25.07.26; Level 3+; Subjunctive [75] dependent uses [7] cum-clauses (5) concessive (ii) practice

Complete the Latin sentences with the verbs listed below:

[i] Although he is good, he is not wise.

Cum __________ bonus, nōn est sapiēns.

[ii] Although the old man does not have a lot of food, he nevertheless invites friends to dinner.

Cum senex multum cibum __________, amīcōs tamen ad cēnam invītat.

[iii] Although you do not want to come with me, nevertheless you have to do this.

Cum mēcum venīre __________, hoc tamen facere dēbēs.

[iv] Although you did not want to come with me, nevertheless you had to do this.

Cum mēcum venīre __________, hoc tamen facere dēbēbās.

[v] Although he knew about the affair, he nevertheless said nothing.

Cum dē rē __________, nihil tamen dīxit.

[vi] Although the farmer was poor, he was nevertheless pious and happy.

Cum agricola pauper __________, erat pius tamen et contentus.

[vii] He did nothing to help me, although he could / was able to.

Nihil mē adiūvit, cum __________. (Cicero)

[viii] Although the forces of the enemy were greater, the Romans nevertheless overcame them.

Cum cōpiae hostium __________ maiōrēs, Rōmānī tamen eās vīcērunt.

[ix] Turnus, although he was fighting very bravely, was nevertheless defeated.

Turnus, cum fortissimē __________, tamen victus est.

[x] But although I had done everything, I was not able to recover his goodwill.

Sed, cum omnia __________, … eam voluntātem eius … recūperāre nōn potuī. (Cicero)

[xi] Although I had been asked, nevertheless I did not reply.

Cum __________, tamen nōn respondī.

[xii] Cicero, although he was / had been born in a small town, nevertheless lived in Rome.

Cicerō, cum in oppidō parvō __________, Rōmae tamen vīvēbat.

essent; esset; fēcissem; nōn habeat; nātus esset; nōlīs; nōllēs; posset; pugnāret; rogātus essem; scīret; sit

____________________

[i] sit
[ii] nōn habeat
[iii] nōlīs
[iv] nōllēs
[v] scīret
[vi] esset
[vii] posset
[viii] essent
[ix] pugnāret
[x] fēcissem
[xi] rogātus essem
[xii] nātus esset

25.07.26; Level 3+; Subjunctive [74] dependent uses [7] cum-clauses (4) concessive (i)

Look at the following sentence.

[A] He is lazy ¦ but [B] he gets good results.

[A] He is lazy. [B] However / nevertheless / despite that, he gets good results.

There are two opposing ideas. [A] creates the expectation that he would not get good results, but [B] shows that, despite being lazy, this has not prevented him from achieving them.

This same idea can be expressed using what is known in grammar as a concessive construction. In English, concession can be expressed in several ways.

As a concessive clause:

• Although he is lazy, he gets good results.
• Even if he is lazy, he gets good results.
• Despite / in spite of the fact that he is lazy, he gets good results.

As a concessive phrase:

• Despite being lazy, he gets good results.

English may also reinforce concession by adding words such as nevertheless. In this example, the second part of the sentence overrides or qualifies the first.

• While we welcome the Prime Minister’s statement, we nevertheless feel that he has not gone far enough.

“Concession” refers to acceptance / recognition of a fact / admission that something is true:

While we welcome the Prime Minister’s statement …

…but that admission is then set aside in a specific way; here, it does not prevent a criticism from being made:

• … we nevertheless feel …

Latin conveys this idea in a number of ways. In this post we look at one:

Apart from expressing cause and circumstance, cum + subjunctive can also express although.

[a] Frequently this is reinforced with tamen (nevertheless), making the concessive sense clear.

Cum puellam amāret, tamen ex urbe abiit. │ Although he loved the girl, he nevertheless left the city.

Militēs, cum montēs vīdissent, tamen gāvīsī sunt. │ The soldiers, although they had seen the mountains, nevertheless rejoiced.

Cum prīmī ōrdinēs concidissent, tamen ācerrimē reliquī resistēbant. (Caesar) │ Though the first ranks had fallen, still the others resisted vigorously.

[b] However, tamen may not be used in the sentence and so careful reading – and thinking – in context is needed to identify whether the clause is concessive:

Cum hostēs fortēs essent, Rōmānī vīcērunt. │ Although the enemy were brave, the Romans won.

A way of ‘testing’ whether the sentence is expressing a concessive idea is mentally to reword it:

• The enemies were brave, but the Romans won.
• The enemies were brave. However / nevertheless / despite that, the Romans won.

i.e. despite the fact that the enemies were brave, that did not prevent the Romans from winning.

Think about it: “When / since the enemies were brave, the Romans won” does not make sense!

Examples:

[i] Cum multum labōrāverit, parum profēcit.

Think: he has worked hard, ¦ but he has made little progress

> Although he has worked hard, he has made little progress.

[ii] Cum graviter vulnerātus esset, pugnāvit.

Think: he had been seriously wounded. However / nevertheless / despite that, he fought.

> Although he had been seriously wounded, he fought.

Would any other translation of those two examples make sense?

