
Doctos doctis obloqui nefas esse.
It is wicked for scholars to wrangle with other scholars
EMBLEMA CLXXX.

Quid rapis heu Progne vocalem saeva cicadam,
Pignoribusque tuis fercula dira paras?[1]
Stridula stridentem, vernam verna, hospita laedis
Hospitam, & aligeram penniger ales avem?
Ergo abice hanc praedam: nam musica pectora, summum est,
Alterum ab alterius dente perire, nefas.
Alas, Procne, why, cruel bird, do you sieze on the melodious cicada and prepare a dreadful banquet for your young? A whistler yourself, you harm the shrill singer; a summer visitor, you hurt another fine-weather caller; a guest, you harm a guest; a feathered bird, you hurt another winged creature. So let this prize go. It is the greatest sin for hearts devoted to the Muses to perish by one another’s tooth.
1. The reference is to the legend of Procne’s metamorphosis into a swallow. See [A21a070] and [A21a094]. For swallows catching cicadas, see Aelian, De natura animalium 8.6.
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Related Emblems

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Iconclass Keywords
Relating to the image:
- groups of plants (herbs) [25G13] Search | Browse Iconclass
- insects: cicada (+ dying animal; death of animal; dead animal) [25F711(CICADA)(+63)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- ruin of a building ~ architecture [48C149] Search | Browse Iconclass
- song-birds: swallow (+ animal with prey) [25F32(SWALLOW)(+452)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- song-birds: swallow (+ feeding and care of young) [25F32(SWALLOW)(+42)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- song-birds: swallow (+ nest, den, burrow) [25F32(SWALLOW)(+421)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- song-birds: swallow (+ postures, positions of animal(s)) [25F32(SWALLOW)(+53)] Search | Browse Iconclass
Relating to the text:
- (story of the) Muses; 'Muse' (Ripa) [92D4] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Disagreement, Discord; 'Discordia' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [54EE31(+4):51B3(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- discussion, dialogue, dispute ~ scholar, philosopher [49C40] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Eloquence; 'Eloquenza', 'Fermezza & Gravità dell'Oratione' (Ripa) [52D3] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Malevolence, Maliciousness; 'Malevolenza', 'Malignità ', 'Malvagità ' (Ripa) (+ emblematical representation of concept) [57AA7(+4)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Philomela, Procne and Tereus changed into nightingale, swallow, hoopoe (or hawk): Tereus seeks to kill Philomela and Procne for having slain his son; in their flight the two sisters are changed into a nightingale and a swallow; Tereus is changed into a ho [97DD23] Search | Browse Iconclass
- scholar or scientist with muse [49L(+101)] Search | Browse Iconclass
- Similarity, Likeness [51B2] Search | Browse Iconclass
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