Valerius Flaccus: ARGONAVTICA

At trepidam in thalamis et iam sua facta paventem
Colchida circa omnes pariter furiaeque minaeque
patris habent, nec caerulei timor aequoris ultra
nec miserae terra ulla procul: quascumque per undas
ferre fugam, quamcumque cupit iam scandere puppem.                    5
ultima virgineis tunc flens dedit oscula vittis
quosque fugit complexa toros crinemque genasque
aegra per antiqui carpsit vestigia somni
atque haec impresso gemuit miseranda cubili:
'o mihi si profugae genitor nunc ille supremos                    10
amplexus, Aeeta, dares fletusque videres
ecce meos! ne crede, pater, non carior ille est
quem sequimur--tumidis utinam simul obruar undis!
tu precor haec longa placidus mox sceptra senecta
tuta geras meliorque tibi sit cetera proles!'                    15

But the Colchian, trembling in her chambers and now fearing her own deeds, is held on every side alike by the Furies and the menaces of her father, nor any longer is it the fear of the cerulean sea, nor is there any land far enough for the wretched one: through whatever waves to carry her flight, whatever stern she now desires to climb aboard. 5
then weeping she gave final kisses to her virginal fillets, and, embracing the couch which she flees, sick at heart she tore at her hair and cheeks along the traces of ancient sleep, and, pitiable, she groaned these words to the bed with its imprint: “O if to me, a fugitive, you, father, Aeetes, would now grant final embraces and would behold—see!—my tears! Do not believe it, father: he whom I follow is not dearer—would that I were overwhelmed at once by the swelling waves! Do you, I pray, calm, soon with long old age bear these scepters in safety, and let the rest of your progeny be better to you!” 15

dixit et Haemonio numquam spernenda marito
condita letiferis promit medicamina cistis
virgineosque sinus ipsumque monile venenis
implicat ac saevum super omnibus addidit ensem.
inde velut torto Furiarum erecta flagello                    20
prosilit, attonito qualis pede prosilit Ino
in freta nec parvi meminit conterrita nati
quem tenet; extremum coniunx ferit inritus Isthmon.
      Iam prior in lucos curis urgentibus heros
venerat et nemoris sacra se nocte tegebat                    25
tum quoque siderea clarus procul ora iuventa.
qualis adhuc sparsis comitum per lustra catervis
Latmius aestiva residet venator in umbra
dignus amore deae, velatis cornibus et iam
Luna venit, roseo talis per nubila ductor                    30

she spoke and for her Haemonian husband never to be spurned she brings forth medicaments stored in death-bearing chests, and she entwines her maidenly bosom-folds and the necklace itself with poisons, and over and above all she added a savage sword. then, as if raised by the twisted scourge of the Furies,                    20
she leaps forth, even as Ino with bewildered foot leaps into the straits and, terrified, does not remember the little son whom she holds; her husband vainly strikes at the far Isthmus.
      Already the hero, with urgent cares, had first come into the groves and was veiling himself with the sacred night of the grove,                    25
then too bright afar in his features with sidereal youth. such as the Latmian hunter sits in the summer shade, his comrades’ bands scattered through the lairs, worthy of the goddess’s love, and now Luna comes with veiled horns, such a leader through the rosy clouds                    30

implet honore nemus talemque exspectat amantem.
ecce autem pavidae virgo de more columbae
quae super ingenti circumdata praepetis umbra
in quemcumque tremens hominem cadit, haud secus illa
acta timore gravi mediam se misit. at ille 35
excepit blandoque prior sic ore locutus:
'o decus in nostros magnum ventura penates
solaque tantarum virgo haud indigna viarum
causa reperta mihi, <iam>iam non ulla requiro
vellera teque meae satis est vexisse carinae. 40
verum age et hoc etiam, quando potes, adice tantis
muneribus meritisque tuis.

he fills the grove with honor and awaits such a lover.
lo, moreover, the maiden, after the manner of a fearful dove,
who, encompassed above by the vast shadow of the swift bird,
falls trembling upon whatever man it drops on—just so she,
driven by grave fear, flung herself into the midst. But he 35
received her and first spoke thus with a coaxing mouth:
'o great honor about to come into our household gods,
and you alone, maiden, found by me as a cause not unworthy of such great journeys—
now, now I require no fleeces; it is enough that my keel has borne you.
but come, and add this also, since you can, to such great gifts
and to your merits.

namque aurea iussi
terga referre sumus. socios ea gloria tangit.'
sic ait et primis supplex dedit oscula palmis.
Contra virgo novis iterum singultibus orsa est: 45

for indeed we have been ordered
to bring back the golden hides. that glory touches my comrades.'
thus he spoke and, as a suppliant, he gave kisses to her very palms.
In reply the maiden, beginning again with new sobs, spoke: 45

'linquo domos patrias te propter opesque meorum
nec iam nunc regina loquor sceptrisque relictis
vota sequor; serva hanc profugae, prior ipse dedisti
quam (scis nempe) fidem. di nostris vocibus adsunt
sidera et haec te meque vident. tecum aequora, tecum 50
experiar quascumque vias, modo nequis abactam
huc referat me forte dies oculis<que> parentis
ingerar.

'I leave my ancestral homes on your account and the wealth of my kin;
nor now do I speak as a queen, and with scepters relinquished
I follow my vows; keep this faith to the exile, which you yourself first gave
(you know it, indeed). The gods are present to our voices,
the stars, and these see you and me. With you the seas, with you 50
I will try whatever ways, only let not some day
by chance bring me back hither as one driven away, and into my father’s eyes
I be thrust.

hoc superos, hoc te quoque deprecor, hospes.'
Haec ait atque furens rapido per devia passu
tollitur. ille haeret comes et mi[se]ratur euntem 55
cum subito ingentem media inter nubila flammam
conspicit et saeva vibrantes luce tenebras.
'quis rubor iste poli?

