Dedication, Prologue, and the Entrance of Solon — Ausonius, The Play of the Seven Sages, lines 1–79, Latin & English

ignoscenda istaec an cognoscenda rearis,

Whether you think these verses should be pardoned or scrutinized,

adtento, Drepani, perlege iudicio,

read them through, Drepanius, with attentive judgment,

aequanimus fiam te iudice, sive legenda,

I shall be at peace with you as judge, whether you think the poems we have offered should be read

sive tegenda putes carmina, quae dedimus,

or should be hidden.

nam primum est meruisse tuum, Pacate, favorem:

For the first thing is to have deserved your favor, Pacatus;

proxima defensi cura pudoris erit.

the next care will be for my defended modesty.

possum ego censuram lectoris ferre severi

I am able to bear the censorship of a severe reader,

et possum modica laude placere mihi:

and I am able to please myself with modest praise.

novit equus plausae sonitum cervicis amare,

The horse knows how to love the sound of his patted neck,

novit et intrepidus verbera lenta pati.

and knows, unafraid, how to endure the supple whips.

Maeonio qualem cultum quaesivit Homero

What a cultivation censor Aristarchus and the rule

censor Aristarchus normaque Zenodoti!¹

of Zenodotus demanded for Maeonian Homer!

pone obelos igitur primorum stigmata vatum:

Therefore, place your obeli, the marks of the foremost poets:

palmas, non culpas esse putabo meas;

I shall think them my palms of victory, not my faults;

et correcta magis quam condemnata vocabo,

and I shall call them corrected rather than condemned,

adponet docti quae mihi lima viri.

which the file of a learned man will apply to me.

interea arbitrii subiturus pondera tanti

Meanwhile, about to undergo the weight of such great judgment,

optabo, ut placeam; si minus, ut lateam.

I shall wish to please; if not, to remain hidden.

Septem sapientes, nomen quibus istud dedit

The Seven Sages, to whom the former age gave that name

Superior aetas nec secuta sustulit,²

and the succeeding age did not take away,

hodie in orchestram palliati prodeunt,

today come forth into the orchestra clad in Greek cloaks.

quid erubescis tu, togate Romule,

Why do you blush, Roman in a toga,

scaenam quod introibunt tam clari viri?

because such famous men will enter the stage?

nobis pudendum hoc, non et Atticis quoque:

This is shameful for us, but not also for the Athenians,

quibus theatrum curiae praebet vicem.³

for whom the theater serves as the senate-house.

nostris negotis sua loca sortito data:

To our duties their own places have been allotted:

campus comitiis, ut conscriptis curia,

the Campus for the comitia, as the senate-house for the senators,

forum atque rostra separat ius civium,

and the law of the citizens separates the Forum and the Rostra.

una est Athenis atque in omni Graecia

There is only one public seat for consultation

ad consulendum publici sedes loci,

in Athens and in all of Greece,

quam in urbe nostra sero luxus condidit,

which luxury established late in our city.

aedilis olim scaenam tabulatam dabat

Formerly, the aedile used to give a wooden stage,

subito excitatam nulla mole saxea.

quickly erected with no stone structure.

Murena sic et Gallius: nota eloquar,

Thus did Murena and Gallius: I speak of well-known things,

postquam potentes nec verentes sumptuum

after powerful men who did not fear expense

nomen perenne crediderunt, si semel

believed that their name would be eternal, if once

constructa moles saxeo fundamine

a structure built with a stone foundation

in omne tempus conderet ludis locum:

established a place for the games for all time.

cuneata crevit haec theatri inmanitas:

This vastness of the theater with its wedge-shaped seats grew;

Pompeius hanc et Balbus et Caesar dedit

Pompey gave this, and Balbus, and Caesar

Octavianus concertantes sumptibus.

Octavian, competing in expenses.

sed quid ego istaec? non hac de causa huc prodii,

But why do I speak of these things? I did not come out for this reason,

ut expedirem, quis theatra, quis forum,

to explain who had built theaters, who the Forum,

quis condidisset privas partes moenium:

who the private parts of the walls:

set ut verendos disque laudatos viros

but that I might precede the venerable men praised by the gods

praegrederer aperiremque, quid vellent sibi.

and reveal what they mean.

Pronuntiare suas solent sententias,

They are accustomed to pronounce their own maxims,

quas quisque iam prudentium anteverterit.

which any of the wise has already anticipated.

scitis profecto, quae sint; set si memoria

You surely know what they are; but if memory

rebus vetustis claudit, veniet ludius

fails in ancient matters, an actor will come

edissertator harum, quas teneo minus.

as an explicator of these maxims, which I hold less in mind.

