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Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §47.2.58.pr

Theft by Extracting and Carrying Away Chalk

Passage 7920 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Explains that if someone digs a cave to extract chalk and carries it away, he is guilty of theft not because of the digging itself, but because of the removal of the chalk.

[ALFENUS libro quarto digestorum a Paulo epitomatorum. ] §47.2.58.prSi cretae fodiundae causa specum quis fecisset et cretam abstulisset, fur est, non quia fodisset, sed quia abstulisset.
[ALFENUS in the fourth book of the Digests epitomized by Paulus.] If anyone had made a cave for the purpose of digging chalk and had carried away the chalk, he is a thief, not because he had dug, but because he had carried it away.

Notes

  1. §47.2.58.prcretae fodiundae causa — fodiundae is the gerundive of fodere (to dig) agreeing with the genitive noun cretae. Combined with causa, it expresses purpose ('for the purpose of digging chalk'). The spelling -und- is an archaic form of the classical -end- (fodiendae).
  2. §47.2.58.prquis — The indefinite pronoun aliquis (someone) is shortened to quis following the conditional conjunction si.
  3. §47.2.58.prnon quia fodisset, sed quia abstulisset — The subjunctive pluperfect (fodisset, abstulisset) is used in clauses introduced by the causal conjunction quia. The subjunctive is selected especially to indicate a rejected or hypothetical reason (non quia) and remains consistent with the hypothetical context established by the conditional clause (fecisset).

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §47.2.58.pr. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:47.2.58.pr

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