'for this I implore the gods above, for this I implore you also, guest.'
She says this, and, frenzied, is borne off with rapid step through devious paths.
He stands fixed, a companion, and pities her as she goes 55
when suddenly he beholds an immense flame amid the clouds,
and the darkness quivering with savage light.
'what redness is that of the sky?

quod tam lugubre refulsit
sidus?' ait, reddit trepido cui talia virgo:
'ipsius en oculos et lumina torva draconis 60

'what star has gleamed so lugubriously?' he says; to the trembling one the maiden returns such words:
'behold the very eyes and the grim lights of the dragon' 60

aspicis. ille suis haec vibrat fulgura cristis
meque pavens contra solam videt ac vocat ultro,
ceu solet, et blanda poscit me pabula lingua.
dic age nunc utrum vigilanti hostemque videnti
exuvias auferre velis an lumina somno 65
mergimus et domitum potius tibi tradimus anguem.'
ille silet, tantus subiit tum virginis horror.

You see. He vibrates these lightnings with his crests
and, fearful, he sees me alone opposite and calls me of his own accord,
as he is wont, and with a coaxing tongue asks me for food.
say, come now, whether you wish to carry off spoils from one awake and seeing the enemy
or we plunge his eyes into sleep 65
and rather hand over to you the serpent tamed.'
He is silent; such awe of the maiden then came upon him.

      Iamque manus Colchis ~crinem~que intenderat astris
carmina barbarico fundens pede teque ciebat,
Somne pater: 'Somne omnipotens, te Colchi[di]s ab omni                    70
orbe voco inque unum iubeo nunc ire draconem,
quae freta saepe tuo domui, quae nubila cornu
fulminaque et toto quicquid micat aethere, sed nunc,
nunc age maior ades fratrique simillime Leto.
te quoque, Phrixeae pecudis fidissime custos,                    75

      And now the Colchian had stretched her hands and ~hair~ to the stars,
pouring out songs with a barbaric foot, and was summoning you,
Father Sleep: 'Omnipotent Sleep, I, the Colchian, call you from every orb                    70
and I bid you now to go into one dragon,
I who have often by your power tamed the straits, who with your horn the clouds
and the thunderbolts and whatever glitters in the whole ether; but now,
now come, greater, and most like to your brother Death.
you too, most faithful guardian of the Phrixean sheep,                    75

tempus ab hac oculos tandem deflectere cura.
quem metuis me adstante dolum? servabo parumper
ipsa nemus; longum interea tu pone laborem.'
ille haud Aeolio discedere fessus ab auro
nec dare permissae, quamvis iuvet, ora quieti 80
sustinet ac primi percussus nube soporis
horruit et dulces excussit ab arbore somnos.

it is time at last to deflect your eyes from this care.
what deceit do you fear with me standing by? I myself will guard the grove for a little while;
meanwhile do you lay aside the long labor.'
he does not endure to depart from the Aeolian gold,
nor to give his face to the permitted rest, although it pleases, 80
and, struck by the cloud of first sleep,
he shuddered and shook the sweet slumbers off from the tree.

contra Tartareis Colchis spumare <venenis>
cunctaque Lethaei quassare silentia rami
perstat et adverso luctantia lumina cantu 85
obruit atque omnem linguaque manuque fatigat
vim Stygiam ardentes donec sopor occupet iras.
iamque altae cecidere iubae nutatque coactum
iam caput atque ingens extra sua vellera cervix
ceu refluens Padus aut septem proiectus in amnes 90

against this, the Colchian, foaming with Tartarean
and shaking all the silences of the Lethean branch,
persists, and with her adverse chant overwhelms the eyes that struggle 85
and with tongue and hand wearies all the Stygian force,
until sleep seizes the burning angers.
and now the lofty manes have fallen, and the constrained
head now nods, and the huge neck beyond its own fleeces,
like the ebbing Po, or cast forth into seven rivers, 90

Nilus et Hesperium veniens Alpheos in orbem.
ipsa caput cari postquam Medea draconis
vidit humi fusis circum proiecta lacertis
seque suumque simul flevit crudelis alumnum.
'non ego te sera talem sub nocte videbam 95
sacra ferens epulasque tibi nec talis hianti
mella dabam ac nostris nutribam fida venenis.

the Nile and the Hesperian Alpheus coming into a circle.
Medea herself, after she saw the head of her dear dragon
on the ground, its forearms flung and spread around,
wept at once both for herself and for her cruel fosterling.
'Not thus did I behold you under late night,bringing sacred rites and banquets for you, 95
nor such did I give honey to you as you gaped,
and I nourished you, trusting in my own poisons.'

quam gravida nunc mole iaces, quam segnis inertem
flatus habet! nec te saltem, miserande, peremi.
heu saevum passure diem, iam nulla videbis 100
vellera, nulla tua fulgentia dona sub umbra.

How heavy with mass you now lie, how a sluggish breath holds you inert!
nor did I at least, pitiable one, slay you.
alas, destined to suffer a savage day, now you will see no 100
fleeces, no gleaming gifts of yours beneath the shade.

cede adeo inque aliis senium nunc digere lucis
immemor, oro, mei nec me tua sibila toto
exagitent infesta mari. sed tu quoque cunctas,
Aesonide, dimitte moras atque effuge raptis 105

give way then, and now spend your old age among other lights
forgetful, I beg, of me, nor let your hisses, hostile, harry me over the whole sea.
but you too, Aesonides, dismiss all delays and flee with the seized things, 105

velleribus. patrios exstinxi noxia tauros,
terrigenas in fata dedi: fusum ecce draconis
corpus habes! iamque omne nefas, iam, spero, peregi.'
quaerenti tunc deinde viam, qua se arduus heros
ferret ad aurigerae caput arboris, 'heia per ipsum 110
scande age et adverso gressus' ait 'imprime dorso.'
nec mora fit.

with the fleeces. I have extinguished the paternal noxious bulls,
I have given the earth-born to their fates: behold, you have the dragon’s
body! And now every nefarious deed, now, I hope, I have completed.'
Then, as he was seeking the way by which the lofty hero might
carry himself to the head of the gold-bearing tree, 'hey, up over it itself 110
climb, come, and imprint your steps,' she said, 'against its back.'
nor is delay made.