DELPHIS Solonem scripse fama est Atticum

There is a rumor that Athenian Solon wrote at Delphi

γνῶθι σεαυτόν, quod Latinum est: nosce te.

”gnothi seauton”, which in Latin is: “nosce te.”

multi hoc Laconis esse Chilonis putant.

Many think this belongs to Laconian Chilon.

Spartane Chilon, sit tuum necne, ambigunt,

Spartan Chilon, whether it is yours or not, they dispute,

quod iuxta fertur, ὄρα τέλοσ μακροῦ βίου,

which is reported next to it, “hora telos makrou biou”,

finem intueri longae vitae qui iubes.

who bids us to look upon the end of a long life.

multi hoc Solonem dixe Croeso existimant.

Many think Solon said this to Croesus.

et Pittacum dixisse fama est Lesbium

And there is a rumor that Pittacus of Lesbos said

γίγνωσκε καιρόν: tempus ut noris, iubet.

”gignoske kairon”: he bids that you know the time.

set καιρὸσ iste tempestivum tempus est.

But that “kairos” is the opportune time.

Bias Prieneus dixit οἱ πλεῖστοι κακοί,

Bias of Priene said “hoi pleistoi kakoi”,

quod est Latinum, plures hominum sunt mali;

which is in Latin: “the majority of men are bad”;

set inperitos scito, quos dixit malos.⁴

but know that those he called bad were the ignorant.

μελέτη τὸ πᾶν, Periandri id est Corinthii,

”melete to pan”, this belongs to Periander of Corinth,

meditationem posse totum qui putat.

who thinks that practice can do everything.

ἄριστον μέτρον esse dicit Lindius

Cleobulus of Lindus says

Cleobulus: hoc est, optimus cunctis modus.

”ariston metron” is: that is, the best measure for all.

Thales set ἐγγύα, πάρα δ' ἄτα protulit,

But Thales brought forth “engua, para d’ ata”,

spondere qui nos, noxa quia praes est, vetat.⁵

who forbids us to give surety, because loss stands near as a guarantor.

hoc nos monere faeneratis non placet.

It does not please us to warn the usurers of this.

Dixi: recedam, legifer venit Solon.

I have spoken: I shall withdraw, the lawgiver Solon comes.

DE more Graeco prodeo in scaenam Solon,

According to Greek custom, I, Solon, step onto the stage,

septem sapientum fama cui palmam dedit.

to whom the fame of the seven sages gave the palm.

set famae non est iudicii severitas;

But in fame there is no severity of judgment;

neque enim esse primum me, verum unum existimo,

for I do not think myself to be the first, but one of them,

aequalitas quod ordinem nescit pati.

since equality knows not how to endure rank.

recte olim ineptum Delphicus suasit deus

Rightly once did the Delphic god advise an foolish man

quaerentem, quisnam primus sapientum foret,

who asked who might be the first of the sages,

Syntax notes5 items

11Maeonio qualem cultum quaesivit Homero / censor Aristarchus normaque Zenodoti
The relative of comparison qualem implies a missing demonstrative antecedent (such as talem cultum) in the main clause, suggesting an exhortation or expectation such as "apply such cultivation to my poems as Aristarchus demanded for Homer."
20superior aetas nec secuta sustulit
secuta is a participle modifying the implied noun aetas ("the succeeding age"). sustulit is the perfect of tollere ("to take away, abolish"), meaning that the subsequent age did not abolish the name given by the previous one.
25quibus theatrum curiae praebet vicem
vicem is the accusative, which, together with the genitive curiae, forms the idiom vicem praebere ("to take the place of, serve as"). The subject is theatrum ("the theater serves as the senate-house").
64set inperitos scito, quos dixit malos.
scito is the second person singular future imperative ("know that..."). The antecedent pronoun eos of the relative pronoun quos is omitted, acting as the subject of an implied accusative-and-infinitve construction where inperitos is the predicate accusative, while malos is the second accusative of the double accusative with dixit.
70spondere qui nos, noxa quia praes est, vetat.
qui is the relative pronoun referring to Thales. The core structure is qui vetat nos spondere ("who forbids us to give pledges"). In the inserted causal clause, noxa means "damage, penalty" and praes means "guarantor, surety," suggesting "because damage stands near as a surety."

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-22) · Revision history (3, latest 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 AI review — source 3

urn:cts:latinLit:stoa0045.stoa018.humanitext-lat2:1-79