Since he has worked hard, he has made little progress.

Since he had been seriously injured, he fought.

No, they wouldn’t. 

24.07.26; Level 3+; Comenius (1658) CXLIII; the besieging of a city [1] text and translation

Military terminology is a frequent feature of Roman writing, and there is a very wide range of vocabulary associated with it.

Roman writers usually depict what they considered important, and this can skew our perception of ordinary life, which is less frequently described in depth. We might be forgiven for thinking that Romans were perpetually fighting. In fact, although the empire’s population may have reached around 70 million, most inhabitants never directly experienced warfare, which was typically confined to particular regions.

Nevertheless, war — and success in war — was a crucial part of Roman identity, and military campaigns were recorded, from a Roman perspective, by authors such as Caesar, Livy and Tacitus. For that reason, military vocabulary is common in Latin prose.

In this short text, Comenius makes extensive use of such vocabulary and, while some of it refers to weaponry unknown to the Romans, much of what you read here forms an important part of historical writing.

The besieging of a city │ Obsidium Urbis

[1]

A city that is like to [going to / about to] endure a siege, | Urbs passūra obsidiōnem,

is first summoned by a trumpeter | prīmum prōvocātur per tūbicinem (1)

and (is) persuaded to yield. | et invītātur ad dēditiōnem.

Which if it refuseth to do, | Quod sī abnuat facere,

it is assaulted by the besiegers | oppugnātur ab obsidentibus

and (is) taken by storm. | et occupātur.

[2]

Either by climbing over the walls with scaling-ladders (2) | Vel mūrōs per scālās (2) trānscendendō,

or (by) breaking (them) down with battering-engines (3) | aut diruendō arietibus (3),

or (by) demolishing (them) with great guns (4) | aut dēmoliendō tormentīs (4),

or (by) breaking through the gates with a petard (5) | vel dirumpendō portās exōstrā (5),

or (by) casting granadoes [“grenades”; cannonballs] (6) | vel ēiaculandō globōs tormentāriōs (6),

out of mortar-pieces (7) | ē mortāriīs (ballistīs) (7),

into the city, by engineers (8) | in urbem per ballistāriōs (8),

who lye behind leaguer-baskets  (9) | quī latitant post gerrās (9),

or (by) overthrowing (it) with mines by pioneers (10) | vel subvertendō cūniculīs per fossōrēs (10).

[3]

They that are besieged defend themselves from the walls (11) | Obsessī dēfendunt sē dē mūrīs (11),

with fire and stones, &c. | ignibus, lapidibus, etc.,

or break out by force (12) | aut ērumpunt (12).

A city that is taken by storm | Urbs vī expugnāta,

is plundered, | diripitur,

destroyed, | exciditur,

and sometimes laid even with the ground. | interdum aequātur solō.

23.07.26: Level 2; Comenius (1658) CXXII; city [1]

Comenius uses many terms associated with a city’s means of defence, such terms commonly appearing in Roman descriptions of warfare. Complete the Latin text with the words listed below. Check the vocabulary list for more detailed explanations.

[1]

Of many houses is made a village (1) | Ex multīs domibus fit __________ (1)

[Not numbered in the image:

or a town, │ vel __________,]

or a city (2). | vel __________ (2).

That and this are fenced and encircled │ Istud & haec mūniuntur & cinguntur

with walls (a wall) (3) | __________ (__________) (3)

a trench (4) | __________ (4)

bulwarks (5) | __________ (5)

and pallisades (6). | & __________ (6).

Within the walls is the void place [see vocabulary notes] (7) | Intrā mūrōs est __________ (7)

outside, the ditch (8). | extrā, __________ (8).

In the walls are fortresses (9) | In moenibus sunt __________ (9)

and towers (10) | & __________ (10)

[Not numbered in the image:

watch-towers are │ __________ extant]

upon the higher places (11). | in ēditiōribus __________ (11).

aggeribus; fossa; locīs; moenibus; mūrō; oppidum; pāgus; pomoerium; propugnācula; specula; turrēs; urbs; vallīs; vallō

Vocabulary and notes

agger, -is [3/m]: earthwork, bulwark, especially defensive ramparts, dykes, dams, causeways, and piers

https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0063:entry=agger-cn

domus, -ūs [4/f]: house

fossa, -ae [1/f]: ditch; trench; moat

fossam pedum vīgintī dīrēctīs lateribus dūxit (Caesar)

• he dug a trench twenty feet deep, with perpendicular sides

[image: defensive ditch at the Antonine Wall, Scotland]

locus, -ī [2/m]: place

moenia, -um [3/n pl.]: city walls

mūrus, -ī [2/m]: wall

oppidum, -ī [2/n]: town

pāgus, -ī [2/m]: village, district

pōmoerium, -ī (pomērium, -ī) [2/n]: boundary; limits; the open space left free from buildings within and without the walls of a town (Lewis and Short); “sacred space”

aggere et fossīs et mūrō circumdat urbem; ita pōmērium prōfert (Livy)

• He surrounded the City with a rampart, trenches, and a wall, and so extended the “pomerium”.

