
Obnoxia infirmitas.
Weakness is vulnerable
EMBLEMA CLXIX.
Pisciculos Aurata rapit medio aequore sardas,
Ni fugiant pavidae, summa marisque petant.
Ast ibi sunt mergis fulicisque voracibus esca.
Eheu intuta manens undique debilitas!
The little sardines the golden wrasse swallows in the depths of the ocean, unless in fear they flee and make for the surface of the sea. But there they provide a meal for greedy divers and other sea-birds. Alas for weakness, remaining everywhere at risk.
Related Emblems

Hint: You can set whether related emblems are displayed by default on the preferences page
Iconclass Keywords
Relating to the image:
- water-birds: coot (+ animal in search of food) [25F36(COOT)(+451)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- water-birds: coot (+ postures, positions of animal(s)) [25F36(COOT)(+53)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- water-birds: coot (+ animal looking upwards) [25F36(COOT)(+5711)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- water-birds (with NAME) (+ animal in search of food) [25F36(DIVER)(+451)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- water-birds (with NAME) (+ animal in search of food) [25F36(WATER-FOWL)(+451)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- water-birds (with NAME) (+ animal looking upwards) [25F36(WATER-FOWL)(+5711)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- bony fishes (with NAME) (+ animal with prey) [25F62(GILT-BREAM)(+452)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- bony fishes (with NAME) (+ postures of the head ~ animal) [25F62(GILT-BREAM)(+54)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- bony fishes (with NAME) (+ animal with mouth wide open) [25F62(GILT-BREAM)(+5733)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- bony fishes: sardine (+ postures of the head ~ animal) [25F62(SARDINE)(+54)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- bony fishes: sardine (+ dying animal; death of animal; dead animal) [25F62(SARDINE)(+63)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- bony fishes (with NAME) (+ animal with prey) [25F62(WRASSE)(+452)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- low hill country [25H114] Search | Browse Iconclass
- coast [25H13] Search | Browse Iconclass
- sea (seascape) [25H23] Search | Browse Iconclass
- wave [25H2311] Search | Browse Iconclass
- landscape with tower or castle [25I5] Search | Browse Iconclass
Relating to the text:
- Weakness, Powerlessness, Helplessness; 'Infermità' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [54AA7(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Insafety (+ emblematical representation of concept) [54DD5(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
Hint: You can turn translations and name underlining on or off using the preferences page.

In eum qui truculentia suorum
perierit.
On one who perished through the savagery of his own people.
LXXV.
Delphinem invitum me in littora compulit aestus,
Exemplum infido quanta pericla mari.
Link to an image of this page [h7v p126]Nam si nec propriis Neptunus parcit alumnis,
Quis tutos homines navibus esse putet?[1]
I am a dolphin whom the tide drove ashore against my will, an example showing what great dangers there are in the treacherous sea. For if Neptune does not spare even his own nurslings, who can think that men are safe in ships?
COMMENTARIA.
Delphinus (piscis maris omnium velocissi-
mus, de quo multa Plinius lib. 9. cap. 8.) in ma-
gna maris tempestate invitus in siccum littus
proiectus fuit. Exemplo esse potest perfidiae
& iniquitatis crudelissimi maris. Si enim Ne-
ptunus, qui Deus maris creditur, propriis suis
alumnis in aquis natis atque nutritis non
parcit, quis homines eorumve naves in mari
tutos ese credet? Ideoque etiam Propertius lib. 1.
exclamat,
Ah pereat quicunque rateis & vela paravit,
Primus & invito gurgite fecit iter.
Mare infinitis aerumnis & calamitatibus
abundare, sentit Plautus in Asinaria, & Te-
rentius in Andria. Nescis, inquit, quid mali
praeterieris, qui nunquam es ingressus mare.
1. This is based on Anthologia graeca 7.216 (two lines omitted).
Related Emblems

Hint: You can set whether related emblems are displayed by default on the preferences page
Iconclass Keywords
Relating to the image:
- swimming mammals: dolphin (+ animal rotating, twisting) [25F27(DOLPHIN)(+5253)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- swimming mammals: dolphin (+ dying animal; death of animal; dead animal) [25F27(DOLPHIN)(+63)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- groups of birds (+ flying animal(s)) [25F31(+5262)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- groups of plants (herbs) [25G13] Search | Browse Iconclass
- mountains [25H11] Search | Browse Iconclass
- boulder, stone [25H1124] Search | Browse Iconclass
- beach [25H133] Search | Browse Iconclass
- island [25H14] Search | Browse Iconclass
- sea (seascape) [25H23] Search | Browse Iconclass
- prospect of city, town panorama, silhouette of city [25I12] Search | Browse Iconclass
- clouds [26A] Search | Browse Iconclass
- sailing-ship, sailing-boat (+ under way, at sea (~ travelling)) [46C24(+63)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- attributes of Neptune (with NAME) [92H18(DOLPHIN)] Search | Browse Iconclass
Relating to the text:
- Betrayal [57AA6142] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Cruelty, Ferocity; 'Crudelt�', 'Ferocit�' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [57AA91(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Destruction (+ emblematical representation of concept) [58AA1(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
Hint: You can turn translations and name underlining on or off using the preferences page.