Riddle Ages

Symphosius Riddle 74: Lapis

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Deucalion ego sum crudeli sospes ab unda,

Affinis terrae sed longe durior illa.

Littera decedat: volucris quoque nomen habebo.

Translation:

I am Deucalion, unharmed by a cruel wave,

Associated with the earth, but far harder than it.

A letter falls away: I will also have the name of a winged creature.

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Stone

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

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Aldhelm Riddle 75: Crabro

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Aera per sudum nunc binis remigo pennis

Horridus et grossae depromo murmura vocis

Inque cavo densis conversor stipite turmis

Dulcia conficiens propriis alimenta catervis,

Et tamen humanis horrent haec pabula buccis.

Sed quicumque cupit disrumpens foedera pacis

Dirus commaculare domum sub culmine querno,

Extemplo socias in bellum clamo cohortes,

Dumque catervatim stridunt et spicula trudunt,

Agmina defugiunt iaculis exterrita diris:

Insontes hosti sic torquent tela nocenti

Plurima, quae constant tetris infecta venenis.

Translation:

Now I row through clear air on two wings,

Horrible, and I produce a buzzing with a full voice

And I frequent a hollow trunk in thick swarms,

Producing sweet food for our own kind,

And yet these foods are disgusting to human mouths.

But if someone dreadful, disrupting pacts of peace, 

Wishes to defile our home under its oaken roof,

I immediately rally groups of our fellows to battle,

And while they buzz in groups and thrust their stings,

The enemy troops flee, terrified of our cruel darts:

Thus, innocent, they send their many darts, which stand

Corrupted by foul poison, to the guilty enemy.

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Hornet

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 75: Calx

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Evasi flammas, ignis tormenta profugi.

Ipsa medella meo pugnat contraria fato:

Ardeo de lymphis: gelidis incendor ab undis.

Translation:

I have escaped the flames, I have fled the torments of fire.

The very cure fights against my fate:

I am burned by liquids: I am inflamed by icy waves.

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Lime

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

line 3: incendor > accendor

Tags: riddles solutions latin symphosius

Aldhelm Riddle 76: Melarius

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Fausta fuit primo mundi nascentis origo,

Donec prostratus succumberet arte maligni;

Ex me tunc priscae processit causa ruinae,

Dulcia quae rudibus tradebam mala colonis.

En iterum mundo testor remeasse salutem,

Stipite de patulo dum penderet arbiter orbis

Et poenas lueret soboles veneranda Tonantis.

Translation:

The beginning of the young world was happy at first,

Until the overthrown one succumbed to the deceit of the evil one;

The cause of the ancient ruin then came from me,

Who was giving out sweet apples to the uncultivated inhabitants.

Behold: I attest that well-being returned to the world again,

When the judge of the world was suspended from a stretched-out tree

And the venerable son of the Thundering God atoned for sins.

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Apple Tree

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 76: Silex

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Semper inest intus, sed raro cernitur ignis;

Intus enim latitat, sed solos prodit ad ictus;

Nec lignis ut vivat eget, nec ut occidat undis.

Translation:

Fire is always in me, though it is rarely seen;

For it lurks inside, but appears upon blows alone;

It does not need wood to live or water to die.

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Flint

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

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Aldhelm Riddle 77: Ficulnea

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Quis prior in mundo deprompsit tegmina vestis

Aut quis clementer miserum protexit egenum?

Irrita non referam verbis nec frivola fingam.

Primitus in terra proprio de corpore peplum,

Ut fama fertur, produxi frondibus altis;

Carica me curvat, dum massis pabula praestat,

Sedulus agricola brumae quas tempore mandit.

Translation:

Who in the world was quicker to produce the coverings of garment

Or who more gently covered the miserable needy? 

I do not report nullities nor do I fashion trifles with my words.

First on earth a robe from my own body,

As the story goes, I produced with high foliage;

The fig bends me, while it offers food in masses,

Which the attentive farmer eats in wintertime.

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Fig Tree

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 77: Rotae

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Quattuor aequales currunt ex arte sorores

Sic quasi certantes, cum sit labor omnibus unus;

Et prope sunt pariter nec se contingere possunt.

Translation:

Four equal sisters run with skill

As if thus vying, though it be one work for all;

And they are equally close to one another, and they are not able to touch each other.