Livy goes on to explain the meaning of pomerium, the word originally referring to Etruscan religious practices: This space, which the gods forbade men to inhabit or to till, was called “pomerium” by the Romans.

propugnāculum, -ī [2/n]: fortress, battlement

solidātī mūrī, prōpugnācula addita, auctae turrēs (Tacitus)

• The walls (were) strengthened, battlements were added, and the towers were raised in height

specula, -ae [1/f]: watchtower; lookout

in hōc iugō collēs sunt excelsī paucī, in quibus singulae turrēs speculaeque singulae perveterēs erant conlocātae, (Bellum Africum)

• On this ridge there are a few lofty hills, on which single towers and single watchtowers of great antiquity had been placed,

turris, -is [3/f] (acc. -em or -im): tower, especially military either for defence or mobile (turrēs ambulātōriae) for siege purposes

https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0063:entry=turris-cn

[image: Mediaeval siege tower]

urbs, urbis [3/f]: city

vallum, -ī [2/n]: [i] wall; rampart; entrenchment [ii] palisade, a wall of wooden stakes

castra in altitūdinem pedum XII vāllō fossāque duodēvīgintī pedum mūnīrī iubet (Caesar)

• He orders him to fortify a camp with a rampart twelve feet in height, and a trench eighteen feet in breadth.

https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0063:entry=vallum-cn

Modern English: wall < OE: weall (wall; earthwork; rampart; dam) < La: vallum; Modern German: Wall (rampart; parapet; embankment)

[image: reconstruction of a Roman palisade, Lahntal, Germany]

More information on Roman fieldworks is at:

02.01.26: Level 2; Vincent (Latin Reader); XXXVII; a storm [ii] Roman fieldworks

https://adckl.blogspot.com/2025/10/020126-level-2-vincent-latin-reader_15.html

22.07.26: Level 1; Comenius (1658) CXXIII; the inward parts of a city [1]

Could mid-17^th century kids describe their town in Latin? Yes, they could. Apart from a couple of words that need short explanation, Comenius creates a topical exercise in speaking with visual stimuli 300 years before anybody else thought it was a brilliant idea. And it was relevant to the kids because what they saw in the book, they saw in their everyday lives.

Complete each section with the nouns listed below.

[1]

Within the city are (1) streets paved with stones, │ Intrā urbem sunt (1) __________ lapidus strātae,

(2) market places, in some places with (3) galleries (here: arched walkways) │ (2) __________ , alicubi cum (3) __________

and (4) narrow lanes. │ et (4) __________ .

The public buildings are in the middle of the city, │ Pūblica aedificia sunt in mediā urbe,

(5) the church │ (5) __________

(6) the school │(6) __________

(7) the guild hall (town hall; Comenius uses the Classical Latin senate house) │(7) __________

(8) the exchange. │(8) __________ .

angiportīs; cūria; domus mercātūrae; fora; plāteae; portibus; schola; templum

[2]

[Not numbered in the image:

About the walls and the gates, │ Circā __________ et __________ , ]

(9) the magazine (i.e. the place were weapons / arms are stored) │ (9) __________

(10) the granary│ (10) __________

[Not numbered in the image:

inns │ __________

ale houses │ __________ ]

(11) cook shops│ (11) __________

(12) the Play-house │ (12) __________

(13) and the hospital.│ (13) __________.

armāmentārium; caupōnae; dīversōria; granārium; nosodochium; popīnae; theātrum; moenia; portūs

[3]

In the by-places, │ In recessibus,

(14) the houses of office [note 1] │ (14) __________

And (15) the prison │ et (15) __________

[Not numbered in the image:

In the chief steeple [note 2] │ In __________ prīmāriā]

is (16) the clock │est (16) __________

and the (17) watchmen’s dwelling. │ et habitātiō (17) __________.

carcer; foricae (cloācae); hōrologium; turre; vigilum

[4]

[Not numbered in the image:

In the streets are │ In __________ sunt]

(18) wells. │ (18) __________ .

(19) The river │ (19) __________

[Not numbered in the image:

or beck (small river; stream) │ vel __________ ]

running about the city │ urbem interfluēns

serves to wash away the filth. │ īnservit sordibus eluendīs.

(20) The tower [note 2] │ (20) __________

stands in the highest part of the city. │ exstat in summō urbis.

arx; flūvius; plāteīs; puteī; rīvus

Notes

(1) Here we have the “Old English” tradition of avoiding saying anything that could be deemed offensive and remotely ‘biological’, a tradition continuing all the way to at least the Victorians: they never talked about the ‘legs’ of a chair – but the ‘limbs’, and they never ‘went to bed’ – they ‘retired’.

This one is a tremendous example. Hoole, the schoolmaster, author and translator of Comenius, is unwilling to sully the sensitive ears of mid-17^th century schoolboys.

Back in 1658, if one was ‘caught short’, one did not use ‘public toilets’ or ‘latrines’, rather one went to the Houses of Office!

