Single Emblem View

« Previous EmblemNext Emblem »
Link to an image of this page  Link to an image of this page  [B3r]

OBDURANDUM ADVER-
sus urgentia.

Stand firm against pressure

Log jammed in the branches of a tree
[Click on image to enlarge]

Nititur in pondus palma & consurgit in arcum
Quo magis & premitur hoc mage tollit onus.[1]
Fert & odoratas bellaria dulcia glandes,[2]
Quis mensas inter primus habetur honos.
Link to an image of this page  Link to an image of this page  [B3v]I puer & reptans ramis has collige, mentis
Qui constantis erit, praemia digna feret.

The wood of the palm-tree counteracts a weight and rises up into an arch. The heavier the burden pressing it down, the more it lifts it up. The palm-tree also bears fragrant dates, sweet dainties much valued when served at table. Go, boy, edge your way along the branches and gather them. The man who shows a resolute spirit will receive an appropriate reward.

Notes:

1.  The reaction of palm to a heavy weight is mentioned in various ancient sources, e.g. Pliny, Natural History 16.81.223; Aulus Gellius, Noctes Atticae 3.6. See also Erasmus, Parabolae p.263. It probably refers to a plank of palm-wood, rather than a branch of the living tree. A similar image is used in La Perriere, Morosophie, no. 83 ([FLPb083]).

2.  See Erasmus, Parabolae p.241: ‘the palm-tree, having bark with knife-sharp edges, is difficult to climb, but it bears delicious fruit’.

« Previous EmblemNext Emblem »

Related Emblems

Show related emblems Show related emblems

Hint: You can set whether related emblems are displayed by default on the preferences page

Iconclass Keywords

Relating to the image:

Relating to the text:

Hint: You can turn translations and name underlining on or off using the preferences page.

Single Emblem View

« Previous EmblemNext Emblem »
Link to an image of this page  Link to an image of this page  [D4r p55]

Omnia mea mecum porto.[1]

All that is mine I carry with me.

EMBLEMA XXXVII.

A man coming out of a cave; with text ‘Scythicum Mare’ in the water behind him.
[Click on image to enlarge]

Hunnus inops, Scythicique miserrimus accola Ponti,[2]
Ustus perpetuo livida membra gelu:
Qui Cereris non novit opes, nec dona Lyaei,[3]
Et pretiosa tamen stragula semper habet.
Nam murinae illum perstringunt undique pelles:
Lumina sola patent, caetera opertus agit.
Sic furem haud metuit, sic ventos temnit & imbres;
Tutus apudque viros, tutus apudque Deos.

The impoverished Hun, wretched dweller beside the Scythian Sea, whose limbs are always blue and burnt by frost, has no knowledge of Ceres’ bounty or of the gifts of Lyaeus, yet he always has luxurious wraps. Ermine furs hug him round on every side; only his eyes are visible, he spends his life covered everywhere else. So he has no fear of the thief, he pays no attention to wind and rain, safe in the presence of men and in the presence of gods.

Notes:

1.  These words, (according to Cicero, Paradoxa Stoicorum, 1.8, and Seneca, Epistulae morales, 9.19), were used by the philosophers Bias and Stilbo, when they had apparently lost everything; also by the poet Simonides when shipwrecked (Phaedrus, 4.22.14).

2.  The Pontus Scythicus was one Classical name for the Black Sea (a.k.a. Pontus Euxinus), on the northern shores of which dwelt various barbarian tribes, from Scythians to Goths to Huns.

3.  Cereris...opes,...dona Lyaei, ‘Ceres’ bounty...gifts of Lyaeus’, i.e. corn and wine, given to mankind by Ceres and Bacchus (Lyaeus, the relaxer, or deliverer from care).

« Previous EmblemNext Emblem »

Related Emblems

Show related emblems Show related emblems

Hint: You can set whether related emblems are displayed by default on the preferences page

Iconclass Keywords

Relating to the image:

Relating to the text:

Hint: You can turn translations and name underlining on or off using the preferences page.

 

Back to top