Humanitext Reader

Livy · History of Rome §21.37.1-21.37.6

Cleaving the Cliff with Fire and Vinegar

Passage 568 of 1770 · Latin

Summary

Hannibal's army clears the snow to camp on the ridge and constructs a path down the cliff by burning huge trees and pouring vinegar on the heated rocks, eventually descending to the gentler plains.

§21.37.1tandem nequiquam iumentis atque hominibus fatigatis castra in iugo posita, aegerrime ad id ipsum loco purgato: tantum nivis fodiendum atque egerendum fuit.
At last, the beasts and men being exhausted in vain, the camp was pitched on the ridge, the site itself being cleared with the greatest difficulty; so much snow had to be dug out and carried away.
§21.37.2inde ad rupem muniendam, per quam unam via esse poterat, milites ducti, cum caedendum esset saxum, arboribus circa inmanibus deiectis detruncatisque struem ingentem lignorum faciunt eamque, cum et vis venti apta faciendo igni coorta esset, succendunt ardentiaque saxa infuso aceto putrefaciunt.
Then the soldiers were led to clear the cliff, through which alone a path could be made. Since the rock had to be cut away, they felled and trimmed huge trees nearby, made a massive pile of timber, and set it on fire when a wind had arisen strong enough to kindle the blaze, and crumbled the glowing rocks by pouring vinegar over them.
§21.37.3ita torridam incendio rupem ferro pandunt molliuntque anfractibus modicis clivos, ut non iumenta solum sed elephanti etiam deduci possent.
Thus they opened the cliff, heated by the fire, with iron tools, and eased the slopes with moderate windings, so that not only the beasts of burden but even the elephants could be led down.
§21.37.4quadriduum circa rupem consumptum iumentis prope fame absumptis; nuda enim fere cacumina sunt et, si quid est pabuli, obruunt nives.
Four days were spent around the cliff, with the beasts almost dying of hunger; for the summits are nearly bare, and if there is any pasture, the snow buries it.
§21.37.5inferiora valles apricosque quosdam colles habent rivosque prope silvas et iam humano cultu digniora loca.
The lower regions have valleys and certain sunny hills, and streams near woods, and places now more worthy of human cultivation.
§21.37.6ibi iumenta in pabulum missa, et quies muniendo fessis hominibus data.
There the beasts were sent to pasture, and rest was given to the men exhausted by road-building.
triduo inde ad planum descensum iam et locis mollioribus et accolarum ingeniis.
From there, in three days, they descended to the plain, with both the country and the character of the inhabitants being now gentler.

Notes

  1. 21.37.1nequiquam iumentis atque hominibus fatigatis — Ablative absolute with a perfect participle, indicating the state of affairs prior to the main action. The adverb nequiquam modifies the participle fatigatis.
  2. 21.37.2ad rupem muniendam — A purpose construction consisting of the preposition ad and the accusative of the gerundive ('to clear/build a road through the cliff'). Here munire means to construct or make a way passable.
  3. 21.37.2faciendo igni — Dative gerundive construction modifying the adjective apta ('suitable for making').
  4. 21.37.6descensum — An impersonal passive expression using the perfect passive of the intransitive verb descendere (with est omitted from descensum est), meaning 'a descent was made' or 'they descended'.

Cite this passage

Livy, History of Rome §21.37.1-21.37.6. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:21.37.1-21.37.6

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