dictis fidens Cretheia proles
calcat et aeriam squamis perfertur ad ornum,
cuius adhuc rutilam servabant bracchia pellem,
nubibus accensis similem aut cum veste recincta 115
labitur ardenti Thaumantias obvia Phoebo.
corripit optatum decus extremumque laborem
Aesonides longosque sibi gestata per annos
Phrixeae monumenta fugae vix reddidit arbor
cum gemitu tristesque super coiere tenebrae. 120

trusting in the words, the Cretheian offspring
steps and is borne upon the scales to the airy ash,
whose branches were still keeping the ruddy fleece,
like kindled clouds, or when, with garment un-girdled, 115
the Thaumantias glides to meet blazing Phoebus.
he seizes the longed-for glory and the final labor,
the Aesonid; and the tree, which for long years had borne for itself
the memorials of Phrixus’s flight, scarcely gave them back with a groan,
and sad shadows gathered above. 120

egressi relegunt campos et fluminis ora
summa petunt. micat omnis ager villisque comantem
sidereis totos pellem nunc fundit in artus,
nunc in colla refert, nunc implicat ille sinistrae:
talis ab Inachiis Nemeae Tirynthius antris 125
ibat adhuc aptans umeris capitique leonem.
ut vero sociis, qui tunc praedicta tenebant
ostia, per longas apparuit aureus umbras,
clamor ab Haemonio surgit grege.

having gone out they traverse again the fields and the river’s banks
they seek the heights. the whole field flashes, and the pelt, shaggy with hairs,
now pours starry radiance upon all his limbs,
now he brings it back upon his neck, now he entwines it with his left hand:
such from the Inachian caves of Nemea the Tirynthian was going 125
still fitting the lion to his shoulders and head.
but when to his comrades, who then were holding the foretold
mouths, the golden one appeared through the long shadows,
a clamor rises from the Haemonian band.

se quoque gaudens
promovet ad primas iuveni ratis obvia ripas.                    130
praecipites agit ille gradus atque aurea misit
terga prius, mox attonita cum virgine puppem
insilit ac rapta victor consistit in hasta.
      Interea patrias saevus venit horror ad aures
fata domus luctumque ferens fraudemque fugamque                    135

rejoicing, she too advances to the foremost banks to meet the youth, the raft.                    130
headlong he drives his steps and first he sent in the golden hide,
soon, with the astonished maiden, he leaps onto the stern
and, the plunder seized, the victor takes his stand, setting it upon a spear.
      Meanwhile a savage horror comes to the paternal ears,
bringing the destinies of the house and mourning and fraud and flight.                    135

virginis. hinc subitis infelix frater in armis,
urbs etiam mox tota coit, volat ipse senectae
immemor Aeetes, complentur litora bello
nequiquam, fugit immissis iam puppis habenis.
Mater adhuc ambas tendebat in aequora palmas 140
et soror atque omnes aliae matresque nurusque
Colchides aequalesque tibi, Medea, puellae.

of the maiden. Thence the unhappy brother with sudden arms,
the whole city too soon gathers, Aeetes himself flies,
unmindful of old age; the shores are filled with war
in vain, the ship now flees with the reins let loose.
The mother still was stretching both palms toward the seas 140
and the sister, and all the other Colchian mothers and daughters-in-law,
and the girls your equals, Medea.

exstat sola parens impletque ululatibus auras:
'siste fugam, medio refer huc ex aequore puppem,
nata, potes! quo' clamat 'abis? hic turba tuorum 145
omnis et iratus nondum pater, haec tua tellus
sceptraque: quid terris solam te credis Achaeis?

the mother alone stands forth and fills the airs with ululations:
'stay your flight, bring the ship back here from the middle of the sea,
daughter, you can! where,' she cries 'will you go? here the whole throng of your own 145
all, and a father not yet angered; this is your land
and your scepters: why do you believe yourself for Achaean lands alone?

quis locus Inachias inter tibi, barbara, natas?
istane vota domus exspectatique hymenaei?
hunc petii grandaeva diem?

what place among the Inachian daughters is there for you, barbarian?
are these the vows of the house and the long-expected hymenaeal rites?
have I, grown old, sought this day?

vellem unguibus uncis 150

I wish with hooked nails 150

ut volucris possem praedonis in ipsius ora
ire ratemque supra claroque reposcere cantu
quam genui. Albano fuit haec promissa tyranno,
non tibi; nil tecum miseri pepigere parentes,
Aesonide, non hoc Pelias evadere furto 155
te iubet aut ullas Colchis abducere natas:
vellus habe et nostris siquid super accipe templis!
sed quid ego quemquam immeritis incuso querellis?

that I might, as a bird, be able to go into the very face of the marauder,
and above the ship and with clear song demand back the craft
which I begot. This was promised to the Alban tyrant,
not to you; my wretched parents made no pact with you,
Aesonid, nor does Pelias bid you to escape by this theft 155
or to carry off any daughters from Colchis:
have the fleece, and if anything remains, take it from our temples!
but why do I accuse anyone with undeserved laments?

ipsa fugit tantoque (nefas) ipsa ardet amore.
hoc erat, infelix, redeunt nam singula menti, 160
ex quo [to] Thessalici subierunt ~nam singula~
quod nullae te, nata, dapes, non ulla iuvabant
tempora. non ullus tibi tum color aegraque verba
errantesque genae atque alieno gaudia vultu
semper erant.

she herself flees and—an abomination—she herself burns with so great a love.
this it was, unhappy one, for the particulars return to mind, 160
from the time [to] the Thessalian men came in ~for the particulars~
that no banquets, daughter, no times were pleasing you;
no color then was yours, and sickly words,
and wandering cheeks, and joys with an alien countenance
were always there.

cur tanta mihi non prodita pestis, 165

why was so great a plague not betrayed to me, 165

ut gener Aesonides nostra consideret aula
nec talem paterere fugam, commune fuisset
aut certe nunc omne nefas iremus et ambae
in quascumque vias? pariter petiisse iuvaret
Thessaliam et saevi, quaecumque est, hospitis urbem.' 170
sic genetrix similique implet soror omnia questu
exululans, famulae pariter clamore supremo
in vacuos dant verba notos dominamque reclamant
nomine; te venti procul et tua fata ferebant.
Inde diem noctemque volant.

that the Aesonid, as a son-in-law, might regard our hall,
and that you would not suffer such a flight; it would have been shared,
or at least now we both would go through every nefarious wrong
into whatever ways? It would have pleased to have sought together
Thessaly and the city, whatever it is, of the savage host.' 170
thus the mother and the sister with like complaint fill everything,
ululating; the handmaids likewise, with a supreme clamor,
send words into the empty familiar places and call their mistress back
by name; but the winds and your fates were bearing you far away.
From there they fly day and night.

