Muses ask what is worthy to be offered. Rewards for virtues, merits, or songs that resound. You, who compose sacred verses under the valleys of Helicon, with laurel, what songs do you gather? From the Castalian springs, respond, and call forth triumphs. What the fountains of the Muses give, you, with your song, a poet worthy of God, if you dare to bring forth. A greater work weaves the masses; the whole mountain rises. The song, painted, completes the twenty-year picture. The verses vary, the second offering, under the contest of meters. The Caesars give peace to the ages. Indulge the children, the fatherland, piety, honor. Gentle, you rule; but in the strength of Christ, the forces are not doubtful. The Rhine and the Rhine, and the Danube, are guarded. The farther lands prepare, and the Franks, sad laws. Now, holy, the eternal rites of peace. The mission, sent from the Dacian Constantine, serene times. Accept the offering, the highest of the Pierian Muses.

In this poem, there are thirty-five letters in every line, and written in the middle body of the page is AVG. XX. CAES. X. But in the lines of the three letters AVG., the verse runs: When such writings please, the Muses dare their own deviations; In the following two, which are XX: To mark modes in various ways, and devoted thoughts; Likewise of the three letters, which are CAE: Joys, which my Phoebean Camena speaks while painting. In the two which are in the fourth place, S. X: Great Father, grant me to utter the thirty years with pious voice. Verse 1. Sidereis. Pith. page 333, sideriis. Versis. Pith. versus. Sedet. Pith. sedit. Barthius reads dedit. Poscit. Pith. possit. Cristi in. Pith. Crispi in. IN THE LEMMA SUBJOINED TO THE POEM. Likewise of the three letters. Pith. In the third ones, which are CAE. XVI.

Sancte decus mundi a CRE rum summa salutiS Lux pia terrarum te SOlo Principe saeclI Im Mensum gaudere bonis dAt ura aureaveNit Summ o missa deo fusiS pateR alma tyraNnis Iustitia in terras eT gloriA candida veri Teque Ducem age gratA fides eT iura Renata Totaque perculsis in genti molet Yrannis Aspera vis posita esT belli res ita laivre Sceptra dabit populis votO piu s orbis eoi Auguste in victas muNdit rans ibi sinoras Teque suplex totis duciB us sTipata svene Orati vracupit lvciSS ibi gaudia nostrae Optata mat fallax en Perfida tela fugarvm Parthus deposuit rvItor is undique verbri Litoris aetheriO enU tu certamine amoris Medus Arabs mox omniS o vatlauda re sereni Oris lustrat videt aVER is sancte tropaeis Haec mage felices tiTulos vincas ut amore Aurea perpetuo resTA urans saecula mundo Indus et Aurora e mIlEs quos flumine nilus Tangit fecundis urUs frugifer undis Orantes pia iura petEnt genS nobilis ortu Aethiopes cunCti parent optata quem mundi Tempora laeta dedit nobis felicius aevum Ensuplices Persae iura sibi regia nolunt Te dominum malunt fuS ita semper adobant Oras su cupiunt tot isti bice dere regnis Tu pius et iustus vere memor inclyta laetis Daresponsa bona semper mitis simus orbis Imperi tretuum clementer et addit onumen Sint mage felices pariter quos alme tu vere Et reparata iungens maesti divortia mundi Orbes iunge pares deT leges Roma volenteS Principe te in populos miti felicius aevo Omnia laetentur florentibus aurea rebuS Holy glory of the world, to the CRE highest salvation, Pious light of the lands, with you SOLE Prince of the age, Immense joy in good things gives the golden age, Sent from high, the fatherly mercy of the tyrant scattered, Justice on earth and bright glory of truth, You as leader, grateful faith and renewed laws, And the whole weight of the tyrant overthrown among the nations, The harsh force of war is laid aside, Scepters will be given to the peoples by the pious wish of the eastern world, Augustus, you cleanse the world, extending its borders, And you, suppliant, with all your leaders, the crowded path, The prayer of the people desires the brightest joys of our time, The hoped-for day, the deceitful and treacherous weapons of flight, The Parthian laid down, the victor everywhere with the word, Of the ethereal shore, you in the contest of love, The Mede, the Arab, soon all, with praise of the serene, The shore shines, sees the holy trophies of truth, These more fortunate titles, may you conquer with love, The golden age, renewing the world forever, The Indus and the Dawn, the soldiers whom the Nile Touches with its fertile waters, the fruitful waves, The peoples praying for pious laws, the noble race by birth, The Ethiopians all obey the desired one of the world, The joyful times gave us a more fortunate age, The suppliant Persians do not want royal laws for themselves, They prefer you as lord, always worshiping you, They desire your shores, all these kingdoms for you, You are pious and just, truly mindful of the famous joys, You give good responses, always gentle to the world, Your empire, you rule with clemency and add the divine, Let them be more fortunate alike, whom you nourish with truth, And the restored world joining the sad divisions, Join the equal worlds, give laws willing for Rome, With you as prince among the peoples, in a more fortunate age, Let all rejoice in the golden flourishing of things.