The Latin, however, is quite happy to call it what it is:

cloāca, -ae [1/f]: underground sewer

forica, -ae [1/f]: public latrine

But even Comenius avoids lātrīna, -ae [1/f]: lavatory

The refusal to mention the unmentionable bodily functions is not confined to Britain. In 1879 the Americans Lewis and Short, compilers of the Latin-English dictionary, described latrīna as ‘water-closet’; ‘privy’. At all costs, don’t actually say what it is – and the US still says “restroom”.

(2)

turris, -is [3/f]: the general word in Classical Latin for a tower, especially in military contexts.

In section [3] Comenius uses turris to refer to a steeple.

arx, arcis [3/f]: citadel; stronghold; castle, but one that is most often located in a high position.

In section [4] the translation as ‘tower’ reflects English usage e.g. The Tower of London, which is not so much a tower, but a collection of fortified buildings originally functioning as a fortress and prison.

21.07.26; Level 3+; Subjunctive [73] dependent uses [7] cum-clauses (3) practice

Complete the Latin quotations with the verbs listed below.

Notes: All of the quotations are from a narrow selection of Cicero’s letters to Atticus. This shows not only the frequency with which cum-clauses are used, gives practice in how different tense forms in cum-clauses are translated.  Literal translations are given in brackets.

[1] With the indicative

[a]

[i] Nevertheless, I am relieved when I talk with you despite being away, and even more when I read your letters.

Tamen adlevor, cum __________ tēcum absēns, multō etiam magis, cum tuās litterās __________.

[ii] You had only just left yesterday, when Trebatius came.

Commodum discesserās heri, cum Trebātius __________.

[iii] And you generally do it most carefully, when I have told you [literally: when it has been told to you by me]

Quod dīligentissimē facere solēs, cum ā mē tibi __________.

[b] All of the following quotations refer to future actions.

[i] And that long period of time, when I shall not be (here), moves me more.

Longumque illud tempus, cum nōn __________, magis mē movet.

[ii] You will write when you [will] know

Scrībēs ad mē, cum __________.

[iii] When I see [ = I shall have seen] you, you will know.

Cum __________ tē, sciēs.

[iv] Therefore, when you can [= you will be able], that is when you have attended to [= will have given attention to] Sextus’ auction, you will come back to see us.

Quārē, cum __________, id est cum Sextī auctiōnī operam __________, revīsēs nōs.

[v] When I arrive / have arrived there [ = will have arrived], and understand / have understood [ = will have understood] what the situation is …

Cum illūc __________ __________que, quid negōtiī sit, …

[vi] But you, when you [will] have read it, will judge for yourself.

Sed tū, cum __________, exīstumābis.

[vi] When I meet [ = will have met] Brutus, I shall write everything in detail.

Brūtum cum __________, perscrībam omnia.

convēnerō; dederis; dictum est; erō; intellēxerō; lēgeris; legō; loquor; poteris; sciēs; vēnerō; vēnit; vīderō

[2] With the subjunctive

[i] It is difficult since / when I am away.

Difficile est, cum __________.

[ii] It is enough, especially since these days are being spent by you in our important business.

Satis est, praesertim cum hī tibi diēs in magnō nostrō negōtiō __________.

[iii] But since they have done everything for your sake, I am afraid …

Cum enim tuā causā __________omnia, vereor, …

[iv] Since he is acting on [using] his mother’s advice … why should I intervene?

Mātris cōnsiliō cum __________ … quid mē interpōnam?

[v] Since I was sending Alexander on that business, I gave him this letter.

Ad eam rem cum __________ Alexandrum, hās eī dedī litterās.

[vi] But as I was reading the ‘Academics’ on the boat, I noticed my mistake.

Cum autem in nāvī __________ Acadēmicōs, adgnōvī errātum meum.

[vii] We seemed to be talking to one another, when I was at Tusculum.

Conloquī vidēbāmur, in Tusculānō cum __________.

[viii] This I have written while sailing, as I was getting near to Pompeii, Aug. 19.

Haec scrīpsī nāvigāns, cum prope Pompēiānum __________, XIIII Kal.

[ix] For on the 17th, when / after I had reached Velia, Brutus heard (of it).

Nam, XVI Kal. Sept. cum __________ Veliam, Brūtus audīvit;

[x] And when / after I had heard these things …

Quae cum __________ …

[xi] After a postman had arrived without any letters from you …

Tabellārius ad mē cum sine litterīs tuīs __________…

[xii] On the 9th after I (had) got up before daybreak to go on from Sinuessa, and before dawn I had reached the Tirenian bridge at Menturnae, …

V Īdūs cum ante lūcem dē Sinuessānō __________ __________que dīlūculō ad pontem Tirēnum, …

[xiii] Your uncle, Caecilius, since he was (being) cheated out of a large sum of money by P. Varius, …

Caecilius, avunculus tuus, ā P. Variō cum magnā pecūniā __________ …

[xiv] And since these things had been done …

Quae cum __________ …

[xv] Earlier, when / since I had been informed [ = I had been made more certain] by our (friend) Atticus’ letter about your great generosity …

Anteā cum litterīs Atticī nostrī dē tuā summā līberālitāte … __________ …

absim; accēderem; audīssem; certior factus essem; cōnsūmantur; essem; essent ācta; fēcerint; fraudārētur; legerem; mitterem; surrēxissem; ūtātur; vēnissem; vēnissem; vēnisset

