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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §33.6.16.pr-33.6.16.2

Designation of Vessels and Scope of Sweet Things

Passage 5057 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

The text discusses whether a bequest of wine in amphorae includes wine in urns, and how the general term "sweet things" (dulcia) is restrictively interpreted as referring only to drinks when juxtaposed with specific wines.

[IDEM libro tertio ex posterioribus Labeonis. ] §33.6.16.prQui uinum Surrentinum in urnalibus habebat diffusum, is tibi uinum legauerat in amphoris omne.
[THE SAME, from Labeo’s Posterior Works, Book 3] A person who kept Surrentine wine bottled in urns (urnales) had bequeathed to you all his wine in amphorae.
illud quoque uinum, quod in urnalibus fuisset, legatum esse Labeo et Trebatius responderunt.
Labeo and Trebatius replied that that wine also which had been in the urns was bequeathed.
§33.6.16.1Cui dulcia legata essent, si nihil aliud testamento significetur, omnia haec esse legata: mulsum passum defrutum et similes potiones, item uuas ficos palmas caricas.
To whomever "sweet things" (dulcia) have been bequeathed, if nothing else is indicated in the will, all the following are bequeathed: mulsum (honeyed wine), passum (raisin wine), defrutum (must boiled down), and similar drinks; likewise grapes, figs, dates, and Carina figs (caricae).
§33.6.16.2Quod si ita esset legatum: 'uinum amphorarium Aminaeum Graecum et dulcia omnia', nihil inter dulcia, nisi quod potionis fuisset, legatum putat Labeo ex collatione uini amphorarii: quod non improbo.
But if the bequest had been made in this way: 'Aminaean wine in amphorae, Greek wine, and all sweet things,' Labeo thinks, by comparison with the wine in amphorae, that nothing among the "sweet things" was bequeathed except what was a drink; which I do not disapprove of.

Notes

  1. 33.6.16.prurnalis — An urna (approx. 13 liters) is a liquid measure equivalent to half an amphora. Here, the legal interpretation of Labeo and Trebatius determines that even if the text of the bequest specifies "in amphorae" (in amphoris), wine bottled in urns (urnales) as equivalent smaller vessels is also included in the bequest.
  2. 33.6.16.1Cui dulcia legata essent — A relative clause with the antecedent (such as 'ei') omitted. The pluperfect subjunctive 'essent' indicates a hypothetical or general condition established in a past testament. In general, the broad term "sweet things" (dulcia) is interpreted to include not only beverages (mulsum, passum, defrutum) but also solid fruits (grapes, figs, dates, Carina figs) unless otherwise specified.
  3. 33.6.16.2ex collatione uini amphorarii — "By comparison with the wine in amphorae." Labeo argues that when the testator lists specific drinks ('Aminaean wine in amphorae, Greek wine') and then adds 'all sweet things' (dulcia omnia), the scope of the broad term 'dulcia' should be restrictively interpreted to include only beverages (potiones) rather than solid fruits, based on the principle of interpretive juxtaposition (analogous to 'noscitur a sociis'). The author approves of this reasoning.

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §33.6.16.pr-33.6.16.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:33.6.16.pr-33.6.16.2

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