In this page there are thirty-five letters: in which the monogram of Christ is depicted in red, through which a line running from the first letter of the first verse to the last of the last contains, Protected by the aid and perpetual will of the highest God; And from the first letter of the last verse to the last of the first, ascending obliquely, this writing ascends, He pacified the whole world by the slaughter of the tyrants. From the middle letter of the first verse to the middle of the last, descending straight down, the red line contains, Constantinus, pious and eternal emperor; The bend which forms the Greek letter has written, Restorer of the world. Verse 5. Justice on earth. This verse is absent from Pith. page 367. Itala. Pith. wrongly Italia. Unconquered. Pith. Unconquered. And you suppliant. Very badly Pith. supplex against the meter. Porphyrius, in imitation of the ancients, shortens a long syllable by position, omitting one of the consonants, as they did in omitlo for ommitto or obmitto; disertus for dissertus; mamilla from mamma; ofella from offa. And thus Damasus used in the Hymn of Agatha: For the wretched suppliant Damasus. So the old editions, where those who were ignorant of this substituted rogita. Nor did the reviser of the Works of Damasus, Martius Milesius Sarazanus, notice this. Thus Galterus in Alexandreid book i, 280, and book viii, 7; Gul. Brito book i, 197; 428, 799; book vii, 64; book vii, 587; book ix, 121; 326; book xi, 523, etc. Our Optatianus again in this poem, verse 25.

of Christ, the following verses are composed. Serene. Pith. Serene. May you conquer through love. Pith. so that he may conquer through love. Perhaps: so that you may conquer through love. Thus below in this poem. Tertullian, Against Marcion, Book 2, verse 186. Hilary, On Genesis, verses 2, 93, 184. For this, see Weitzius. Thus page, Ancient Epigrams, Pith. The longed-for world. Pith. longed-for for the world. A more fortunate age. Pith. the fortune of the age. And thus Vels. manuscript had, which you see from the marginal note. See now what has been said. To the suppliants. Pith. suppliants, which neither the meter nor Optatian's artifice tolerates. See above in this poem, verse 11. To yield to you. Pith. to yield to himself. Give favorable responses. Pith. Give a favorable response to the good. The sad divisions of the world. See Valesius on Eusebius, p. 169. Penultimate: willing. Pith. of the willing one. See Nic. Heinsius's Preface to the most recent edition of Virgil. Penultimate: more fortunate for me. Pith. gentle fortune. IN THE SUBJECT OF THE POEM'S LEMMA. In which of Christ. Pith. In which of Christ. Red lettering depicts. Pith. slippery lettering depicts.

Through which, etc. Pith. through whom from the first of the first verse. The letter of the last verse to nov. Pith. last verse to nov. Up to the middle. In Pith. up to is absent. Rubric. Pith. slippery. It makes a letter, has written. Pith. it makes a letter, has written through a slippery place, Repar. XVII.

Accept the painted new laws, golden light, with clement signs of divinity and perpetual prayer. The whole people ask for your favor, joys, and merits, preserving the faithful service of Augustus and the proven law of Christ. Glory proceeds through the ages, bearing a candid mind, as the adorned Serene one gathers all with gifts, granting laurel-wreathed vows and titles of virtues from the first blessed years. Offspring and noble lineage enrich the age with ancestral honor and true progeny. Rome flows with an unconquered prince, nurturing soldiers in peace, granting gentle gifts. This eighth honor fulfills the vow of the restored world, teaching the breaking of faith. The best laws, equal under Mars, never harm faith, binding fate with a yoke. Sons read the peaceful piety, and Constantine now raises renowned fame, increasing the pious stock with perpetual vows. The sacred seat rejoices in the mind's joy, dwelling in the ethereal hinge of the world. Now the fatherland's virtue ends the war's labor, and the serene mind speaks just fear, nourishing the breast with pious gifts. The chaste Claudius, unconquered in war, great in fame, increases virtue, dividing the Goths. The daughter and grandson Constantine rule all in peace, completing the age of Augustus with greater faith and merit. The world, given as a gift, surpasses the former, and through you, sons, great praises bind the law of God, making eternal ages for the pious scepter of serene Constantine.