____________________

[1]

[a]

[i] loquor; legō

[ii] vēnit

[iii] dictum est

[b]

[i] erō

[ii] sciēs

[iii] vīderō

[iv] poteris; dederis

[v] vēnerō; intellēxerō

[vi] lēgeris

[vii] convēnerō

[2]

[i] absim

[ii] cōnsūmantur

[iii] fēcerint

[iv] ūtātur

[v] mitterem

[vi] legerem

[vii] essem

[viii] accēderem

[ix] vēnissem

[x] audīssem

[xi] vēnisset

[xii] surrēxissem; vēnissem

[xiii] fraudārētur

[xiv] essent ācta

[xv] certior factus essemTop of Form

21.07.26: Level 3 (review); Comenius (1658) CXXVI; merchandizing [4]: from the authors

Eho senex minimī pretī (Plautus)

• Hey, you worthless old man

https://adckl.blogspot.com/2025/09/051225-level-3-retort-genitive-of.html

Delphōs vēnum pecus ēgī (Pacuvius)

• I drove the cattle to Delphi for sale.

Respondē: quis mē vendit? (Plautus)

• Answer! Who’s selling me?

Nunc tūsculum ēmī hoc et corōnās flōreās (Plautus)

• Now I've bought this small amount of incense and some wreaths of flowers

tum dēnique ager emētur cum idem expediet ēmptōrī et vēnditōrī (Cicero)

• Then at last the land will be bought, when it is advantageous to both buyer and seller alike

Nunc quasi ducentīs Philippīs ēmī fīlium, quōs dare prōmīsī mīlitī (Plautus)

• Now I have, as it were, bought my son for 200 Philippi*, which I promised to give to the soldier.

https://adckl.blogspot.com/2025/03/170625-level-3-summary-of-of-uses-of_13.html

*refers to gold coins first minted in Macedonia, but not standard denominations in Ancient Rome; it is used in Plautus to describe any high value gold coins

Ūnum quodque istōrum verbum nummīs Philippīs aureīs nōn potest auferre hinc ā mē sī quis ēmptor vēnerit (Plautus)

• Not a single one of those words do I part with for golden sovereigns, if any buyer should come.

hominēs in piscīnā inventī sunt, Stratō in vincula coniectus est, atque etiam in tabernā eius nummī, nēquāquam omnēs, reperiuntur (Cicero)

• The men were found in the pool, Strato was thrown into chains, and even in his shop some coins — by no means all — were discovered.

Nam Antōnius Augustī sorōre contemptā postquam Cleopatram dūxit uxōrem, monētam eius nōmine … iussit ferīrī (Honoratus)

• For once Augustus’ sister had been rejected, and after he married Cleopatra, Antony ordered a coin to be struck in her name.

argentum afferat mercātor prō asinīs (Plautus)

• the trader may bring the money [silver] for the asses

nam commercium in eō agrō nēminī est (Cicero)

• for there are no traders in that area [literally: nobody has trading rights …]

Quis est Sergius? armiger Catilīnae, stīpātor   tuī corporis, signifer sēditiōnis, concitātor tabernāriōrum (Cicero)

• Who is Sergius? Catiline’s soldier, your bodyguard, the standard-bearer of sedition, the agitator of the shopkeepers

Tum repente Ancōnitānum quendam, L. Clōdium, pharmacopōlam circumforāneum … (Cicero)

• Then he suddenly approached a certain Lucius Clodius of Ancona, a travelling quack, …

pharmacolopōla, -ae [1/m]: somebody who sells medicines; pharmacist, but the word can also refer to a medical “quack” i.e. somebody peddling ineffective drugs. That Cicero uses the adjective circumforāneus is certainly derogatory – this salesman is itinerant, wandering from town to town and with no fixed establishment in, for example, a market place.

pharmacopōla circumforāneus

21.07.26: Level 3 (review); Comenius (1658) CXXVI; merchandizing [3]: vocabulary and notes (2) Can “warehouses” be interesting?

There is a difference between simply learning the meaning of a word on a page – and exploring the word. This is particularly beneficial in Latin since the language continues to be used over centuries, long after it was the exclusive “property” of the Romans. As you move from early Plautus through the Classical period and into the worlds of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, meanings of words can alter to reflect understanding at specific points in time. In the case of Comenius’ work, the translations of certain words and expressions provoke enquiry since the book was targeted at 17^th century concepts for 17^th century school pupils. Two occur in this text:

Mercēs, aliunde allātae, vel commūtantur in [i] domō commerciōrum, vel expōnuntur vēnum in [ii] tabernīs mercimōniōrum

[i] domus commerciōrum: common in England were corn exchanges, large buildings, often with vaulted ceilings such as the Corn Exchange at Sleaford, Lincolnshire. Many of them have been repurposed; the Corn Exchange at Stamford is now a theatre.

