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Ovid · Sorrows §3.9.1-3.9.34

Medea's Murder of Her Brother and the Origin of Tomis

Passage 30 of 60 · Latin

Summary

Ovid explains the origin of the name of his place of exile, Tomis. Although it is a Greek city founded by colonists from Miletus, its ancient name is derived from the mythical event in which Medea, fleeing with the Argonauts, murdered and dismembered (Tomis) her brother Absyrtus to delay their pursuing father, Aeetes.

§3.9.1Hic quoque sunt igitur Graiae—quis crederet?—urbes §3.9.2inter inhumanae nomina barbariae; §3.9.3huc quoque Mileto missi venere coloni, §3.9.4inque Getis Graias constituere domos.
Therefore, here too there are Greek—who would believe it?—cities among the names of an uncivilized barbarous land; hither too came colonists sent from Miletus, and established Greek homes among the Getae.
§3.9.5sed vetus huic nomen, positaque antiquius urbe, §3.9.6constat ab Absyrti caede fuisse loco.
But this place has an ancient name, older than the founding of the city, which is well known to have come to the place from the murder of Absyrtus.
§3.9.7nam rate, quae cura pugnacis facta Minervae §3.9.8per non temptatas prima cucurrit aquas, §3.9.9impia desertum fugiens Medea parentem §3.9.10dicitur his remos applicuisse vadis.
For in the ship, which, built by the care of warlike Minerva, first ran through untried waters, impious Medea, fleeing her abandoned father, is said to have brought her oars to these shallows.
§3.9.11quem procul ut vidit tumulo speculator ab alto, §3.9.12hospes, ait, nosco, Colchide, vela, venit. §3.9.13dum trepidant Minyae, dum solvitur aggere funis, §3.9.14dum sequitur celeres ancora tracta manus, §3.9.15conscia percussit meritorum pectora Colchis §3.9.16ausa atque ausura multa nefanda manu; §3.9.17et, quamquam superest ingens audacia menti, §3.9.18pallor in attonitae virginis ore fuit.
When a scout saw him from a high mound in the distance, "A guest," he said, "I recognize the sails, Colchian, he is coming." While the Minyans tremble, while the rope is untied from the embankment, while the anchor, hauled in, follows swift hands, the Colchian woman struck her breast, conscious of her deserts, having dared, and about to dare, many unspeakable things with her hand; and, although immense audacity remained in her mind, there was paleness on the face of the astonished maiden.
§3.9.19ergo uni prospexit venientia vela tenemur, §3.9.20et pater est aliqua fraude morandus ait.
Therefore, when she saw the coming sails, "We are caught!" and "My father must be delayed by some trick," she said.
§3.9.21dum quid agat quaerit, dum versat in omnia vultus, §3.9.22ad fratrem casu lumina flexa tulit.
While she asks what to do, while she turns her face in all directions, by chance she turned her eyes toward her brother.
§3.9.23cuius ut ornata est praesentia, vicimus inquit: §3.9.24hic mihi morte sua causa salutis erit. §3.9.25protinus ignari nec quicquam tale timentis §3.9.26innocuum rigido perforat ense latus, §3.9.27atque ita divellit divulsaque membra per agros §3.9.28dissipat in multis invenienda locis, §3.9.29neu pater ignoret, scopulo proponit in alto §3.9.30pallentesque manus sanguineumque caput. §3.9.31ut genitor luctuque novo tardetur et, artus §3.9.32dum legit extinctos, triste moretur iter.
As soon as his presence was presented, "We have won!" she said: "This boy, by his death, will be the cause of safety for me." Straightway, she pierces the innocent side of him who was ignorant and feared no such thing with a hard sword, and so tears him apart, and scatters his torn limbs through the fields, to be found in many places, and lest her father should not know, she places on a high rock the pale hands and the bloody head, so that the father might be delayed by the new grief, and while he gathers the dead limbs, he might delay his sad journey.
§3.9.33inde Tomis dictus locus hic, quia fertur in illo §3.9.34membra soror fratris consecuisse sui.
Hence this place was called Tomis, because they say that in it the sister cut to pieces the limbs of her own brother.

Notes

  1. §3.9.1quis crederet? — A rhetorical question using the imperfect subjunctive to express past potentiality or counterfactual statements ('who would have believed?').
  2. §3.9.6constat ab Absyrti caede fuisse loco. — The impersonal verb constat ('it is well known') is followed by an accusative and infinitive construction with the subject (nomen) understood, meaning 'it is established that [the name] came/derived from the murder of Absyrtus.'
  3. §3.9.11quem procul ut vidit — A connecting relative (relative connection) at the beginning of the clause, functionally equivalent to a demonstrative pronoun eum (referring to the pursuing father, Aeetes), acting as the object of the temporal clause introduced by ut ('when').
  4. §3.9.19ergo uni prospexit — The reading 'uni' in the text is likely a corruption or variant for 'ubi' ('when'). It is translated here as 'ubi prospexit' ('when she saw'), which leads to the main verb 'ait' in line 20.
  5. §3.9.23cuius ut ornata est praesentia — In standard critical editions, this passage reads 'obvia est' ('became met') or 'adspicere est' ('could be seen'). Following the prompt's reading 'ornata est' ('was adorned/prepared'), it is translated as 'as soon as his presence was presented/prepared.'
  6. §3.9.31ut genitor luctuque novo tardetur et... moretur — The conjunction ut introduces a purpose clause with the subjunctives tardetur and moretur ('so that the father might be delayed... and might delay').

Cite this passage

Ovid, Sorrows §3.9.1-3.9.34. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0959.phi008.humanitext-lat2:3.9.1-3.9.34

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