In this poem, each verse has thirty-five letters, and the same number in all parts of the sides. In it, from the first letter of the first verse to the last letter of the last verse, descending diagonally, runs this verse: Nourishing with salvation, now this page for you with a sign. And again, from the first letter of the last verse up to the last letter of the first verse, ascending diagonally, runs this verse: The writing gleams, resounding with the names of the lord. Again, near the middle, here of the acrostich, there of the telostich, the written letters, seven on each side, run straight in the two letters I and E, and in the middle, with the acrostich and telostich shaped into a line of the letter S, is expressed through these three parts a heroic verse: Born of God, alone Savior, holy of the good. Again, in the line of the letter V, which is at the middle of the last verse, is written: You are God of the just, grace of the faithful. Again, through the middle of the Greek letter X, a descending stroke, which has a bend like the Greek letter P, has written prose:

Let victory be the companion of Augustus and his children. This entire picture contains the monogram of Christ and the written letters IESVS. Verse 2: Perenne. Pith. reads perenni. Summe fave. Pith. reads Summa fave. Roma fluit. Pith. reads Roma cluit. Curis sub. Pith. reads Curiis sub. Pietate secuta. Pith. reads Pietate secura, incorrectly. Tuas sedes. Pith. reads suas sedes. Opes. Pith. reads Opus. Claudius. Whence Constantinus is descended. Below in the poem. See Trebellius Pollio. Fili aetate potens. Pith. reads et pietate potens. Correctly. Last: Saecla pii sceptri te Const. Pith. reads Saecla piis cepi rite C. IN THE LEMMA OF THE POEM SUBJOINED. Tricenae quinae sunt. Pith. reads tric. quinae litterae sunt. Laterum totidem. In qua. Pith. reads laterum in qua. And again from the first letter of the first verse to the last letter of the last verse, ascending obliquely, this verse: Scripta micat, resonans nominibus Domini. These are missing in Pith. Again near the middle. Pith. reads And again from the first verse near the middle, on each side seven letters in a straight line with two letters, which are I E, and in the middle acrostic in the letter S, the line deformed: from p. h. t. p. h.

To the middle of the last verse is written. Pith. to the middle of the last verse, and in the line of the letter S, which is in the middle of the telestich, a pentameter verse is written here. Again through the middle. Pith. again through the middle. It has a prose written. Pith. has a prose writing. And the letters JESUS written. Pith. and at the bottom the letters JESUS. XVIII. I. III. VII. XII. MirvmopvseStcvnctoSettalesEdereversvS sIcqvelocArEhederIsPavlvmTvDierogatVs moXadeseNqvoRsvmRapiEsqvIpraEbeofiXas svmTvvsEtprimIsTvadisCiMvsvttRiafEliX necfAlLaxtribvEnsavdacIinmvnerEcLarvm aeqviParesaniMvMnvnccLiOcarminaFirmet qvaepOtEruntpAngiPonaMcevStaminAnOrmas qvaEverRantSeseqvAeVincvlAmitIacvRent tvDabishAsVirestvaRvrsvmcoSeRepraeMia XI. aVsibvsinMagnislaEtAadcontrAriacvrrAs IV. AonidvmnamFontegRaviMicataRsNovaveniS iMmanesTproRsvmamplexVavtTotoCivsonAs prOspiCereplAnTaremodoSiNmittaTvtlTem etpRoIiectaneCetconsvmtOingloriAlIbro sisaPivntetnOsTracvisvCcRescereaCvmen praEsOlidvmDensVmqveaNimiDedvcereViva coNgrvErecErnantStvdIoseqvIbonAcalLes VIII. lEgib.abStRvsisqvoDcArminacoNsPicoraTi IX. BlandeanImiivdexqvImorib.omniAcisavctV pRaemirOoStendissTvDiainrecToRepoliTa trEvsiColaSq.tvosAvctVslaetAbilEsvmEns intViTvmqvoProsPerafaCtaCgavdiAdOnes pvblIcanilprIvSestqvodVlEtnomineCvras fasSiTsidoniiSensvminpeNetralepAtRoni noScerEqvaepOsSisillicNiTorociTereIvs V. cOnditvRabsTrvsAgenerOsvmCogeRecensVm XIII.

Poverty blazes, groans twin, new joys of vows. Rich man's line, golden, foul, plectrum. This new knows praises, learned, as equal, so great. They are brief from good, you right hand, be present. With holy ones, stand, faith, feast, in name, more. Clemency, these, as, Augustus, to you, gift, blessed. Praises, to others, give, you consul, rewards, complete. Here, then, feast, names, note, name, more. Very many, and prudent, verse, as, to be repeated. Degenerate, soft, more, in, from, thus. Receive, vow, eager, common, man, clear. II. VI. X. XIV. I. Mixed through winding paths, the Muses draw out songs, II. Or lattice-work, spaces into opposite bends. III. We prepare a series to arrange more sharply, IV. Love of poetry, dense, rejoices to be exacted. V. It can come together, learned, by the limit of matter. VI. The work protects, not denied, frugality. VII. Beautiful, holy, by cultivation. VIII. Well-painted, Muse, by meters, IX. Briefly you flow as this, X. The work is through narrow gathering. XI. I dare full XII. To produce forms: XIII. I will mark painted things.