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Wheels

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

Tags: riddles solutions latin symphosius

Aldhelm Riddle 78: Cupa vinaria

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

En, plures debrians impendo pocula Bacchi,

Vinitor expressit quae flavescentibus uvis

Pampinus et viridi genuit de palmite botris,

Nectare cauponis complens ex vite tabernam.

Sic mea turgescunt ad plenum viscera musto,

Et tamen inflatum non vexat crapula corpus,

Quamvis hoc nectar centenis hauserit urnis.

Proles sum terrae glescens in saltibus altis;

Materiam cuneis findit sed cultor agrestis

Pinos evertens altas et robora ferro.

Translation:

Behold, inebriating many, I give out Bacchus’ goblets,

Which the vintner pressed from yellowing grapes

And the vine produced from the grape’s green sprout,

Filling the innkeeper’s tavern with the nectar from the vine.

Thus my insides grow full with new wine,

And yet drunkenness does not afflict my swollen body,

Even though it might drink this nectar in a hundred jars.

I am offspring of the earth, growing in deep forests;

But the country farmer splits my material with wedges,

Uprooting tall pines and oaks with iron.

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Wine-cask

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 78: Scalae

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Nos sumus, ad caelum quae scandimus, alta petentes,

Concordi fabrica quas unus continet ordo,

Ut simul haerentes per nos comitentur  ad auras.

Translation:

We are they who ascend to heaven, seeking the heights,

Which one row contains in a harmonious structure,

Such that they, clinging together, are advanced to the sky.

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Stairs

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

line 3: comitentur > comitemur
Translation is different (see also the long note in his commentary): “I am what climbs to the sky, seeking the heavens, something which a single series holds in a unified structure so that clinging together I am accompanied to the heights by means of myself.”

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Aldhelm Riddle 79: Sol et luna

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Non nos Saturni genuit spurcissima proles

Iupiter, immensum fingunt quem carmina vatum,

Nec fuit in Delo mater Latona creatrix;

Cynthia non dicor nec frater Apollo vocatur,

Sed potius summi genuit regnator Olimpi,

Qui nunc in caelis excelsae praesidet arci.

Dividimus mundum communi lege quadratum:

Nocturnes regimus cursus et frena dierum.

Ni soror et frater vaga saecula iure gubernent,

Heu! chaos immensum clauderet cuncta latebris

Atraque nunc Erebi regnarent Tartara nigri.

Translation:

Saturn’s vilest child did not produce us—

That is, Jupiter, whom the poets’ songs depict as immense— 

Nor was mother Latona our creator on Delos; 

I am not called Cynthia and my brother is not called Apollo,

But rather the ruler of high Olympus,

Who now presides over the lofty castle on high, did produce us.

We divide the four-part world with a shared law:

We rule the nocturnal courses and the mastery of days.

If sister and brother did not govern the unstable world with authority,

Alas! measureless chaos would surround everything in shadow

And then black Erebus would reign over gloomy Tartarus.

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Sun and Moon

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 79: Scopa

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Mundi magna parens, laqueo conexa tenaci,

Vincta solo plano, manibus conpressa duabus

Ducor ubique sequens et me quoque cuncta sequuntur.

Translation:

Great mother of the world, fastened by a tenacious knot,

Bound on the flat ground, held in two hands,

Following, I am led everywhere, and all things also follow me.

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Broom

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

line 2: Vincta > iuncta

Tags: riddles solutions latin symphosius

Aldhelm Riddle 80: Calix vitreus

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

De rimis lapidum profluxi flumine lento,

Dum frangant flammae saxorum viscera dura

Et laxis ardor fornacis regnat habenis;

Nunc mihi forma capax glacieque simillima lucet.

Nempe volunt plures collum constringere dextra

Et pulchre digitis lubricum comprendere corpus;

Sed mentes muto, dum labris oscula trado

Dulcia compressis impendens basia buccis,

Atque pedum gressus titubantes sterno ruina.

Translation:

From cracks in rocks I flowed in a slow stream,

While flames shatter the hard insides of rocks

And the heat of the furnace rules, with the reins being slack;

Now my shape, retentive and very like ice, shines. 

Indeed, many wish to hold fast my neck with their right hand

And grasp my beautifully smooth body their fingers;

But I change minds when I give their lips kisses,

Bestowing sweet kisses on their pressed-together mouths,

And with ruin I vanquish the staggering steps of their feet.

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Glass Goblet

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 80: Tintinnabulum

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Aere rigens curvo patulum conponor in orbem.

Mobilis est intus linguae crepitantis imago.

Non resono positus, motus quoque saepe resulto.

