Finding the Golden Bough and the Funeral of Misenus — Virgil, Aeneid Book 6 (lines 148–223), Latin & English

148

vincere, nec duro poteris convellere ferro.

to master it, nor will you be able to tear it away with hard iron.

Praeterea iacet exanimum tibi corpus amici—

Moreover, the lifeless body of your friend lies for you—

150

heu nescis—totamque incestat funere classem,

alas, you know it not—and defiles the whole fleet with death,

dum consulta petis nostroque in limine pendes.

while you seek oracles and hang on our threshold.

Sedibus hunc refer ante suis et conde sepulchro.

Return him first to his own dwellings and hide him in a tomb.

Duc nigras pecudes; ea prima piacula sunto:

Lead black sheep; let those be the first expiations:

sic demum lucos Stygis et regna invia vivis

thus at last the groves of Styx and realms impassable to the living

155

aspicies. Dixit, pressoque obmutuit ore.

you shall behold.” She spoke, and with closed mouth fell silent.

Aeneas maesto defixus lumina¹ voltu

Aeneas, with sad countenance and downcast eyes,

ingreditur, linquens antrum, caecosque volutat

goes on, leaving the cave, and ponders the dark

eventus animo secum. Cui fidus Achates

outcomes with himself in his mind. To whom faithful Achates

it comes, et paribus curis vestigia figit.

goes as companion, and plants his footsteps with equal cares.

160

Multa inter sese vario sermone serebant,

Much were they debating between themselves in varied discourse,

quem socium exanimem vates, quod corpus humandum

which lifeless companion the prophetess, what body to be buried

diceret. Atque illi Misenum in litore sicco,

was speaking of. And they, upon the dry shore,

ut venere, vident indigna morte peremptum,

as they arrived, see Misenus cut off by an undeserved death,

Misenum Aeoliden, quo non praestantior alter

Misenus, son of Aeolus, than whom no other was more outstanding

165

aere ciere² viros, Martemque accendere cantu.

at rousing men with bronze, and inflaming war with song.

Hectoris hic magni fuerat comes, Hectora circum

He had been the companion of great Hector; around Hector

et lituo pugnas insignis obibat et hasta:

he used to enter battles, distinguished both with clarion and with spear.

postquam illum vita victor spoliavit Achilles,

After victorious Achilles despoiled him of life,

Dardanio Aeneae sese fortissimus heros

the most gallant hero had added himself as companion

170

addiderat socium, non inferiora secutus.³

to Dardanian Aeneas, following no lesser things.

Sed tum, forte cava dum personat aequora concha,

But then, while by chance he made the seas resound with his hollow shell,

demens, et cantu vocat in certamina divos,

madman, and with his song challenged the gods to contests,

aemulus exceptum Triton, si credere dignum est,

Triton, jealous, if it is worthy to believe, had caught the man

inter saxa virum spumosa inmerserat unda.

among the rocks and submerged him in the foaming wave.

175

Ergo omnes magno circum clamore fremebant,

Therefore all were mourning around him with loud clamor,

praecipue pius Aeneas. Tum iussa Sibyllae,

especially pious Aeneas. Then the commands of the Sibyl,

haud mora, festinant flentes, aramque sepulchri

without delay, they hasten weeping, and strive to heap up the altar of the tomb

congerere arboribus caeloque educere certant.

with trees and to raise it to heaven.

Itur in antiquam silvam, stabula alta ferarum;

They go into an ancient forest, the deep coverts of wild beasts;

180

procumbunt piceae, sonat icta securibus ilex,

pitch-pines fall, the holm-oak resounds, struck by axes,

fraxineaeque trabes cuneis et fissile robur

and ash beams and fissile oak are cleft with wedges;

scinditur, advolvunt ingentis montibus ornos.

they roll down huge mountain-ashes from the mountains.

Nec non Aeneas opera inter talia primus

Nor less does Aeneas, foremost among such tasks,

hortatur socios, paribusque accingitur armis.

encourage his companions, and girds himself with like tools.

185

Atque haec ipse suo tristi cum corde volutat,

And these things he himself ponders in his sad heart,

aspectans silvam inmensam, et sic voce precatur:

gazing at the immense forest, and thus prays aloud:

Si nunc se nobis ille aureus arbore ramus

”If now that golden bough on the tree should show itself to us

ostendat⁴ nemore in tanto, quando omnia vere

in so great a grove, since all things truly,

heu nimium de te vates, Misene, locuta est.

alas, too truly did the prophetess speak of you, Misenus.”