XIV. The Laws of the Camenae. This poem is absent from Pith. XIX. ALMETVASLAVRVSAETASSUSTOLLETINASTRA The light shines with signs of pride, the limit within the consul. Mars, serene, holds the rejected Muses' weight. And you, from the midst, grant the burning scepter to direct. The fierce fields of the camp, the lost lights, the face turns to the vow, the happy one with its own diminished stroke. The Armenian leader, having borne the iron, the sun, and the pillow. Thus, and victorious, report the slaughtered Dacians and Franks. The law, the shearer, the harsh, the German, the command, the exile. The columns of the line, the ancient walls of rebellion submit. The flourishing Italian forces, led forth, conquer. The king for you, the harvests, the sight, the limit of the avenger. He saw the summit, the column, and the fierce heat of the water. The servant of the Ocean, the pressure of the Ganges, the Ionian Sea. And the green rays, the light, the rising from the trophy. They rejoice in piety, the altars, the scattered, the savage. You, the poet, confirm the dictation, then the lyre sings. Increased by God, virtue, the Muses, more adorned, open. Only the turning of the notes, the lands, the varied, the people give. The sacred, the strength, the Clio, the mixture, the vows, the trophies. The sight, the increase, the painted, the grace, the song. The sight, the strength, the twenty, the grace, the polished. Such a torch, the signs, the lyre, the gifts, it bears. The beginning, the equal, which the Delian bears. The light, the wall, the venerable, the leader, the sun. The laws, the use, the Titan, the Aeneas, the bird, the tribune. The distinguished titles, the piety, you will have, the love. So many straits, the peaceful, the peak, the change, the kingdom rejoices. The Indian, the key-bearer, the Latin, the face, the touch, the ship. The Nile, the reaper, the brother, the camp, the phalanx. The Bear, which the Carpinian knows, and scarcely these boundaries. Thus these hidden ones, among the running, the sense. The snow, the help, the arc, the bridge, the Pontic, the ornament, it increases. Rome, the sister, the ancient ones, your own, which the wall holds. ALMETVASLAVRVSAETASSUSTOLLETINASTRA

Nurturing, your laurels your age will raise to the stars. Golden light of the bards, keep the rewards of the forest for me. Virtue increased by God adorns the Muses more openly. Golden piety sounds forth the victor with a fertile tongue. Piety aids the Aonian springs and the divine arms. Piety aids the flower of the narrow way, the arms, the trophies. Piety aids the Aonian shrubs with a fertile clod.

Castalides, I rule, you will give the palm. Constantine has the wars, the victory, the trophy. The victor, giving back the world happily with counsels, calming and delaying, Rome, your books of ages may be able to weave bonds. The strength of virtue does not arm the enemy. Thus the great patient one taught, sparing in battle. What piety gives, after that rage, the clement one. Never now, Heliconian Muses, send me so many composed songs for these times. Weave the palms of the seasons, the strength of virtue, the songs, and all sing together so that the fruit, happy and worthy of the prince, may give the grateful stock, extending whatever page the verse may have. Hence he vows, I, the poet, driving away the songs, the Pierian and Phoebean god, preside over the fountains of Castalia. Your fragrant mind, soaring high, seeks the citadel, and I, composing verse, the Muse, now under a happy prince, bearing gifts of praise, resounding on a noble branch, the victorious one, my daring, gives triumphs to me and the merit of the just, to render the noble palms. The Aonian valley, flowing, raises the waves, sanctifying the salvation of the world, the arms shining with signs. The crest, better, of the song, happy, fruitful, Clio, your song, your beautiful youth, noble, and you, the splendor of the Quirites, and the hope of the cities, your mind, Caesar, you, conquering, the most pleasing treaties of peace always, indulge and, easy, join the nations asking, make the joys of the cities, with virtues increased. Constantine, the praise of the world, the glory of the age, Romulean star, light, clement, famous among brothers, nobility of ancestors, truly memorable fame, restored the victor, Caesar, the name and the honor, holy father, ruler of the heavens, the happy twentieth year, and the tenth, growing, solemn, born for Augustus.

In this poem, through all parts, there are thirty-seven letters, and the written shape of a palm, in which the first two branches of the palm, because they seemed short and could not fill a verse, a line was added both straight and diagonal, Castalides, with a learned verse, conclude the palm. With the same first letter remaining common, and the M letter of the first verse remaining common, the second branch, descending and ascending diagonally, makes this verse, Constantine, be favorable; now I call you Phoebus in my songs. Through the third branch, likewise descending and ascending diagonally, this verse, The mind calls, daring to impose new laws upon meters. Through the fourth branch, likewise descending and ascending diagonally, this verse, Under a like limit, the branches growing everywhere. Through the middle trunk, from the middle letter of the first verse to the middle of the last verse, this verse descends, So that the verse, interwoven with the song of the Muses, may render. Verse 6. Mites non arm. Pith. mitis non ar.

