Lectitō › Vergil › Aeneid, Book 1
Aeneid 1.297–304
Mercury sent to Carthage
Vergil, Aeneid I. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōAen. 1.297Haec ait, et Māiā genitum dēmittit ab altō,
ut terrae, utque novae pateant Karthāginis arcēs
hospitiō Teucrīs, nē fātī nescia Dīdō
300fīnibus arcēret: volat ille per āera magnum
rēmigiō ālārum, ac Libyae citus adstitit ōrīs.
So he speaks, and sends down from on high the son of Maia, so that the lands and the new citadels of Carthage may lie open in welcome to the Teucrians, and Dido, not knowing fate, may not keep them from her borders: he flies through the great air on the oarage of his wings and quickly stands on the shores of Libya.
Note. Māiā genitum: Mercury, son of Maia (ablative of origin). ut terrae … pateant … nē … arcēret: purpose clauses; note the change of tense (pateant present, arcēret imperfect), loosely handled after the historic present dēmittit. āera: Greek accusative of āēr. rēmigiō alārum: 'with the oarage of his wings', a famous metaphor. nescia fātī: genitive with an adjective of knowledge.
Aen. 1.302Et iam iussa facit, pōnuntque ferōcia Poenī
corda volente deō;
And now he does what he was told, and the Carthaginians lay aside their fierce hearts as the god wills;
Note. volente deō: ablative absolute, 'the god being willing'. The Poenī (Carthaginians) were Phoenician colonists from Tyre.
Aen. 1.303in prīmīs rēgīna quiētum
accipit in Teucrōs animum mentemque benignam.
above all the queen takes on a calm spirit and a kindly mind toward the Teucrians.
Vocabulary
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| āiō (defective) | say, affirm; ut aiunt: as they say |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| gignō, gignere, genuī, genitus | produce, bring forth |
| dēmittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | send down, let fall; animōs dēmittere, to lose courage |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| altus, -a, -um | high, deep; altum, -ī, n., the deep |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| terra, -ae, f. | land, earth |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| novus, -a, -um | new; novissimus, last |
| pateō, -ēre, -uī | lie open; extend, stretch |
| arx, arcis f. | citadel, stronghold |
| hospitium, -ī, n. | hospitality |
| nē, adv. | not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest |
| fātum, -ī, n. | destiny, fate |
| nescius, -a, -um | not knowing, ignorant (of: gen.) |
| fīnis, -is, m. | end, boundary; plur., borders, territory, country |
| arceō, -ēre, -uī | keep off, keep away, shut out |
| volō, -āre, -āvī, -ātūrus | fly |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| per, prep, with ace. | through, by means of |
| āēr, āeris, m. | air |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| rēmigium, -ī n. | rowing; oars; (of wings) oarage |
| ala, -ae, f. | wing |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| citus, -a, -um | quick, swift |
| adstō, -stāre, -stitī | stand at or near |
| ōra, -ae f. | coast, shore |
| iam, adv. | now, already |
| iubeō, iubēre, iussī, iussus | bid, order, command |
| faciō, facere, fēcī, factus | make, do; iter facere, see iter |
| pōnō, pōnere, posuī, positus | place, put; pōnī with in and abl., to be placed in, rest or depend on |
| ferōx, -ōcis, adj. | fierce, savage |
| cor, cordis n. | heart |
| volō, velle, voluī | wish |
| deus, -ī, m. | god |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| prīmus, -a, -um | first, foremost |
| rēgīna, -ae, f. | queen |
| quiētus, -a, -um | quiet, at peace, calm |
| accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer |
| animus, -ī, m. | mind; heart; spirit, courage |
| mēns, mentis f. | mind, spirit |
| benignus, -a, -um | kind, friendly, generous |