redeuntibus aura 175
gratior et notae Minyis transcurrere terrae,
cum subito Erginus puppi sic fatur ab alta:
'vos,' ait 'Aesonide, contenti vellere capto
nec via quae superet nec quae fortuna videtis.
crastina namque dies trucis ad confinia Ponti 180

as they were returning, a more welcome breeze, and the lands known to the Minyae sped past, 175
when suddenly Erginus thus speaks from the high stern:
'you,' he says, 'Aesonide, content with the fleece captured,
you see neither what way remains nor what fortune.
for tomorrow’s day makes for the confines of grim Pontus 180

Cyaneasque vocat meminique, o Tiphy, tuorum
saxa per illa, pater, memini, venerande, laborum.
mutandum, o socii, nobis iter: altera ponti
eluctanda via et cursu quem fabor eundum est.
haud procul hinc ingens Scythici ruit exitus Histri, 185
fundere non uno tantum quem flumina cornu
accipimus.

and he calls to mind the Cyanean rocks, and I remember, O Tiphys, your labors through those rocks—father, I remember, venerable one. we must change, O comrades, our route: another way of the sea must be wrestled through, and the course which I shall declare must be followed. not far from here the vast outlet of the Scythic Hister rushes, 185
which we receive as pouring forth its streams not with one horn only.

septem exit aquis, septem ostia pandit.
illius adversi nunc ora petamus et undam
quae latus in laevum Ponti cadit, inde sequemur
ipsius amnis iter donec nos flumine certo 190
perferat inque aliud reddat mare. sint age tanti,
Aesonide, quaecumque morae quam saeva subire
saxa iterum, quam Cyaneos perrumpere montes.

it issues to the waters sevenfold, it opens seven mouths.
let us now seek its opposite mouths and the wave
which falls on the left side of the Pontus; from there we shall follow
the very river’s course until by a sure stream it carry us 190
and deliver us into another sea. Come, let whatever delays be worth so much,
Aesonides, rather than to undergo savage rocks again, rather than to break through the Cyanean mountains.

sat mihi, non totis Argo redit ecce corymbis.'
haec ait ignarus fixas iam numine rupes 195

'enough for me, behold, the Argo returns not with all its corymbs.'
he says these things, unaware that the cliffs are now fixed by divine numen 195

stare neque adversis ultra concurrere saxis.
reddidit Aesonides: 'et te, fidissime rector,
haud vani tetigere metus nec me ire recuso
longius et cunctis redeuntem ostendere terris.'
protinus inde alios flectunt regesque locosque                    200
adsuetumque petunt plaustris migrantibus aequor.
      Puppe procul summa vigilis post terga magistri
haeserat auratae genibus Medea Minervae
atque ibi deiecta residens in lumina palla
flebat adhuc, quamquam Haemoniis cum regibus iret                    205
sola tamen nec coniugii secura futuri.

to stand still nor any longer to run together against the opposing rocks.
The Aesonid replied: 'And you too, most faithful helmsman,
no empty fears have touched, nor do I refuse to go
farther and to show myself returning to all the lands.'
Straightway from there they turn to other kings and places                    200
and seek the plain accustomed to migrating wagons.
      At the far stern, high up, behind the back of the watchful helmsman,
Medea had fastened herself to the knees of golden Minerva,
and there, sitting with her mantle cast down upon her eyes,
she was still weeping, although she went with the Haemonian kings,                    205
yet alone, nor secure of the marriage to come.

illam Sarmatici miserantur litora ponti,
illa Thoanteae transit defleta Dianae,
nulla palus, nullus Scythiae non maeret euntem
amnis. Hyperboreas movit conspecta pruinas 210

her the shores of the Sarmatian sea pity,
she passes the Thoantean Diana, lamented,
no marsh, no river of Scythia fails to mourn as she goes;
when seen, she moved the Hyperborean frosts 210

tot modo regna tenens; ipsi quoque murmura ponunt
iam Minyae, iam ferre volunt. vix adlevat ora
ad seras siquando dapes, quas carus Iason
ipse dab<at, i>am nubiferam transire Carambin
significans, iam regna Lyci, totiensque gementem 215
fallit ad Haemonios hortatus surgere montes.
Insula Sarmaticae Peuce stat nomine nymphae
torvus ubi et ripa semper metuendus utraque
in freta per saevos Hister descendit alumnos.

just now holding so many realms; the Minyae themselves also lay aside their murmurs,
now they wish to bear it. She scarcely raises her face
to the late banquets, whenever, which dear Jason
himself would give, now signaling to cross cloud-bearing Carambis,
now the realms of Lycia, and so often he beguiles her as she groans, 215
urging her to rise toward the Haemonian mountains.
An island, Peuce, stands, by the name of a Sarmatian nymph,
where the Hister, grim and ever to be feared on either bank,
descends into the straits through its savage nurslings.

solvere in hoc tandem resides dux litore curas 220
ac primum socios ausus sua pacta docere
promissamque fidem thalami foedusque iugale.
ultro omnes laeti instigant meritamque fatentur,
ipse autem invitae iam Pallados erigit aras
incipit Idaliae numen nec spernere divae 225

at last on this shore the leader began to dissolve his lingering cares 220
and first dared to inform his comrades of his pacts
and the promised faith of the bridal-bed and the conjugal covenant.
unbidden all, joyful, urge him on and confess it deserved,
but he himself now erects altars to reluctant Pallas
and begins not to spurn the numen of the Idalian goddess. 225

praecipueque sui siquando in tempore pulcher
coniugii Minyas numquam magis eminet inter,
qualis sanguineo victor Gradivus ab Hebro
Idalium furto subit aut dilecta Cythera
seu cum caelestes Alcidae invisere mensas                    230
iam vacat et fessum Iunonia sustinet Hebe.
adsunt unanimes Venus hortatorque Cupido;
suscitat adfixam maestis Aeetida curis,
ipsa suas illi croceo subtegmine vestes
induit, ipsa suam duplicem Cytherea coronam                    235
donat et arsuras alia cum virgine gemmas.
tum novus implevit vultus honor ac sua flavis
reddita cura comis graditurque oblita malorum.
sic ubi Mygdonios planctus sacer abluit Almo
laetaque iam Cybele festaeque per oppida taedae,                    240