So the great. Pith. So the great. Let him give after dire threats. Pith. until after pious threats, merciful. Barth. read: after javelin threats. Helicon. Pith. Helicon. Composed. Correctly. Pith. badly composed. Weaving. Pith. weaving. Poems. Pith. song. Of the virtues, the commanded, bold. Pith. of the virtues, the ju' ax. Commanded so many. Pith. of the just so many. These songs of the mind. Pith. we of the mind e. Last. Solemn. Pith. solemn. IN THE LEMMA OF THE POEM SUBJOINED. And the written shape of a palm. Pith. and written in minium, and they are shapes of a palm. The first two branches. Pith. the first two branches. The same letter pr. Pith. The same letter C pr. Makes a verse. Pith. makes this verse. Equally through the oblique desc. Pith. omits through the oblique. Growing on all sides. Pith. growing u. But the author wrote growing. Verse to the middle. Pith. verse up to the middle. XXI.

Calliope, Paean, Plura, Proca, Xenore, Serenus, fons Castalii, deus, audi, et inde canoros meus furit innexus et felix currere votis iam secreta detovans libet ire per avia sola impete quo gressus et fandio optata cupido invitat atulit mens tantum maxime Caesar Aoniae nodosa amplectitur ingitus aethra funde pater coeptis musa sadmutuaversus scrupea fingentem tam duro carmina versu ludere fas nobis praesumeret diceremetra gaudia vel tenui mea pandere sit mihi musa tantus honor me ire verso per sidera saeclo decus Ausoniae tulerit sic parva locuto amplius invidex dominus tot munera summa tantaque concedis tu mentem dicere donis invitus laudiscum munere sic vaga primis haud audita legas nec dictis laesa camena audet magnanimo tuo nova vincula mentis iussa dare crevitque meo correpta favore enageiam reddit votis pia praemia magnum concordi saeclo Romae decus et sibi mundi iuras vitot lux populis orbi que tropaeum sic datas sunt is to maior tua gloria terris auguste tuis praesens et tantus ubique imperiis fecunde paras nunc omine cristi oceani intacta soras quibus eruta franci dat regio procul ecce deum videt latis tota patent campis ut cae soli mite victor rite avosum momelior cui Claudius acer magnanimum sidus dat clarum menumine divo imperium virtus quem felix optata lum num auges flore tuo nostra et tibi debitae vitae ortam icat fratrum fatalis gloria saeclo relati aut votl compos sic gaudet aucta aspice pacato parta est lux laeta sub orbe

In this poem, thirty-five letters are distributed throughout all parts. From the first letter of the first line to the last letter of the last line, a rubric descending diagonally has written: Constantine, greatest emperor and invincible. Likewise, from the first letter of the last line, a rubric ascending diagonally, up to the last letter of the first line, equally has written: Most provident guardian of eternal peace. From the seventh letter of the first line to the seventh from the end of the same line, ascending in a curve: Father, you rule; grandfather, may you rule. Likewise, from the seventh letter of the last line to the seventh from the end of the same line, this same phrase appears. From the thirteenth letter of the first line to the thirteenth from the end of the same line, it has written: Pious and fortunate. By the same reasoning, this same phrase is written in the last line. From the seventh letter of the acrostich to the seventh from the end of the acrostich, it has written: Restorer of the golden age. This same phrase is written identically from the seventh letter of the telestich to the seventh from the end of the same telestich. From the thirteenth letter of the acrostich to the thirteenth from the end of the same acrostich, it has written:

All things great. The telostich has this written identically from the thirteenth telostich to the thirteenth of the same. Verse 2. Fontes. Pith. p. 377, Fontis. Libet. Pith. licet. Tam duro. Pith. jam duro. Tulerit. Pith. tuleris. Amplius en. Pith. Amplius et. Tu mentem dicere. Pith. tu menti edicere. Legas nec dictis laesa. Pith. ligas nec dictis laeta. Voti. Pith. vati. Magnum. Pith. magnus. Major tua gloria. Barth. ad Claudian. p. 507, edit. Cristi. Pith. Crispi. Deum. Pith. dium. Campis ut caeso. Pith. campi sub caeso. IN THE LEMMA SUBJOINED TO THE POEM. Rubrica. Pith. lubrica. Ad septimam a fine. Pith. omits a. Per anfractum ascendens. Pith. per amfractum ascendens et descendens habet scriptum, Pater i. A. i. Ad septimam a fine ej. Pith. ad septimam fine ejusd. Tertiam decimam, a fine. Pith. omits a again. Eadem ratione et in ult. Pith. omits et.

At the end of the acrostic. Pith. at the end of the acrostic. This same thing it has. Pith. He arranges thus: Likewise from the seventh telostich to the seventh at the end of that same telostich, this same thing it has written. At the end of the same. Pith. at the end of the same. The telostich has this written. Pith. Likewise the thirteenth telostich in the thirteenth of the same telostich has this written. XXII.