Translation:

Rigid with curved bronze, I am formed in a wide circle.

Inside is the moving likeness of a murmuring tongue.

Set down, I do not resound, but moved, I often ring out.

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Bell

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

Tags: riddles solutions latin symphosius

Aldhelm Riddle 81: Lucifer

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Semper ego clarum praecedo lumine lumen

Signifer et Phoebi, lustrat qui limpidus orbem,

Per caelum gradiens obliquo tramite flector;

Eoas partes amo, dum iubar inde meabit

Finibus Indorum, cernunt qui lumina primi.

O felix olim servata lege Tonantis!

Heu! post haec cecidi proterva mente superbus;

Ultio quapropter funestum perculit hostem.

Sex igitur comites mecum super aethera scandunt,

Gnarus quos poterit per biblos pandere lector.

Translation:

I always precede the clear light with my own light

And am the sign-bearer of Phoebus, who shines brightly over the world,

Advancing through the sky I am turned along an oblique path;

I love the eastern regions, for my brilliance passes thence 

To the territories of the Indians, who glimpse the lights first.

O how happy I was once, when the law of the Thunderer was obeyed!

Alas! After this I fell, proud in my reckless intent;

Therefore, punishment overthrew the deadly enemy.

As a result, six fellows ascend through the heavens with me,

Which the knowledgeable reader will be able to explain with books.

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Lucifer

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 81: Lagena

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Mater erat Tellus, genitor est ipse Prometheus;

Auriculaeque regunt redimitam ventre cavato.

Dum misere cecidi, mater mea me laniavit.

Translation:

My mother was the Earth, my father is Prometheus himself;

And my little ears guide (as handles), crowned with hollow belly;

When I fell miserably, my mother butchered me.

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Ceramic Jar

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

line 2: regunt redimitam > rigent redimitae
line 3 is different: dum cecidi subito laniavit

Tags: riddles solutions latin symphosius

Aldhelm Riddle 82: Mustela

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Discolor in curvis conversor quadripes antris

Pugnas exercens dira cum gente draconum.

Non ego dilecta turgesco prole mariti,

Nec fecunda viro sobolem sic edidit alvus,

Residuae matres ut sumunt semina partus;

Quin magis ex aure praegnantur viscera fetu.

Si vero proles patitur discrimina mortis,

Dicor habere rudem componens arte medelam.

Translation:

A multicoloured quadruped, I dwell in curved caves,

Undertaking fights with the dreadful race of dragons.

I do not swell with the beloved offspring of a husband,

Nor does my womb, pregnant by a male, produce progeny

As do the other mothers who receive the seeds of young;

Rather, what is more, my insides are made pregnant with child from my ear.

If indeed my baby should suffer the hazards of death,

I am said to have envisaged a new cure with my skill.

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Weasel

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 82: Conditum

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Tres olim fuimus, qui nomine iungimur uno;

Ex tribus est unus, et tres miscentur in uno;

Quisque bonus per se: melior, qui continet omnes.

Translation:

Once we were three, who are joined by one name;

One is from three, and three are mixed in one;

Each is good in itself: better, that which contains all of them.

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Spiced Wine

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

Tags: riddles solutions latin symphosius

Aldhelm Riddle 83: Iuvencus

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Arida spumosis dissolvens faucibus ora

Bis binis bibulus potum de fontibus hausi.

Vivens nam terrae glebas cum stirpibus imis

Nisu virtutis validae disrumpo feraces;

At vero linquit dum spiritus algida membra,

Nexibus horrendis homines constringere possum.

Translation:

Opening my dry mouth with foaming jaws,

Thirsty, I drank up liquid from twice-two fountains.

For, living, I break the fertile clods of earth with deep roots

Through the labour of my strength;

But indeed when breath leaves my cold limbs,

I am able to bind men with horrendous fetters.

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Young Bull

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 83: Vinum in acetum conversum

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Sublatum nihil est, nihil est extrinsecus auctum;

Nec tamen invenio, quicquid prius ipse reliqui.

Quod fueram, non sum; coepi, quod non eram.

Translation:

Nothing was taken away, nothing extrinsic was added;

And yet I do not find what I left before;

What I had been, I am not; I begin to be what I was not.

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Wine turned to vinegar

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

line 3: in the third- rather than first-person, drawing on a manuscript family that smoothes out grammatical issues and perhaps addresses the confusion here over whether the speaker is the wine itself or someone who left the wine

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Aldhelm Riddle 84: Scrofa praegnans

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Nunc mihi sunt oculi bis seni in corpore solo

Bis ternumque caput, sed cetera membra gubernant.

