- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:31.26.1-31.26.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
Scipio gives the entire magnificent ritual equipage of his deceased adoptive grandmother Aemilia to his natural mother. This act of generosity is highly praised by the women of Rome, marking the very first step in the growth of his reputation for virtue.
πρώτη μὲν γὰρ αὐτῷ1 μετήλλαξε τὸν βίον ἡ τοῦ κατὰ θέσιν πατρὸς μήτηρ, ἥτις ἦν ἀδελφὴ μὲν τοῦ κατὰ φύσιν πατρὸς αὐτοῦ Λευκίου, γυνὴ δὲ τοῦ κατὰ θέσιν πάππου Σκιπίωνος τοῦ μεγάλου προσαγορευθέντος.
For first of all, the mother of his adoptive father passed away, she who was the sister of his natural father Lucius, and the wife of his adoptive grandfather, Scipio surnamed the Great.
ταύτης ἀπολιπούσης οὐσίαν μεγάλην κληρονόμος ὢν πρῶτον ἐν τούτοις ἔμελλε πεῖραν δώσειν τῆς ἑαυτοῦ προαιρέσεως.
Since she left a large estate, being her heir, he was in this matter for the first time going to give proof of his own character.
συνέβαινε δὲ τὴν Αἰμιλίαν, τοῦτο γὰρ ἦν ὄνομα τῇ προειρημένῃ γυναικί, μεγαλομερῆ τὴν περίστασιν ἔχειν ἐν ταῖς γυναικείαις ἐξόδοις, ἅτε συνηκμακυῖαν τῷ βίῳ καὶ τῇ τύχῃ τῇ Σκιπίωνος·
And it happened that Aemilia—for this was the name of the aforementioned woman—had a magnificent equipage in her public appearances as a woman, inasmuch as she had shared the life and fortune of Scipio.
χωρὶς γὰρ τοῦ περὶ τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὴν ἀπήνην κόσμου2 καὶ τὰ κανᾶ καὶ τὰ ποτήρια καὶ τἄλλα τὰ πρὸς τὴν θυσίαν, ποτὲ μὲν ἀργυρᾶ, ποτὲ δὲ χρυσᾶ, πάντα συνεξηκολούθει κατὰ τὰς ἐπιφανεῖς ἐξόδους αὐτῇ, τό τε τῶν παιδισκῶν καὶ τὸ τῶν οἰκετῶν τῶν παρεπομένων πλῆθος ἀκόλουθον ἦν τούτοις.
For apart from the personal adornment and that of her carriage, the baskets and the cups and the other things for sacrifice, some of silver, others of gold, all accompanied her on her splendid outings, and the multitude of maidservants and of attendants who followed was in keeping with these.
ταύτην δὴ τὴν περικοπὴν ἅπασαν εὐθέως μετὰ τὸν τῆς Αἰμιλίας τάφον ἐδωρήσατο τῇ μητρί, ᾗ συνέβαινε κεχωρίσθαι μὲν ἀπὸ τοῦ Λευκίου πρότερον ἤδη χρόνοις πολλοῖς, τὴν δὲ τοῦ βίου χορηγίαν ἐλλιπεστέραν ἔχειν τῆς κατὰ τὴν εὐγένειαν φαντασίας.
This entire equipage, indeed, immediately after the funeral of Aemilia, he presented to his mother, who happened to have been separated from Lucius many years before, and to have a livelihood too meager for the display expected of her noble birth.
διὸ τὸν πρὸ τοῦ χρόνον ἀνακεχωρηκυίας αὐτῆς3 ἐκ τῶν ἐπισήμων ἐξόδων, τότε κατὰ τύχην οὔσης ἐπιφανοῦς καὶ πανδήμου θυσίας, ἐκπορευομένης αὐτῆς ἐν τῇ τῆς Αἰμιλίας περικοπῇ καὶ χορηγίᾳ, καὶ πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις καὶ τῶν ὀρεοκόμων καὶ τοῦ ζεύγους καὶ τῆς ἀπήνης τῆς αὐτῆς ὑπαρχούσης, συνέβη τὰς γυναῖκας θεωμένας τὸ γεγονὸς ἐκπλήττεσθαι τὴν τοῦ Σκιπίωνος χρηστότητα καὶ μεγαλοψυχίαν καὶ πάσας προτεινούσας τὰς χεῖρας εὔχεσθαι τῷ προειρημένῳ πολλὰ κἀγαθά.
Therefore, she having in the preceding period withdrawn from distinguished public appearances, when on that occasion there happened to be a splendid and public sacrifice, as she went forth in the equipage and state of Aemilia—and in addition to the rest, even the muleteers and the team and the carriage being the very same— it happened that the women, beholding what had occurred, were amazed at the goodness and generosity of Scipio, and all, stretching out their hands, prayed for many blessings upon him.
τοῦτο δὲ πανταχῇ μὲν ἂν εἰκότως φαίνοιτο καλόν, ἐν δὲ Ῥώμῃ καὶ θαυμαστόν· ἁπλῶς γὰρ οὐδεὶς οὐδενὶ δίδωσι τῶν ἰδίων ὑπαρχόντων ἑκὼν οὐδέν.4
This would reasonably seem noble anywhere, but in Rome even marvelous; for simply no one willingly gives anything of his own possessions to anyone.
πρώτη μὲν οὖν αὕτη καταρχὴ τῆς ἐπὶ καλοκἀγαθίᾳ φήμης αὐτῷ συνεκύρησε καὶ μεγάλην ἐποίησε προκοπήν, ἅτε τοῦ τῶν γυναικῶν γένους καὶ λάλου καὶ κατακοροῦς ὄντος, ἐφʼ ὅ,τι ἂν ὁρμήσῃ.
This, then, was the very first beginning of his reputation for nobility and virtue that befell him, and it made great progress, inasmuch as the race of women is both talkative and vehement in whatever they set their minds to.
- 31.26.1αὐτῷ
This dative functions as a dative of interest or reference, indicating the person affected by the change (the death of his adoptive grandmother), connecting the event directly to Scipio.
- 31.26.4χωρὶς γὰρ τοῦ περὶ τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὴν ἀπήνην κόσμου
The sentence begins with the prepositional phrase χωρὶς τοῦ... κόσμου ('apart from the adornment...'). After this, several subjects (baskets, cups, etc.) are listed and then summarized by the pronoun πάντα, which serves as the subject of the verb συνεξηκολούθει.
- 31.26.7διὸ τὸν πρὸ τοῦ χρόνον ἀνακεχωρηκυίας αὐτῆς
This section contains a complex series of nested genitive absolutes (ἀνακεχωρηκυίας αὐτῆς, οὔσης... θυσίας, ἐκπορευομένης αὐτῆς, and ὑπαρχούσης) that describe the background and circumstances leading up to the main verb συνέβη in §31.26.8.
- 31.26.9οὐδεὶς οὐδενὶ δίδωσι τῶν ἰδίων ὑπαρχόντων ἑκὼν οὐδέν
This clause features multiple negations (οὐδεὶς... οὐδενὶ... οὐδέν). In Classical Greek, multiple negative pronouns do not cancel each other out but rather strengthen the absolute negation ('absolutely no one willingly gives anything of his own to anyone').