and especially, whenever handsome at the season of his own
marriage, never does he stand out more among the Minyae,
such as victorious Gradivus from the blood-red Hebrus
steals by stealth into Idalium or beloved Cythera,
or when it is now leisure for Alcides to visit the celestial tables                    230
and Iunonian Hebe sustains the weary one.
present, unanimous, are Venus and Cupid the inciter;
she rouses the Aeetid fastened to sad cares,
she herself puts upon her her own garments with a saffron under-weave,
Cytherea herself grants her her own double crown                    235
and jewels destined to burn with another maiden.
then a new honor filled her face, and her wonted care to her blond
locks restored, she goes, forgetful of her woes.
thus, when the sacred Almo bathes away Mygdonian laments
and now Cybele is glad and the festive torches through the towns,                    240

quis modo tam saevos adytis fluxisse cruores
cogitet aut ipsi qui iam meminere ministri?
inde ubi sacrificas cum coniuge venit ad aras
Aesonides unaque adeunt pariterque precari
incipiunt, ignem Pollux undamque iugalem 245
praetulit et dextrum pariter vertuntur in orbem.
sed neque se pingues tum candida flamma per auras
explicuit nec tura videt concordia Mopsus
promissam nec stare fidem, breve tempus amorum.

who now would think that such savage gores have flowed from the adyta,
or even the ministers themselves who now remember?
then, when to the sacrificial altars he came with his spouse,
the Aesonid, they together approach and together begin to pray—
Pollux bore forth the fire and the nuptial water, 245
and they turn together to the right in a circle.
but neither did the rich, white flame then unfold itself through the airs,
nor does Mopsus see concord in the incense,
nor that the promised troth stands—brief the season of loves.

odit utrumque simul, simul et miseratur utrumque 250
et tibi tum nullos optavit, barbara, natos.
mox epulas et sacra parant. silvestria laetis
praemia venatu facili quaesita supersunt;
pars veribus, pars undanti despumat aeno.

she hates both at once, and at once she pities both as well 250
and then for you, barbarian woman, she wished no children.
soon they prepare banquets and sacra. the sylvan prizes
sought by an easy hunt remain; part on spits, part foams
in the seething brazen kettle.

gramineis ast inde toris discumbitur, olim 255

but then on grassy couches they recline, once 255

Hister anhelantem Peucen quo presserat antro.
ipsi inter medios rosea radiante iuventa
altius inque sui sternuntur velleris auro.
      Quis novus inceptos timor impediit hymenaeos
turbavitque toros et sacra calentia rupit?                    260
Absyrtus subita praeceps cum classe parentis
advehitur profugis infestam lampada Grais
concutiens diramque premens clamore sororem
atque 'hanc, o siquis vobis dolor iraque, Colchi,
accelerate viam, neque enim fugit aequore raptor                    265
Iuppiter aut falsi sequimur vestigia tauri.

the Hister, in the cave where he had pressed panting Peuce.
they themselves, amid the midst, with rosy youth radiant,
are laid on a loftier couch and on the gold of their own fleece.
      What new fear has hindered the undertaken hymenaeals,
and disturbed the marriage-beds and shattered the hot sacred rites?                    260
Absyrtus is borne in headlong with his father’s fleet,
brandishing a hostile torch against the fugitive Greeks,
and bearing down with shouts upon his dread sister, and [cries]: “This one—O Colchians, if there is any grief and wrath in you—
hasten the way; for the ravisher is not Jupiter fleeing over the sea,
nor do we follow the vestiges of a false bull.”                    265

puppe (nefas) una praedo Phrixea reportat
vellera, qua libuit remeat cum virgine; nobis,
o pudor, et muros et stantia tecta reliquit.
quid mihi deinde satis? nec quaero vellera nec te 270

on a single ship (unspeakable wrong) a brigand carries back the Phrixean fleeces,
by whatever way he pleased he returns with the maiden; for us,
O shame, he has left both the walls and the standing roofs.
what then is enough for me? I seek neither the fleeces nor you 270

accipio, germana, datam nec foederis ulla
spes erit aut irae quisquam modus. inde reverti
patris ad ora mei tam parvo in tempore fas sit?
quinquaginta animae me scilicet unaque mersa
sufficiet placare ratis?

I accept, sister, what has been offered, and there shall be no hope of a federate compact
nor any measure of wrath. Then is it right to return to my father’s face in so small a time?
Of course fifty souls and a single sunk raft will suffice to placate me?

te, Graecia fallax,                    275
persequor atque tuis hunc quasso moenibus ignem.
nec tibi digna, soror, desum ad conubia frater
primus et ecce fero quatioque hanc lampada vestro
coniugio, primus celebro dotalia sacra,
qui potui: patriae veniam da, quaeso, senectae.                    280
quin omnes alii pariter populique patresque
mecum adsunt. magni virgo ne regia Solis
Haemonii thalamos adeas despecta mariti
tot decuit coiisse rates, tot fulgere taedas.'
      Dixerat atque orans iterum ventosque virosque                    285

you, fallacious Greece,                    275
I pursue, and at your walls I brandish this fire.
nor, sister, am I, a brother, wanting for your worthy nuptials;
first—lo—I bear and shake this torch for your marriage,
first I celebrate the dotal rites, so far as I was able:
grant pardon, I pray, to the fatherland’s old age.                    280
nay rather, all the others alike, both the people and the fathers,
are present with me. that the royal maiden of great Sol
should approach the Haemonian bridal-chambers, her husband despised—
it was fitting that so many ships come together, that so many torches flare.'
      He had spoken, and praying again both the winds and the men,                    285

perque ratis supplex et remigis <. . . . . . . .                    286a
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .> vexilla magistris.                    286b
illi autem intorquent truncis frond<ent>ibus undam
quaeque die fuerat raptim formata sub uno
et tantum deiecta suis a montibus arbor--
quid dolor et veterum potuit non ira virorum?--                    290
haud longis iam distat aquis sequiturque volantem
barbara Palladiam puppem ratis, ostia donec
Danuvii viridemque vident ante ostia Peucen
ultimaque agnoscunt Argoi cornua mali.
tum vero clamorem omnes inimicaque tollunt                    295
gaudia, tum gravior remis fragor, ut procul Argo
visa viris, unamque petunt rostra omnia puppem.
princeps navalem nodosi roboris uncum
arripit et longa Styrus prospectat ab unda
coniugio atque iterum sponsae flammatus amore.                    300