Martia gesta modis audax imitata sonoris Musa refert figiem tuvarum carmine texit et nunc agmen agit quino sub limite rectum Musa genus spatium septeno limite distans nunc eadem versus relegens utcumque meat mittit in amfractus non una lege catervas dissona componit diverso carmine gaudens Gratanis misflexu docili deperpetemetro orta iterum finem socians confinia contra praeponens sortis nullo discrimine metri quietiam partes media sua munia doctae expediunt versis vicibus nam fines aeduno quamvis ambigo cursu et devia claudit ostentans artem vinciri scrupea praebet sarmaticas usus strages sed tota peracta vota precor paveas sub certo condit avisa factorum gratum tam grandi adicere vatem iam totiens Auguste licet campona cruore hostili post bella madens artissima toto corpora fusa solo submersa amne repleto victrix miratur turba aciem que ferocem plurima conabor Phoebe o carmine gaudens margens is memor ora boni caelestia facta introitus et bella loqui per culsar vunis quis devicta iacet gens duro Marte caduca testis magnorum vicina bona nonia praesens situ tibi compose excisa que agmina cernens detiuga captivis et ducar carcera praedas grandia victori molimur praelia plectro dicere nec satis est votum sic complectore musa suo quae cunque parat sub lege sonare scruposis innexa modis perfecta carmenis vultre sonare meis et testis nota tropaea depictis signare metris cum munere sacro mentis devota placari infata procellas

In this poem, through all the verses, there are thirty-five letters: across this page run two verses written in red, each of five parts of speech, which individually have seven letters, of which, with the last remaining fixed, the other four exchange positions among themselves, so that the first, if you wish, becomes the fourth, and the fourth again the first, the second, if you wish, becomes the third, the third, if you wish, becomes the second, and with the last remaining fixed, the verse becomes reciprocal in manifold ways, not only changing itself, but also, with another verse, maintaining the same principle of variation, with the order of the parts preserved, which you wish to change, so that you can change any part of speech you wish from it through the order of its own parts. These two verses are: *Dissona Musarum vinciri stamine gaudens, Grandia conabor Phoebeo carmina plectro.* The same verse runs through various twists and turns up and down. In this same poem there are four squares in the corners of six letters, two triangles, and two larger right-angled figures halved, and one hexagon in the middle, and scalene figures through the four corners, all with an equal number of letters, and with an equal order increasing or decreasing, that is, all similar: triangles to triangles, right-angled figures to right-angled figures, squares to squares, scalene figures to scalene figures.

Verse 4. Limite. Pith. p. 355, milite. Versu. Pith. verso. Vinciri. Pith. vincire. Incorrect. Sarmaticas usum str. Pith. Sarmaticas summas str. Artissima. Pith. arcissima. Conabor Phaebeo. Pith. conarer Phoeboeo. Ruinis. Pith. Ruinas. Duro Marte. Pith. dura Morte. Cetera. Pith. coetera. Quaecunque. Pith. quaecunque. Last. Placari in fata pr. Pith. placarint fata. Orthogona. Pith. octagona. Dimidiata. Pith. dimidiatu. IN THE LEMMA CARUM SUBJECTUM. Utrique. Pith. uterque. Sit tertia, tertia cum velis, sit. Pith. sit tertia tia c, v. s. Per ordinem. Pith. pro ordine. Vinciri stam. Pith. vincire stam. Incorrect. The same verse through various bends upward and d. Pith. The same verse and through various bends upward and d. XXIII.

Augustus, a specimen of mild clemency, great Ausonian victor, greatest in might, from the Castalian spring the songs pour forth your highest gifts. Now Phoebus, full of favor, grant me a mind and pious senses, and I will bear worthy signs. The empire, born and powerful, happy for war, eternal for ages, I shall paint in song. I dare to pray: you yourself help the glory of your seers. The song, though now the Muse's abundance cannot do such things, which I, under the law of alternating verse, with one limit and another, with names marking the measures, distinguish the seeds of speech. It helps that the gentle light and joys of the world establish the following forms in a musical vow. Your virtues and character, to set forth the deeds, sanctify and increase our trust. Leading you, pious, rejoicing under this gift, I mark the yoke hastening the Muses under the ever-leafy roof. The arts and the waves of the learned bard, the unconquered kings, the slippery peace of the victor, whether he lays low wars or establishes mild treaties, whether he exercises your sacred rites, the greater part of the world, your presence, the returning giver soon shows the eternal urn of the age. The ruler of the times, just, the ethereal one, with placid clemency, just, through which your all-mild victor, the peoples flourish with joys of the mind. The Caesars and your eternal victory, the happy companion in ages, prevails. Such great merits, your captured trophies, the victorious Sarmatian, so often the famous leader, everywhere your vows, the happy giver, the already owed consulships rejoice in your pure rites. The right leader, our peace, the ages flourish.

In this poem, there are thirty-five letters in every part, from which, from the first letter of the first line, a rubric descending to the central square, and from the square obliquely ascending to the last letter of the first line, makes a line: Ausonian column, nurturing light, and glory of Rome. Again, from the thirteenth letter of the acrostic, which is v, ascending obliquely to the first line near the middle, and from there descending obliquely to the thirteenth letter of the telestic, which is i, makes a line: A specimen of virtues, mild clemency of the world. The final parts, however, serve both lines alternately, each to each line. Then, through the acrostic, from the fourteenth letter, nine letters descending straight, and opposite them in equal order near the middle of the poem another nine, and likewise beyond the middle of the poem in equal order another nine, and likewise beyond the telestic another nine, make a line.