[ii] Charles Hoole, the translator of Comenius’ work renders in tabernīs mercimōniōrum as “warehouses” which we most often associate with large-scale storage of bulk goods prior to distribution. However, early understanding of the term also includes a place where goods were bought; the Mediaeval image clearly shows tabernae, stalls with goods on sale within a building. That original wider sense is still retained in the UK company name “Carphone Warehouse”.

During the Ancient Roman period, horreum, -ī [2/n] referred to a warehouse, storehouse or granary. The image shows horrea constructed c.145-150 at the port of Ostia

21.07.26: Level 3 (review); Comenius (1658) CXXVI; merchandizing [2]: vocabulary and notes (1)

 [i] nouns: places and activity

commercium, -ī [2/n]: trade; commerce

mercātūra, -ae [1/f]: merchandizing

also: mercātus, -ūs [4/m]

merx, mercis [3/f]: goods; merchandise

mercimōnium, -ī [2/n]: merchandise

taberna, -ae [1/f]: shop; stall

[ii] (Mercēs) … expōnuntur vēnum │ Goods … are displayed for sale

vēnum: an accusative masculine noun used in compounds to express ‘for sale’

vēnumdō, -are [1]: (literally) to give for sale; this form was shortened to vendō, -ere [3]: sell

[iii] nouns: money

monēta, -ae [1/f]: coin; money; can also refer to the place where money is produced i.e. the mint

also: nummus, -ī [2/m]: coin

pecūnia, -ae [1/f]: money

pretium, -ī [2/n]: price

[iv] nouns: measurement

lībra, -ae [1/f]: balance; pound; scales

ulna, -ae [1/f]: [i] elbow [ii] a measurement of length, an ell [England: 45 inches; Scotland: 37 inches]; the text uses eln which is a Middle English form

also: cubitum, -ī [2/n]: [i] elbow [ii] a measurement of length, a cubit, the distance from the tip of the middle finger to the elbow. This was an informal measurement but could refer to between 35 and 60cm.

Et sīc faciēs eam: trecentōrum cubitōrum erit longitūdō arcae, quīnquāgintā cubitōrum lātitūdō, et trīgintā cubitōrum altitūdō illīus. Fenestram in arcā faciēs, et in cubitō cōnsummābis summitātem eius (Vulgate)

And you shall make it in this way: the length of the ark will be three hundred cubits, the width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. You shall make a window in the ark, and in a cubit you shall finish the top of it

[v] nouns: people

emptor, -ōris [3/m]: purchaser; buyer < emō, -ere, ēmī, ēmptus: buy

tabernārius, -ī [2/m]: shopkeeper

venditor, -ōris [3/m]: seller

scrūtārius, -iī [2/m]: this is a rare word with different meanings [i] dealer in second-hand clothes; [ii] inspector; [iii] broker i.e. a mediator between buyer and seller. It is derived from scrūta, -ōrum [2/n/pl]: rubbish, broken trash, the word exists in English as scrutiny.

circumforāneus, -a, -us: moving from market to market; itinerant. Comenius uses the adjective as a noun to describe pedlars or hawkers i.e.those who move from place to place selling goods. The literal meaning of the adjective is ‘around the forum’ and refers to those who did not have fixed premises in the market place but wandered around it while conducting business.

mercātor, -ōris [3/m]: merchant

Tabernāriī, circumforāneī, & scrūtāriī, etiam volunt dīcī mercātōrēs │ Shopkeepers, pedlars, and brokers, would also be called merchants.

i.e. mercātor is used in a very general sense to refer to anybody who is involved in buying, selling and trading. Cicero uses the term to refer to a purchaser of goods:

… in Achāiam, Asiam, Pamphȳliam sūmptū pūblicō et lēgātiōnis nōmine mercātor signōrum tabulārumque pictārum missus est.

… he was sent at the public expense, and with the title of ambassador, into Achaia, Asia, and Pamphylia as a purchaser of statues and paintings.

[vi] verbs (1)

addīcō, -ere [3]: (here) ‘deliver’ in the sense of assign something to the highest bidder

commūtō, -āre [1]: exchange; barter

expōnō, -ere [3]: display; set out

indicō, -āre [1]: show; declare

mēnsūrō, -āre [1]: measure; estimate

ostentō, -āre [1]: show; show off; that the translator uses ‘braggeth’ is conveying the second sense

• Venditor ostentat │  the seller boasts – and they still do! You can hear them bragging loudly about their products in markets everywhere.

ponderō, -āre [1]: weigh

vendō, -ere [3]: sell

[vii]

afferō, afferre [irregular]: bring (to); convey

offerō, offerre [irreg.]: offer

irregular verbs (level 3); fero and its compounds

https://adckl.blogspot.com/search/label/irregular%20verbs%20%28level%203%29%3B%20fero%20and%20its%20compounds

verbs (2)

The text contains both [1] passive verb forms, and [2] deponent verbs

[1]

• Mercēs … commūtantur … expōnuntur vēnum … venduntur

Goods … are exchanged … (are) displayed for sale … (are) sold

Perfect passive participles:

• Mercēs … aliunde allātae … mēnsūrātae … ponderātae

Goods (having been) brought from somewhere else … (having been) measured … (having been) weighed

Passive infinitive:

• etiam volunt dīcī mercātōrēs

(They) also want to be called merchants.

https://adckl.blogspot.com/search/label/passive%20voice

[2] deponent verbs: look passive, but are active in meaning

Some 17^th century haggling:

[i] liceor, -ērī [2/deponent]: bid (for); make an offer (for)

• Emptor licētur │ The buyer ‘cheapneth’ i.e. makes a bid / an offer

[ii] By extension:

• Sī quis contrālicētur │ If any one bids against him i.e. makes a counteroffer

[iii] polliceor, -ēre [2/deponent]: promise

Comenius constructs this text well, and he shows both a passive and a deponent verb in the same sentence:

• eī rēs addīcitur [passive] quī pollicētur [deponent] plūrimum │ the thing is delivered to the one who promises the most

https://adckl.blogspot.com/search/label/deponent%20verbs

21.07.26: Level 3 (review); Comenius (1658) CXXVI; merchandizing [1]: text and translation

Merchandizing │ Mercātūra

[1]

Wares | Mercēs,

(having been) brought from other places | aliunde allātae,

are either exchanged | vel commūtantur

in an exchange, | in domō commerciōrum,

or exposed to sale [i.e. put out / displayed] | vel expōnuntur vēnum

in warehouses, | in tabernīs mercimōniōrum,

and they are sold | & venduntur

for money, | prō pecūniā (monētā),

having been either measured | vel mēnsūrātae

with an eln, | ulnā,

or weighed | vel ponderātae

in a pair of balances. | lībrā.

[2]

Shop-keepers, | Tabernāriī,

pedlars, | circumforāneī,

and brokers, | & scrūtāriī,

would also be called | etiam volunt dīcī

merchants. | mercātōrēs.

[3]

The seller | Venditor

braggeth of a thing | ostentat

that is to be sold, | rem prōmercalem,

and setteth the rate [price] of it. | & indicat pretium.

[4]

The buyer cheapneth | Emptor licētur,

and offereth the price. | & pretium offert.

If any one | Sī quis

bid against him, | contrālicētur,

the thing is delivered to him | eī rēs addīcitur

that promiseth the most. | quī pollicētur plūrimum.

20.07.26: Level 2 (review); Carolus et Maria [30] [iv] full text; grammar (2)

Longē ā scholā est mōns parvus. Quamquam iter est longum et necesse est in carrīs īre, hodiē tōtum diem ibi discipulī cum magistrā manent. Mōns est locus grātus et diēs est idōneus ad iter. Quamquam mōns nōn est altus, ē summō monte oppidum vidētis, sī caelum est clārum et nūllae nūbēs sunt in caelō. Prope montem est flūmen parvum in quō discipulī natant et paucae nāviculae videntur. Ā dextrā et trāns flūmen oppidum vidētis. In ulteriōre rīpā et inter oppidum et flūmen sunt agrī et collēs parvī.

Diū magistra et discipulī errant. Pars eōrum dēfessa est quod diū in flūmine natat. Itaque paucī in saxō magnō sedent. “Hic est locus ad cēnam idōneus,” inquit magistra. “Cupitisne hīc cēnam ēsse?” Omnēs ita cupiunt. Post cēnam discipulī fābulam dēsīderant. Prīmō magistra silet. Deinde haec nārrat:

“Undique circumspectāte, discipulī; prope hunc montem est flūmen quod Tiberis appellātur. In ulteriōre rīpā sunt agrī Etrūscōrum, hostēs Rōmānōrum, quī in illō locō moenia habent. Impetum in Rōmānōs facere cupiunt. Vigilēs quī ē vāllō prōspectant prope portās castrōrum stant. Etrūscī quoque sunt. Ubīque nūntiī currunt.”

“Ecce! Ecce!” clāmant puerī; “Rōmānī sumus. Agmen longum hostium, quī ad urbem nostram iter faciunt, paene vidēmus.”

“Silēte,” inquit magistra, “et audīte. Illīs temporibus Rōma nōn erat magna sed moenia bona habēbat. Rōma cīvēs et mīlitēs magnae virtūtis habēbat. Exercitus erat magnae virtūtis. Etrūscī quoque erant fortēs. Rōmam occupāre cupiēbant. Ūnus collis, Iāniculum appellātus, ab Etrūscīs occupātus erat. Cīvēs perterritī erant. Ab Etrūscīs superābantur. Deōs auxilium rogābant. Ipsum patrem deōrum auxilium rogābant. Illīs temporibus deī ipsī in bellō cum virīs pugnābant. Ita Rōmānī putābant. Etrūscī domum magnam praedam portāre parātī erant, sed posteā, ubi Etrūscī superātī sunt, Rōmānī maximās deīs grātiās ēgērunt.”

“Hōs Etrūscōs barbarōs nōn probō,” inquit ūnus puer parvus.

“Barbarī nōn erant,” respondet magistra. “Aedificia pulchra habēbant. Pulchrae erant pictūrae eōrum. Rēgēs et exercitum habēbant. Deī Etrūscōrum erant multī et Etrūscī cōnsilia deōrum semper sciēbant.”

Vesper est. Tempus domum īre est. Hic est fīnis fābulae.

