Section: SCIENCE. View all emblems in this section.
Link to an image of this page [P7r p237]
La lettre occit: L’esprit vivifie.[1]
Quand Cadmus heut dens de serpens semées
En terre Grecque: incontinent armées
D’hommes divers sortirent de la terre:
S’entretuans par mutuelle guerre.[2]
Ceulx qui salvéz par Pallas demourerent,
Armes jectans, la paix en main jurerent.
Cadmus premier les lettres apporta,[3]
Et bonnes ars par icelles nota.
Link to an image of this page [P7v p238]
Les professeurs desquelles s’entremordent,
Et point (sinon par Pallas) ne s’accordent.
Cadmus Phoenicien filz du Roy Agenor fut le
premier qui apporta les lettres d’Asie en Euro-
pe, & les espandit par
toute la Grece, D’ond est
sortie la fable, qu’il sema les dens
d’ung serpent,
desquelles sortirent hommes arméz, se comba-
tans, & entretuans les ungz, les aultres, jusque à
cinq restantz, pacifiéz par Pallas, & depuys mul-
tipliéz en grand peuple. Le serpent est Pruden-
ce, les dens semées sont les lettres agues, & subti-
les dispersées par la Grece, Les hommes arméz,
sortans de telle semence sont les gens literéz, &
savans es ars, &
sciences, Lesquelz par envie mu-
tuelle se defont l’ung l’aultre, sinon qu’ilz
soient reduictz en paix par Pallas, qui est Sapience, &
multiplient croissans tous les jours en nombre
infiny: Tant qu’a la fin y en aura trop.
1. 2 Corinthians 3:6.
2. For the story of Cadmus, founder of Thebes (in Aonia, or less correctly in the French, in Thessaly), and the dragon’s teeth, see Ovid, Metamorphoses, 3.99ff. Athena, goddess of wisdom - here called Tritonia, from the place of her birth in North Africa - brought the internecine struggle between the earth-born warriors to an end.
3. Cadmus supposedly introduced writing to Greece. The scattering of the dragon’s teeth was interpreted as the invention of the alphabet.
Related Emblems
Show related emblemsHint: You can set whether related emblems are displayed by default on the preferences page
Iconclass Keywords
Relating to the image:
- dragon (large fabulous serpent, sometimes with wings and legs) (+ anatomy of animals) [25FF422(+73):31A2363] Search | Browse Iconclass
- dragon (large fabulous serpent, sometimes with wings and legs) (+ dying animal; death of animal; dead animal) [25FF422(+763)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- groups of trees [25G11] Search | Browse Iconclass
- trees (+ stem, trunk) [25G3(+21)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- boulder, stone [25H1124] Search | Browse Iconclass
- low hill country [25H114] Search | Browse Iconclass
- clouds [26A] Search | Browse Iconclass
- the corpse [3.10E+04] Search | Browse Iconclass
- lying on the back with uplifted upper part of the body [31A2361] Search | Browse Iconclass
- looking over the shoulder [31A247] Search | Browse Iconclass
- one leg in front of the other (+ standing) [31A2621(+51)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- standing, leaning, sitting or lying with legs crossed (+ lying) [31A2627(+56)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- walking [31A2711] Search | Browse Iconclass
- beard [31A534] Search | Browse Iconclass
- arm stretched forward - AA - both arms or hands (+ holding something) [31AA2512(+933)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- adult man [31D14] Search | Browse Iconclass
- man killing animal [34F12] Search | Browse Iconclass
- container of ceramics: jar, jug, pot, vase [41A773] Search | Browse Iconclass
- clothes covering the entire body (+ men's clothes) [41D213(+81)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- gear for legs and feet (+ men's clothes) [41D233(+81)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- casting weapons: spear [45C11(SPEAR)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- hacking and thrusting weapons: sword [45C13(SWORD)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- protective weapons: shield [45C19(SHIELD)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- ploughing [47I123] Search | Browse Iconclass
- agricultural implements: plough [47I15(PLOUGH)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- ox [47I21111] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Cadmus' companions, sent to fetch water, are slain by the dragon which guarded the spring [95A(CADMUS)33] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Cadmus slays the dragon [95A(CADMUS)34] Search | Browse Iconclass
- on Minerva's advice, Cadmus sows the dragon's teeth; a host of armed men springs up [95A(CADMUS)35] Search | Browse Iconclass
Relating to the text:
- 'litterae', symbolic representations, allegories and emblems ~ literature; 'Lettere' (Ripa) [48C90] Search | Browse Iconclass
- professor [49B43] Search | Browse Iconclass
- symbolic representations, allegories and emblems ~ science, 'Scientia'; 'Scienza', 'Studio' (Ripa) [49C0] Search | Browse Iconclass
- discussion, dialogue, dispute ~ scholar, philosopher [49C40] Search | Browse Iconclass
- invention of letters [49L10] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Wisdom; 'Sapienza', 'Sapienza humana', 'Sapienza vera' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [52A51(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Accord, Accordance (+ emblematical representation of concept) [54E3(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- geographical names of countries, regions, mountains, rivers, etc. (names of cities and villages excepted) (with NAME) [61D(GREECE)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- proverbs, sayings, etc. (with TEXT) [86(LA LETTRE OCCIT: L'ESPRIT VIVIFIE)] Search | Browse Iconclass
Hint: You can turn translations and name underlining on or off using the preferences page.
