Aldhelm Riddle 92: Farus editissima
ALEXANDRAREIDER
Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022Rupibus in celsis, qua tundunt caerula cautes
Et salis undantes turgescunt aequore fluctus,
Machina me summis construxit molibus amplam,
Navigeros calles ut pandam classibus index.
Non maris aequoreos lustrabam remige campos
Nec ratibus pontum sulcabam tramite flexo
Et tamen immensis errantes fluctibus actos
Arcibus ex celsis signans ad litora duco
Flammiger imponens torres in turribus altis,
Ignea brumales dum condunt sidera nimbi.
On the towering rocks, where the sea beats the rocks
And the salt-waves swell the floods with the sea,
Apparatus constructed me, extensive, with the highest structure,
So that I, a revealer, might disclose the navigable paths to fleets.
I do not traverse the watery fields of the sea with oar
Nor do I plow through the sea on a curved path with ships
But nevertheless I lead drifting ships impelled by the immense waves
To shore, giving out signals from my lofty summit;
The flame-bearer lights the firebrands in the high towers,
While the winter clouds conceal the fiery stars.
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