Parent of justice, blessed hope, and peace of affairs. Again, from the twenty-third letter of the acrostich, descending obliquely to the last line, and from there a little directly, and ascending obliquely to the twenty-third of the telostich, it makes the line: The heavenly gift sent to us through the ages, Letters from the last letter of the acrostich, from the first of the last line ascending obliquely to the central square, and a little directly, and descending obliquely, to the last letter of the last line, make the line: The presence of the ruler and God prevails through you. In this poem, there are four hexagons with an equal number of sides, eight trigons with an equal number of letters, one central square, with an equal number of letters on every side. Line 2.1 Victor. Pith. 357, ductor. Under the painted poem. Pith. pictor su Carmine. Of the seers. Pith. vatem. The abundance of the Muse. Pith. coeta Musae. Another line of the border a. q. p. i. all. Pith. Versu aliuo limo aliud quo paqina in omnis.

Seeds of speech. Pith. path of speech. The divine power aids. Pith. the divine power commands. By the nod of treaties. Pith. by the nod of a treaty. God. Pith. Gods. Ibid. Of the just one. Pith. just things. Of the mind. Pith. minds. Penultimate. Well-composed. Correctly. Pith. badly composed. IN THE LEMMA OF THE POEM SUBJOINED. In which from the first letter of the first verse, descending by the rubric. Pith. in which from the first letter of the first verse, descending obliquely, slippery descent. To the first verse near the middle. Pith. to near the middle of the first verse. Of the telostichis. Pith. of the telestichis. Alternately each to each. "Each" is absent from Pith. Another page of nine. After these, there are inserted in Pith. and likewise beyond the middle of the page in equal order another nine, and likewise in the telestichis another nine making verses. To the twenty-third of the telostichis making a verse. Pith. from the twenty-third letter of the telestichis they make a verse. Letters from the last letter of the acrostichis. Pith. Likewise from the last letter of the acrostichis.

Ascending. Pith. ascending. Directed. Pith. directed. Descending. Pith. descending. On this page. Pith. On this page. XXIV. XXV.

After the labors of Mars, the divided boundaries of the earth are measured by the eternal laws of the Caesars, flowing from a single source of virtues throughout the world. The Aonian cities, with their heroic right remaining, bloom with laurels, and the daring gift of a happy meter weaves the trophies of the prince, increasing the beginnings of long-suffering with happy triumphs. With a small course and a small motion, the growth of Augustus increases the ages. The last and final peak, the whole exults in every age. The ascending path, heaped up, closes the boundary. The cities that flourish with grace, with one space of verses, the elements of the former and the decorations of leaves, the enumerator compels the equal law to be held. The whole streets are green. With small, long, and various measures, much is dissonant. Here the order is clear. With times under equal measure and the same reasons, with the purple of honors, the half number is moved, but the equal part is made. With a happy dew of prayer, this will be in various species, a most fitting song. They bring gifts, happy, through which modes and steps the fecundity of song rises. Now the highest peak of the world, with hollow air and a triple reed, increased by growing, gives gifts and crowns. Whoever, with well-placed square plectra, shining with gold, the craftsman's hand closes and opens the numbers. The victories of triumphs, testing the breaths with calm, harmonious rhythms, and the vows of the theaters, under which a wave spreads, driven by hastening winds, return to the dances. Which, with frequent changes, the labor of youth, discordant with itself, the measure of such great things is unequal. Here and there, it animates, drives, increases, and struggles, with solemn motion. Composed to the numbers and proper to the songs, it provides. Scarcely had this sounded, and what it can, the smallest, moved, the trembling frequency, all the vows of the Phoebean spring.

It helps to fulfill the vows made, with Augustus as victor. These verses have a number of one ambic dimeter catalectic, all of eighteen letters. In this poem, a type of organ is depicted in twenty-six verses, in which the entire upper part is written in heroic meter, whose first verse is of twenty-five letters, and then each in order, by increments of single letters, reaches up to fifty, which is the number of the last verse, which doubles the number of letters of the first verse, being in the same meter. Then, through the middle, a verse is written in a different rubric: It helps to fulfill the vows made, with Augustus as victor. These designate something like the rule of the organ. INTO POEM 24. Verse 7. Augusta rite saeclis. Here Pith. omits and places it last. Hac ordo veste clarus. Pith. Hinc ordo veste clara.

