Symphosius Riddle 30: Peduculus

ALEXANDRAREIDER

Date: Fri 01 Jul 2022
Original text:

Est nova nostrarum cunctis captura ferarum,
Ut, si quid capias, id tu tibi ferre recuses
Et, quod non capias, tecum tamen ipse reportes.

Translation:

There is, for everyone, a strange prey of our wild animals,
Which, if you should catch it, you will decline to bring it to you
And, if you should not catch it, it may yet bring itself back with you.

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Louse


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:

  • Ordering: Leary orders Riddles 29-31 as: phoenix, ericius, peduculus, while also acknowledging the possibility of the order here


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