and, as a suppliant, through the ship and the rower’s <. . . . . . . .                    286a
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .> standards to the masters.                    286b
they, however, wrench the water with leafy trunks,
and whatever had been hastily fashioned in a single day,
and a tree only just felled from its own mountains—
what could grief and the anger of men of old not accomplish?—                    290
now it is not far distant on the waters and pursues the flying
Palladian ship, the barbarian raft, until they see
the mouths of the Danube and, before the mouths, green Peuce,
and they recognize the farthest horns of the Argive mast.
then indeed they all raise a shout and hostile joys,                    295
then a heavier din with oars, as the Argo was seen from afar
by the men, and all prows aim at the one ship.
the leader snatches a naval hook of knotted oak
and from the long swell Styrus looks out toward the marriage,
inflamed again with love for the bride.                    300

iamque alii clipeos et tela trabalia dextris
expediunt, armant alii picis unguine flammas.
impatiens tremit hasta morae nec longius inter
quam quod tela vetet superest mare. vocibus urgent
interea et pedibus pulsant tabulata frementes.                    305
      Cum subitas videre rates vibrataque flammis
aequora non una Minyae formidine surgunt,
primus et in puppem deserta virgine ductor
prosilit et summa galeam rapit altus ab hasta,
ense simul clipeoque micat nec cetera pubes                    310
segnius arreptis in litore constitit armis.

and now some deploy shields and beam-like missiles in their right hands,
others arm the flames with the unguent of pitch.
the spear, impatient of delay, quivers, and no more sea remains between
than what the missiles forbid. meanwhile they press with shouts and, roaring,
they pound the decks with their feet.                    305
      When they saw the sudden ships and the waters flickering with flames,
the Minyae rise with not one fear, but manifold;
and first the leader, the maiden having been deserted, leaps onto the stern
and snatches his helmet from the top of his tall spear,
at once he flashes with sword and shield; nor did the rest of the youth                    310
take their stand on the shore more sluggishly, with arms snatched up.

at tibi quae scelerum facies, Medea, tuorum
quisve pudor Colchos iterum fratremque videnti
quicquid et abscisum vasto iam tuta profundo
credideras! ergo infausto sese occulit antro 315

but for you, Medea, what a face of your crimes,
and what shame, seeing the Colchians again and your brother,
and whatever thing, cut off, you had already believed secure in the vast deep!
therefore she concealed herself in an ill-omened antre 315

non aliud quam certa mori seu carus Iason
seu frater Graia victus cecidisset ab hasta.
Haud ita sed summo segnis sed<et> aethere Iuno
aut sinit extrema Minyas decernere pugna
nec numero quoniam Colchis nec puppibus aequos. 320
ergo ubi diva rates hostemque accedere cernit,
ipsa subit terras tempestatumque refringit
ventorumque domos. volucrum gens turbida fratrum
erumpit, classem dextra Saturnia monstrat.

nothing other than resolved to die, whether dear Jason
or her brother, conquered, had fallen by a Greek spear.
Not so: but in the highest aether Juno is not sluggish,
nor does she allow the Minyae to decide it in a last battle,
since the Colchians are not equal either in number nor in ships. 320
therefore when the goddess sees the ships and the foe drawing near,
she herself descends to the lands and breaks open the houses
of tempests and of winds. The winged, turbulent race of the brethren
bursts forth; the Saturnian points out the fleet with her right hand.

videre inque unum pariter mare protinus omnes                    325
infesto clamore ruunt inimicaque Colchis
aequora et adversos statuunt a litore fluctus.
      Tollitur atque infra Minyas Argoaque vela
Styrus habet, vasto rursus desidit hiatu
abruptus revolutus aqua. iamque omnis in astra                    330

they see, and straightway all together rush into one sea with hostile clamor                    325
the Colchians charge, and they set the hostile waters and adverse waves from the shore.
      It is lifted, and beneath the Minyae and the Argo’s sails
the Styrus holds; again, torn off, rolled back by the water, it sinks with a vast hiatus.
and already all to the stars                    330

itque reditque ratis lapsoque reciproca fluctu
descendit. vorat hos vertex, hos agmine toto
gurges agit, simul in vultus micat undique terror;
crebra ruina poli caelestia limina laxat.
non tamen ardentis Styri violentia cedit, 335
hortatur socios media inter proelia divum:
'transferet ergo meas in quae volet oppida dotes
Colchis et Haemonius nobis succedet adulter
nec mihi tot magnos inter regesque procosque
profuerit prona haud dubii sententia patris? 340
an virtus praelata viri est et fortior ille
quem sequitur?

the ship goes and comes back and, by the slipping reciprocal wave,
goes down. The vortex devours these, the gulf drives those with its whole mass,
at once terror flashes on faces everywhere;
the frequent downfall of the pole loosens the celestial thresholds.
nor, however, does the violence of fiery Styrus yield, 335
he encourages his comrades amid the battles of the gods:
'will then the Colchian woman transfer my dowry into whatever towns she pleases,
and will the Haemonian adulterer step into my place,
and will the favorable, by no means doubtful, pronouncement of my father
not have profited me among so many great kings and suitors? 340
or is the man’s valor preferred, and is he stronger
whom she follows?'

iungam igniferos sine carmine tauros
saevaque Echionii ferro sata persequar hydri.
hoc adeo interea specta de litore pugnas
amborum: victoris eris. iam digna videbis 345

I will yoke the fire-bearing bulls without a charm,
and I will pursue with steel the savage ones sown from the Echionian hydra.
meanwhile at least, from the shore watch the battles
of both: you will be the victor’s. Now you will see things worthy 345

proelia iamque illud carum caput ire cruenta
sub freta, semiviri nec murra corpus Achivi
sed pice, sed flammis et olentes sulphure crines.
vos modo vel solum hoc, fluctus, expellite corpus:
non te, Aeeta pater, generi aut, Sol magne, pudebit. 350
fallor, an hos nobis magico nunc carmine ventos
ipsa movet diraque levat maria ardua lingua
atque iterum Aesonides, iterum defenditur arte
qua solet? haud illi cantus et futile murmur
proderit.