The high point of the world. Pith. Now Rome, the high point of the world. Unjust to such great things. Pith. unjust to joyful things. Solemn. Pith. solemn. IN THE LEMMA OF CARMEN XXIV SUBJOINED. These verses have, etc. Pithoeus omits these here, and places them on p. 374, but differently at the end of Carmen 25, see shortly. IN CARMEN XXV. Verse 8. Ascensu j. c. l. claudat. Pith. Ibid. Ascensus j. c. l. cludat. Isdem. Pith. iisdem. Canoris. Pith. sonoris. Suppositis. Pith. subpositis. Placidis. Pith. placitis. Animatque agitans. Pith. animaeque agitant. Frequentia. Pith. frequenter. Last. Quidquid. Pith. quicquid. IN THE LEMMA OF CARMEN XXV SUBJOINED. Who doubles the number of letters of the first verse, although it is in an even meter. Pith., who doubles the number of letters of the first verse, since the first verse is in an even meter. Which designate as if r. o. Pith. Which designate r. o. Soon the Pithoean edition adds, which Velserus had subjoined to Carmen 24:

Verses proceed which have been placed with long labor, and they have an iambic dimeter catalectic meter: all of sixteen letters. To these two poems, consult Buchner on the hymn of Venantius Fortunatus on the Resurrection of Christ, page 27, and Barth on Claudian, 2nd edition, page 179. XXVI. The Muses compose arduous happy songs, they join dissonant bonds with diverse meters, the bards, fashioning rough things, twisting their breasts, everywhere confused, each single word will stand firm. These four verses are all written on the same principle, so that, with the last part of the speech remaining, you can vary all the other parts of the verse orders only by mutual exchange, either in a direct or a reciprocal manner, but only so that the first parts exchange places with the first or fourth, the second with the second or third, and you can, if you wish, without any part of the speech being added, make seventy-two verses from these four, so that none is like itself.

The steep songs the blessed Muses compose, they join together discordant bonds with diverse meters, the bards, twisting their rocky hearts, sing, each thing will stand firm in words confused from all sides. The blessed Muses compose the steep songs, they join together discordant bonds with diverse meters, the bards, twisting their rocky hearts, sing, each thing will stand firm in words confused from all sides. The steep songs the twisting Muses will stand firm, they compose and join together discordant bonds with meters, the bards, fleeing to diverse rocky hearts, from all sides blessed, they sing each thing with words. The songs the twisting Muses will stand firm, steep, they join together and compose discordant bonds with meters, the hearts, diverse and confused, rocky bards, each thing singing, blessed from all sides with words. From all sides they join together, each thing will stand firm for the Muses, the rocky bards compose and twist hearts with meters, discordant bonds, blessed with confused words, the bards, singing steep songs with diverse words. Each thing will stand firm, they join together from all sides, the Muses, the hearts they compose, twisting the rocky with meters, the bonds, blessed, discordant with confused words, the bards, singing steep songs with diverse words. The songs, with diverse words, blessed, steep, the Muses, the bonds they sing, they join together discordant with meters, the hearts they twist, they compose rocky, the bards, each thing, confused, will stand firm from all sides with words. The steep songs, blessed, with diverse words, the Muses, discordant bonds they join together, singing with meters, the rocky hearts they compose, twisting, the bards, from all sides each thing will stand firm, confused with words.

Each thing the Muses, composing from all sides in confused strains, the blessed bards, with diverse meters, join together discordant bonds; the rocky hearts will stand firm, they twist the songs with words. From all sides, composing in confused strains, each thing the Muses, the blessed bards, with diverse meters, the rocky hearts will stand firm, they join together bonds; they twist the discordant songs with words. The discordant bonds, twisting, will stand firm, the Muses, from all sides they join together, they compose each thing with meters; the blessed bards, with diverse meters, the confused songs, the rocky hearts, composing, with words. The rocky hearts, joining together, composing, the Muses, the songs, confused, with diverse meters, each thing the blessed bards compose from all sides; the bonds will stand firm, twisting, with words. The rocky hearts, blessed, with diverse meters, the Muses, the songs, joining together, composing, with meters, from all sides they compose, twisting, each thing the bards; the discordant bonds will stand firm, confused, with words. The bonds, confused, will stand firm, discordant, the Muses, each thing twisting, they compose from all sides with meters; the songs, composing, they join together, the blessed bards, with diverse meters, the rocky hearts, with words. The bonds, composing, they join together, discordant, the Muses, each thing will stand firm, twisting, from all sides with meters; the songs, blessed, confused, the bards, the rocky hearts, composing, with diverse meters, with words. The rocky hearts, with diverse meters, composing, the Muses, the songs, confused, blessed, with meters, from all sides twisting, each thing will stand firm, the bards; the discordant bonds, they join together, they compose, with words.

They strike the rocky hearts with confused strains, the Muses; the blessed bards, with diverse meters, the lofty songs; each thing will stand firm, they join together from all sides; twisting the bonds, they compose the discordant with words. They compose the discordant, twisting the bonds, the Muses; from all sides they join together, each thing will stand firm, the meters; with diverse meters, the lofty songs, the blessed bards; with confused strains, they strike the rocky hearts, the words.