The way in which prepositions are expressed in English and Latin are not always the same. While there can be word-for-word equivalents, the languages may convey an idea using different prepositions, or Latin sometimes uses cases or single adverbs, whereas English uses prepositions or prepositional phrases.

Find the words and phrases from the text and note the similarities and differences between the Latin and the English.

[1]

[i] across the river

[ii] after dinner

[iii] between the town and the river

[iv] (occupied) by the Etruscans

[v] near the mountain / near the gates

[vi] towards the city

[vii] (together) with the teacher / with men

[2]

[i] (look out) from the wall / fortification

[ii] from the top of the mountain

[iii] far from the school

[3]

[i] (a place) suitable for dinner

[ii] (the day is) suitable for the journey

[iii] for the whole day

[iv] (they asked the gods) for help

[v] (they wander) for a long time

[4]

[i] in war / in the sky / in that place

[ii] on a large rock

[iii] on the opposite (upper) bank

[iv] an attack on / against the Romans

[v] on the right

[vi] in those times

[vii] on all sides

____________________

[1]

[i] trāns flūmen

[ii] post cēnam

[iii] inter oppidum et flūmen

[iv] ab Etrūscīs occupātus

[v] prope montem / prope portās

[vi] ad urbem

[vii] cum magistrā / cum virīs

[2]

[i] ē vallō (prōspectant)

[ii] ē summō monte

[iii] longē ā scholā

[3]

[i] (locus) ad cēnam idōneus

[ii] (diēs est) idōneus ad iter

[iii] totum diem

[iv] deōs auxilium (rogābant)

[v] diū (errant)

[4]

[i] in bellō / in caelō / in illō locō

[ii] in saxō magnō

[iii] in ulteriōre rīpā

[iv] impetum in Rōmānōs

[v] ā dextrā

[vi] illīs temporibus

[vii] undique

19.07.26: Level 1 (review); shopping [5] dialogue (2) Wilkes; Neo-Latin; money

Omnia cōnstant centum vīgintī sēstertiīs

[1] Latin uses the ablative case to express a specific cost:

Agrum vēndidit sēstertium sex mīlibus. │ He sold the land for 6000 sesterces

sānē [i] magnō pretiō, [ii] nummīs aureīs quadringentīs (Livy) │ of course [i] at a great price, [ii]  for four hundred gold coins

https://adckl.blogspot.com/2025/03/170625-level-3-summary-of-of-uses-of_13.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y69cLzFHVUs

[2] sēstertius, -ī (2/m): sesterce; this was a standard monetary unit, and Wilkes roughly compares one sesterce to a British penny or a US cent. Thurston Peck (A Dictionary of Classical Antiquities) notes that under the early Empire it was worth about $0.05 (in early twentieth-century terms). Such comparisons are only approximate, since its value changed over time. For expressing small amounts in simple Latin dialogue, sēstertius is an appropriate and historically authentic word.

[3] HS was a common abbreviation for sesterces:

HS LXXX: 80 sesterces

[4] There were several coins in use in Ancient Rome. Bear in mind, however, that actual values fluctuated over time.

(1) as, assis [3/m]: a small coin of low value which we could equate with a penny or a cent.

The poet Catullus refers to the coin as a sign of contempt for what others think of him and his girlfriend i.e. their rumours are valueless:

Vīvāmus, mea Lesbia, atque amēmus, │ Let us live, my Lesbia, and let us love,

rūmōrēsque senum sevēriōrum │ and the rumours of rather stern old men

omnēs ūnius aestimēmus assis! │ let us value them all at a single penny!

Other terms relate to their relative value of this coin:

(2) quadrāns, quadrantis [3/m]:  a quarter of an as; not ‘quarter’ in the US sense of quarter of a dollar, but the quarter value of the already small denomination listed above

(3) sēmis, sēmissis [3/m] = half of an as

(4) dupondius, -ī [2/m] = two assēs

This is where sēstertius fits in with regard to relative value of Roman coins:

(5) sēstertius, -ī (2/m) = 2 ½ assēs

The five coins above were manufactured from base metals i.e. copper, brass or alloys.

Higher value denominations:

(6) dēnārius, -ī [2/m] = 4 sēstertiī; made of silver

The most famous — or infamous — dēnārius is the silver coin struck in 42 BC to commemorate the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC by a group of senatorial conspirators (see image).

The dinar is still used in a number of countries as the official currency e.g. Algeria, Jordan and Tunisia, the name derived from Arabic دِينَار (dīnār)  < La: dēnārius; the word denier exists in French to refer to an old denomination.

(7) aureus, -ī [2/m] = 25 dēnariī; made of gold

[5] Other writers express currencies using Neo-Latin vocabulary.

lībra, -ae [1/f]: pound; originally a measurement of weight but in Mediaeval Latin also refers to a weight in silver and becomes a monetary value. This is still reflected in the symbol £ for the UK Pound Sterling i.e. L with a stroke through it.

In Traupman’s work we have:

Quantī haec cōnstant? │ How much do these (items) cost?

Decem dollarīs ex tōtō. │ Ten dollars in total.