battles, and now that dear head to go beneath the blood-stained straits,
nor myrrh for the body of the half-man Achaean,
but pitch, but flames, and locks reeking of sulfur.
only do you at least this one thing, waves, cast out the body:
it will not shame you, father Aeetes, for your son-in-law, nor you, great Sun. 350
am I mistaken, or does she now with a magical song move these winds for us,
and with her tongue lift the dire, towering seas,
and again the Aesonid, again he is defended by the art
by which he is wont? No song and futile murmur will profit him.

ite, rates, et frangite virginis undam!' 355
dixit et intortis socio cum milite remis
prosilit. at fluctu puppis labefacta reverso
solvitur effunditque viros ipsumque minantem
tunc quoque et elata quaerentem litora dextra.
ibat et arma ferens et strictum naufragus ensem 360

"Go, ships, and shatter the virgin’s wave!" 355
he said, and with twisted oars with his allied soldiery
he springs forth. But the ship, shaken by the returning swell,
comes apart and spills the men and him too, threatening even then
and, lifted high, seeking the shore with his right hand.
he went on, shipwrecked yet bearing his arms and a drawn sword. 360

incipit et remos et quaerere transtra solutae
sparsa ratis maestas<que> altis intendere voces
puppibus. ast inter tantos succurrere fluctus
nulla potest aut ille sequi quotiensque propinquat
tunc alius rursus dirimit mare. iam tamen errat 365
iamque abiit fundoque iterum violentus ab imo
erigitur, sed fluctus adest magnoque sub altis
turbine figit aquis et tandem virgine cessit.

the loosened, scattered raft begins both to seek oars and thwarts
and to direct sad voices to the lofty sterns.
But amid such great waves none can come to help,
nor can he follow; and as often as he draws near
then another again sunders the sea. Already, however, he drifts 365
and now he has gone, and again, violent, from the bottommost depth
he is lifted up; but a billow is at hand and with a great
whirl beneath the deep waters it pins him, and at last it yielded to the maiden.

Absyrtus visu maeret defixus acerbo:
heu quid agat? qua vi portus et prima capessat 370
ostia, qua possit Minyas invadere clausos,
quos videt agnoscitque fremens? maria obvia contra
saevaque pugnat hiems totusque in vertice pontus.

Absyrtus, transfixed at the bitter sight, grieves:
alas, what is he to do? by what force may he seize the harbors and the foremost mouths, 370
by what way can he invade the Minyae shut in,
whom he sees and recognizes, roaring? the seas stand in the way against him,
and a savage winter fights, and the whole sea is in a vortex.

abscessit tandem vanaque recedit ab ira
et tanta de clade ratis. latus inde sinistrum 375

he withdrew at last and recedes from vain wrath
and from so great a disaster of the raft. then the left side 375

adversamque procul Peuces defertur in oram
cum sociis, gemino nam scinditur insula flexu
Danuvii. hac dudum Minyas Pagasaea<que> puppis
in statione manent, illinc Aeetius heros
obsidet adversa tentoria Thessala classe 380
impatiens pugnaeque datur non ulla potestas.
noctes atque dies vastis mare fluctibus inter
perfurit, expediant donec Iunonia sese
consilia atque aliquem bello ferat anxia finem.

and he is borne far off to the opposite shore of Peuce
with his comrades, for the island is cleft by the twin flexure
of the Danube. On this side the Minyae and the Pagasaean ship
remain at station; on that side the Aeetian hero
besieges the opposing tents with a Thessalian fleet, 380
impatient for battle, and no power for fighting is granted.
Nights and days the sea rages to frenzy amid vast billows,
until Juno’s counsels disentangle themselves
and, anxious, she brings some end to the war.

At Minyae tanti reputantes ultima belli 385
urgent et precibus cuncti fremituque fatigant
Aesoniden: quid se externa pro virgine clausos
obiciat quidve illa pati discrimina cogat?
respiceret pluresque animas maioraque fata
tot comitum, qui non furiis nec amore nefando 390

But the Minyae, reckoning the ultimate issues of so great a war, 385
press on and, with prayers and with a roar, all of them wear down
the Aesonid: why does he expose them, shut in, for a foreign maiden,
or what perils does that girl compel them to suffer?
let him look back to the more numerous souls and the greater fates
of so many comrades, who not by furies nor by nefarious love 390

per freta, sed sola sese virtute sequantur.
an vero ut thalamis raptisque indulgeat unus
coniugiis? id tempus enim.

across the straits, but let them follow him by virtue alone.
Or indeed that one should indulge in bridal chambers and in ravished marriages?
for that is the time.

sat vellera Grais
et posse oblata componere virgine bellum.
quemque suas sinat ire domos nec Marte cruento 395
Europam atque Asiam prima haec committat Erinys.
namque datum hoc fatis trepidus supplexque canebat
Mopsus, ut in seros irent magis ista nepotes
atque alius lueret tam dira incendia raptor.

that the fleeces suffice for the Greeks,
and that the war can be composed by the maiden being offered.
let him allow each to go to his own home, and let not with bloody Mars 395
this first Erinys commit Europe and Asia to conflict.
for Mopsus, trembling and a suppliant, was chanting that this had been given by the Fates:
that these things should pass rather to late descendants,
and that another ravisher should pay for such dire conflagrations.

Ille trahens gemitum tantis ac vocibus impar 400
quamquam iura deum et sacri sibi conscia pacti
religio dulcisque movent primordia taedae,
cunctatur mortemque cupit sociamque pericli
cogitat. haud ultra sociis obsistere pergit.
haec ubi fixa viris, tempus fluctusque quietos 405

He, dragging a groan, unequal to such great voices, 400
although the laws of the gods and a religion conscious to himself of the sacred pact, and the sweet beginnings of the nuptial torch, move him,
hesitates and longs for death and thinks on a consort of the peril.
He no further proceeds to withstand his comrades.
when these things were fixed for the men, the season and the waves calm. 405

exspectant. ipsam interea quid restet amantem
ignorare sinunt decretaque tristia servant.
Sed miser ut vanos, veros ita saepe timores
versat amor fallique sinit nec virginis annos.

they wait. meanwhile they allow the loving girl herself to be ignorant of what remains and they keep the sad decrees.
But wretched Love, as it often turns over vain fears, so too true ones, and allows one to be deceived, nor does it spare the maiden’s years.