Nam gradior pedibus suffultus bis duodenis,

Sed decies novem sunt et sex corporis ungues,

Sinzigias numero pariter similabo pedestres.

Populus et taxus, viridi quoque fronde salicta

Sunt invisa mihi, sed fagos glandibus uncas,

Fructiferas itidem florenti vertice quercus

Diligo; sic nemorosa simul non spernitur ilex.

Translation:

Now I have twice-six eyes in one body

And twice-three heads, but my other limbs are in charge.

For I walk supported by twice-twelve feet,

But my body has ninety-six toenails,

Likewise in this number I resemble the metrical syzygies.

The poplar and the yew-tree, also the green-leafed willow trees

Are hated by me, but the crooked beech-tree with its beechnuts,

As well as the fruitful oak-trees with their flowering top,

I love; in the same way, at the same time, is the leafy holm-oak not spurned.

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Pregnant Sow

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 84: Malum

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Nomen ovis Graecum, contentio magna dearum

Fraus iuvenis cincti, multarum cura sororum

Excidio Troiae vel bella cruenta peregi.

Translation:

The name for a sheep in Greek, the great contest among the goddesses,

The fraud of the belted youth, the care of many sisters,

The fall of Troy or cruel wars—I completed all this.

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Apple

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

If you're researching/studying this collection, you should also consult this excellent new edition: T. J. Leary, ed. Symphosius: The Aenigmata, An Introduction, Text and Commentary. London: Bloomsbury, 2014. Textual differences in that edition include:

line 2: cincti > functi
line 3 is different, drawing on another manuscript family: hoc volo ne breviter mihi syllaba prima legatur (Leary notes that the version above may stem from a gloss of this line, p. 215)

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Aldhelm Riddle 85: Caecus natus

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Iam referam verbis tibi, quod vix credere possis,

Cum constet verum fallant nec frivola mentem.

Nam dudum dederam soboli munuscula grata,

Tradere quae numquam poterat mihi quislibet alter,

Dum Deus ex alto fraudaret munere claro,

In quo cunctorum gaudent praecordia dono.

Translation:

Now I shall relate in words to you what you will hardly be able believe,

Though it is the truth and not follies that cheat the mind.

For once I gave welcome little gifts to my son,

Which no one else was ever able to give me,

Because God from on high deprived me of the bright gift,

The gift in which the hearts of all are glad.

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A Man Born Blind

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 85: Perna

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Nobile duco genus magni de gente Catonis.

Una mihi soror est, plures licet esse putentur.

De fumo facies, sapientia de mare nata est.

Translation:

I lead a noble line, from the great Cato’s kind;

I have one sister, even if there are thought to be more;

My face is from smoke, my taste is born from the sea.

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Ham

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

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Aldhelm Riddle 86: Aries

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022

Original text:

Sum namque armatus rugosis cornibus horrens,

Herbas arvorum buccis decerpo virentes,

Et tamen astrifero procedens agmine stipor,

Culmina caelorum quae scandunt celsa catervis.

Turritas urbes capitis certamine quasso

Oppida murorum prosternens arcibus altis.

Induo mortales retorto stamine pepli;

Littera quindecima praestat, quod pars domus adsto.

Translation:

For I am dreadful, armed with rough horns,

I gather the fields’ green grasses with my mouth,

And yet, advancing, I am crowded by starry company,

Which ascend the lofty heights of the heavens in groups.

I crush turreted cities with my head’s combat,

Overthrowing the towns of walls with their high strongholds.

I clothe mortals with fabric’s twisted thread;

If the fifteenth letter stands in front, I stand as part of a house.

Click to show riddle solution?

Ram

Notes:

This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.

Tags: riddles latin Aldhelm

Symphosius Riddle 86: Malleus

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Sat 10 Sep 2022

Original text:

Non ego de toto mihi corpore vindico vires,

Sed capitis pugna nulli certare recuso:

Grande mihi caput est, totum quoque pondus in illo.

Translation:

I do not claim strength with my whole body,

But in a fight of heads I do not refuse to compete against anyone:

My head is big, also all my weight is in it.

Click to show riddle solution?

Hammer

Notes:

This edition is based on Raymond T. Ohl, ed. The Enigmas of Symphosius. PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1928.

Tags: riddles solutions latin symphosius