190

Vix ea fatus erat, geminae cum forte columbae

Scarcely had he spoken these words, when by chance twin doves

ipsa sub ora viri caelo venere volantes,

came flying from heaven right before the man’s eyes,

et viridi sedere solo. Tum maximus heros

and settled on the green ground. Then the great hero

maternas agnoscit aves, laetusque precatur:

recognizes his mother’s birds, and joyfully prays:

Este duces, O, si qua via est, cursumque per auras

”Be my guides, Oh, if there is any way, and direct your course through the breezes

195

dirigite in lucos, ubi pinguem dives opacat

into the groves, where the rich bough shadows the fertile soil.

ramus humum. Tuque, O, dubiis ne defice rebus,

And you, O divine parent, do not fail me in my doubtful fortunes.”

diva parens. Sic effatus vestigia pressit,

Thus having spoken, he checked his steps,

observans quae signa ferant, quo tendere pergant.

observing what signs they bring, whither they proceed to go.

Pascentes illae tantum prodire volando,

They, feeding, went flying forward only so far

200

quantum acie possent oculi servare sequentum.

as the eyes of those following could keep them in view.

Inde ubi venere ad fauces grave olentis Averni,

Then, when they came to the jaws of foul-smelling Avernus,

tollunt se celeres, liquidumque per aëra lapsae

they swiftly raise themselves, and gliding through the clear air

sedibus optatis geminae super arbore sidunt,

settle in the desired spot, the twin birds upon the tree,

discolor unde auri per ramos aura refulsit.

whence the contrasting gleam of gold shone out through the branches.

205

Quale solet silvis brumali frigore viscum

Just as mistletoe in the woods in winter’s cold

fronde virere nova, quod non sua seminat arbos,

is wont to green with new leaf, which its own tree does not sow,

et croceo fetu teretis circumdare truncos,

and to surround the tapering trunks with yellow fruit,

talis erat species auri frondentis opaca

such was the appearance of the leafy gold on the shady

ilice, sic leni crepitabat brattea vento.

holm-oak, so did the metal foil tinkle in the gentle wind.

210

Corripit Aeneas extemplo avidusque refringit

Aeneas immediately seizes and eagerly breaks off

cunctantem,⁵ et vatis portat sub tecta Sibyllae.

the lingering branch, and bears it under the roof of the prophetess Sibyl.

Nec minus interea Misenum in litore Teucri

Meanwhile, no less did the Teucrians weep on the shore

flebant, et cineri ingrato suprema ferebant.

for Misenus, and were bringing the last rites to the ungrateful ashes.

Principio pinguem taedis et robore secto

First, they built a huge pyre, rich with pines

215

ingentem struxere pyram, cui frondibus atris

and cleft oak, whose sides they interweave with dark leaves,

intexunt latera, et ferales ante cupressos

and set up funeral cypresses in front,

constituunt, decorantque super fulgentibus armis.

and decorate it on top with gleaming arms.

Pars calidos latices et aëna undantia flammis

Some prepare warm water and cauldrons bubbling with flames,

expediunt, corpusque lavant frigentis et unguunt.

and wash and anoint the body of the cold dead.

220

Fit gemitus. Tum membra toro defleta reponunt,

A lamentation is made. Then they lay the wept-over limbs on the couch,

purpureasque super vestes, velamina nota,

and cast purple garments over them, the familiar coverings.

coniciunt. Pars ingenti subiere feretro,

Some supported the huge bier,

triste ministerium, et subiectam more parentum

a sad service, and in the manner of their parents, held the torch applied from beneath,

Syntax notes5 items

6.156defixus lumina
A Greek-style accusative (the accusative of specification or relationship) used with the passive participle defixus to specify the part of the body affected: "having his eyes fixed (downward)." Alternatively, defixus can be interpreted in a middle-voice sense ("having fixed his own eyes").
6.165ciere
An infinitive modifying the comparative adjective praestantior (a poetic or Greek-style infinitive of specification/respect), equivalent to the prose construction ad ciendum ("in rousing"). The subsequent accendere shares the same construction.
6.170non inferiora secutus
The neuter plural object inferiora ("lesser things") of the participle secutus refers here to "a lesser cause" or "a lesser leader" (implying Aeneas is not inferior to Hector). Additionally, the perfect participle secutus functions with a present force ("following").
6.187Si nunc ... ostendat
A wish expressed using the present subjunctive in the form of a conditional clause ("If only it would show itself now"), representing a potential wish or an eager hope.
6.211cunctantem
The present participle cunctantem ("lingering" or "resisting") modifies the golden bough. This creates a poetic tension with the Sibyl's prophecy in line 146 that the bough would follow "willingly and easily" ('volens facilisque sequetur') if the fates called, suggesting either Aeneas's extreme eagerness or the underlying uncertainty of his fate.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-22) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)

2026-09-21 AI review — translation 1

urn:cts:latinLit:phi0690.phi003.humanitext-lat2:6.148-6.223