ac prior ipsa dolos et quamlibet intima sensit 410
non fidi iam signa viri nimiumque silentes
una omnes. haud illa sui tamen immemor umquam
nec subitis turbata minis prior occupat unum
Aesoniden longeque trahit, mox talibus infit:
'me quoque, vir, tecum Minyae, fortissima pubes, 415
nocte dieque movent? liceat cognoscere tandem,
si modo Peliacae non sum captiva carinae
nec dominos decepta sequor consultaque vestra
fas audire mihi.

and she herself first sensed the deceits and however inmost [ones], 410
the signs of a man now not faithful, and that all together were too silent
as one. Yet she was never unmindful of herself, nor disturbed by sudden threats,
she first takes the Aesonid alone and draws him far away, soon begins with such words:
'Do the Minyae too, man—most stalwart youth—stir you night and day,
and me along with you? Let me at last be allowed to learn,415
if indeed I am not a captive of the Pelian keel,
nor, deceived, do I follow masters, and if it is right for me
to hear your counsels.

merear, fidissime coniunx,
nil equidem, miserere tamen promissaque serva 420

may I deserve nothing indeed, most faithful consort,
yet have mercy and keep your promises 420

usque ad Thessalicos saltem conubia portus
inque tua me sperne domo. scis te mihi certe,
non socios iurasse tuos. hi reddere forsan
fas habeant, tibi non eadem permissa potestas
teque simul mecum ipsa traham: non sola reposcor 425
virgo nocens atque hac pariter rate fugimus omnes.

at least as far as the Thessalian connubial ports,
and in your own house spurn me. You know that it was you, surely,
not your comrades, who swore to me. These perhaps may have the right
to render back; the same power has not been permitted to you,
and I myself will draw you along with me as well: I am not alone demanded back 425
a guilty maiden, and on this same raft we all flee together.

an fratris te bella mei patriaeque biremes
terrificant magnoque impar urgeris ab hoste?
finge rates alias et adhuc maiora coire
agmina: nulla fides, nullis ego digna periclis, 430
non merui mortemque tuam comitemque tuorum?
vellem equidem nostri tetigissent litora patris
te sine duxque illis alius quicumque fuisset.

Or do the wars of my brother and the biremes of my fatherland
terrify you, and, unequal, are you pressed by a great enemy?
Imagine other ships and yet greater armies to gather:
no fidelity, am I worthy of no perils, 430
have I not deserved both to face death with you and to be the companion of your men?
Indeed I would that the shores of my father had been touched
without you, and that another leader, whoever it might have been, had been for them.

nunc remeant meque ecce (nefas) et reddere possunt
nec spes ulla super. quin tu mea respice saltem 435

now they return and, behold (nefarious!), can even hand me back
nor is any hope left. nay then, at least have regard for me 435

consilia et nimio comitum ne ce<de> timori.
credidit ardentes quis te tunc iungere tauros
posse, quis ad saevi venturum templa draconis?
o utinam ergo meus pro te non omnia posset
atque aliquid dubitaret amor.

take counsel and do not yield to the excessive fear of your companions.
who would have believed that you could then yoke the ardent bulls, who that you would come to the temples of the savage dragon?
O would that therefore my love were not able to do everything for you, and that it would hesitate at something.

quin nunc quoque quaero 440
quid iubeas. heu, dure, siles? magnumque minatur 460
nescioquid tuus iste pudor.

indeed even now I ask 440
what you command. alas, hard one, are you silent? and that modesty of yours threatens 460
I know not what great thing.

mene, optime quondam 441

me, then, O once-best one 441

Aesonide, me ferre preces et supplicis ora
fas erat--haud hoc nunc genitor putat--aut dare poenas
iam sceleris dominumque pati?' sic fata parantem
redde<re> dicta virum furiata mente refugit                    445
vociferans. qualem Ogygias cum tollit in arces
Bacchus et Aoniis inlidit Thyiada truncis,
talis erat talemque iugis se virgo ferebat
cuncta pavens; fugit infestos vibrantibus hastis
terrigenas, fugit ardentes exterrita tauros.                    450
si Pagasas vel Peliacas hinc denique nubes
cerneret et <tenui> Tempe lucentia fumo,
hoc visu contenta mori. tunc tota querellis
egeritur questuque dies eademque sub astris
sola movet, maestis veluti nox illa sonaret                     455

Aesonid, that I should bear prayers and the suppliant visage
was lawful—my father now thinks not this—or to pay the penalties
now of the crime and to endure a master?' Thus having spoken, as the man was preparing
to return words, she fled him with a frenzied mind, crying aloud                    445
such as when Bacchus lifts a Thyiad to the Ogygian citadels
and dashes her against Aonian trunks; such was she, and such along the ridges the maiden bore herself,
fearing all things; she flees the earth-born, hostile with quivering spears,
she flees the burning bulls, terror-struck. If only she might see from here at last
Pagasae or the Pelian clouds, and Tempe gleaming with thin smoke,                    450
content with this sight to die. Then the whole day is driven out
with laments and complaint, and she, the same, moves alone beneath the stars,
as though that night were sounding with mournful tones.                    455

plena lupis quaterentque truces ieiuna leones
ora vel orbatae traherent suspiria vaccae.
procedit non gentis honos, non <gloria magni>
Solis avi, non barbaricae decor ille iuventae,
qualis erat cum Chaonio radiantia trunco 461
vellera vexit ovans interque ingentia Graium
nomina Palladia virgo stet altera prora.
Maestus at ille minis et mota Colchidos ira 463a
haeret et hinc praesens pudor, hinc decreta suorum
dura premunt.

were full of wolves, and fierce, hungry lions would shake their jaws,
or bereft cows would draw their sighs.
she does not step forth with the honor of her race, not the glory of great
the Sun, her grandsire, not that adornment of barbaric youth,
such as she was when on a Chaonian trunk she bore, exultant, 461
the gleaming fleeces, and among the mighty names of the Greeks
the Palladian maiden stood at the other prow.
But he, mournful, by threats and by the Colchian’s anger stirred, 463a
hesitates, and on this side present shame, on that the decrees of his people
press hard.

utcumque tamen mulcere gementem
temptat et ipse gemens et ~tempera~ dictis:
'mene aliquid meruisse putas, me talia velle?

however nevertheless he tries somehow to mollify the groaning one
and he himself groaning, and with tempered words:
'do you think that I have merited anything, that I wish such things?'