01.11.25: Comenius (1658) XXVIII: Labouring Beasts [ii]: Greek speaking elephants and horse-hating camels

From the authors:

[1] Scīpiōnis legiōnēs X, elephantī CXX classēsque esse complūrēs (Bellum Āfricum) │ ten legions under the command of Scipio; a hundred and twenty elephants, and fleets in abundance. 

[2] cēperint amplius tria mīlia hominum, paulō minus mīlle equōrum, ūndēsexāgintā mīlitāria signa, septem elephantōs, quīnque in proeliō occīsīs (Livy) │ (The Romans) … made prisoners of more than 3000, captured somewhat less than 1000 horses, 59 military standards, 7 elephants, 5 having been killed in the battle

suprā tredecim mīlia hostium caesa, suprā duo milia capta cum signīs duōbus et quadrāgintā et novem elephantīs (Livy) │ Over 13,000 of the enemy were killed, more than 2000 made prisoners, 42 standards and 9 elephants were also taken.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_war_elephants

[3] Pliny the Elder in Book 8 of the Natural History (Nātūrālis Historia) writes about elephants. Below are some extracts; judging by Pliny’s comments in the first extract, we could do with a few elephants in Parliament:

[i] Ad reliqua trānseāmus animālia et prīmum terrestria. Maximum est elephāns proximumque hūmānīs sēnsibus, quippe intellēctūs illīs sermōnis patriī et imperiōrum obēdientia, officiōrum quae didicēre memoriā, …

Let us pass to the rest of the animals, and first those that live on land. The largest land animal is the elephant, and it is the nearest to man in intelligence: it understands the language of its country and obeys orders, remembers duties that it has been taught …

[ii] Rōmae iūnctī prīmum subiēre currum Pompēī Magnī Āfricānō triumphō │ At Rome they were first used in harness to draw the chariot of Pompey the Great in his African triumph

[iii] Mūciānus III cōnsul auctor est aliquem ex iīs et litterārum ductus Graecārum didicisse …

Mucianus who was three times consul* states that one of them [i.e. one elephant] actually learnt the shapes of the Greek letters … (*That apparently makes him an authority on elephants!)

[iv] This is possibly where the myth began …

… animālium maximē ōdēre mūrem et, sī pābulum in praesēpiō positum attingī ab eō vidēre, fastīdiunt │ They hate the mouse worst of living creatures, and if they see one merely touch the fodder placed in their stall they refuse it with disgust.

https://www.elephantsanctuary.co.za/blog/140-are-elephants-afraid-of-mice

Sadly, some things (infuriatingly) don’t change …

[v] nunc dentium causā pedēs eōrum iaculantur aliōquī mollissimōs │ At the present day (hunters) for the sake of their tusks shoot them with javelins in their feet, which in fact are extremely soft.

[3] Referring to camels, Pliny writes …

omnēs autem iūmentōrum ministeriīs dorsō funguntur atque etiam equitātūs in proeliīs │ all however perform the services of beasts of burden, and also of cavalry in battles

odium adversus equōs gerunt nātūrāle │  they possess an innate hatred for horses

sitim et quadriduō tolerant │ they can endure thirst for as much as four days

vīvunt quīnquāgēnīs annīs, quaedam et centēnīs. utrimque rabiem et ipsae sentiunt │ they live for fifty years, some even for a hundred; although even camels are liable to rabies

https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/L/Roman/Texts/Pliny_the_Elder/8*.html

https://www.attalus.org/translate/pliny_hn8a.html

[4] mūlus, -ī [2/m]: mule, but as a term of abuse …

Lesbia mī praesente virō mala plūrima dīcit: │ Lesbia says many bad things of me in front of her husband:
haec illī fatuō maxima laetitia est. │ These are the source of greatest joy for that stupid man.
mūle. nihil sentīs? │ Fool, do you perceive nothing?

(Catullus 83)

01.11.25: Comenius (1658) XXVIII: Labouring Beasts [i]

[1] The Ass, 1. and the Mule, 2. carry burthens. │ Asinus, 1. & Mūlus, 2. gestant Onera.

[2] The Horse, 3. (which a Mane, 4. graceth) carryeth us. │ Equus, 3. (quem Juba, 4. ōrnat) gestat nōs ipsōs.

[3] The Camel, 5. carryeth the Merchant with his Ware(s). │ Camēlus, 5. gestat Mercātōrem cum mercibus suīs.

[4] The Elephant, 6. draweth his meat to him with his Trunk, 7. │ Elephās, (Barrus) 6. attrahit pābulum Proboscide, 7.

[5] He hath two Teeth, 8. standing out, and is able to carry full thirty men. │ Habet duōs dentēs, 8.  prōminentēs, et potest portāre etiam trīgintā virōs.

Vocabulary

asinus, -ī [2/m]: donkey; Engl. deriv. asinine behaviour

camēlus, -ī [2/m]: camel < Anc. Gk. κᾰ́μηλος (kắmēlos); Arabic: jamal; Hebrew: gāmā́l

iuba, -ae [1/f]: mane (of a horse)

iūmentum, -ī [2/n]:[i]  a general term referring to any large domestic animal which, for example, could pull a cart [ii] can refer to a carriage or a cart i.e.

a synonym for plaustrum, -ī [2/n] or carrus, -ī [2/m]: cart; carriage; wagon

mercātor, -ōris [3/m]: merchant; trader

< mercor, -ārī, mercātus sum [1/deponent]: deal; sell; trade

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

mūlus, -ī [2/m]: [i] mule; ass [ii] (term of abuse) idiot

onus, oneris [3/n]: load; burden (still in English: The onus is on you to get the job done.)

pabulum, -ī [2/n]: food; nourishment; (animals) food; fodder

proboscis, proboscidis [3/f]: [i] snout [ii] trunk of an elephant < Anc. G. προβοσκίς (proboskís); Engl. deriv. proboscis monkey

elephā(n)s, elephantis [3/m]; elephantus, -ī [2/m] < from Anc. Gk: ἐλέφᾱς (eléphās): apart from the animal itself, it could also have the transferred meaning of ‘ivory’; one dictionary entry suggests that the word is possibly derived from Anc. Egyptian ꜣbw (abu); given that Latin ebur, eboris [3/n] means ‘ivory’, it would be a reasonable assumption.

barrus, -ī [2/m]: elephant; origin unclear – possibly from Iranian and cognate with Sanskrit vāru

Notes

asinus et mūlus gestant onera │ the donkey and mule carry loads

Equus … gestat nōs ipsōs │ the horse carries us

gestō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus [1]: carry; look out for verbs that end in –(i)tō or -sō because they often imply a frequentative action i.e. an action that is repeated or continues for a long period:

dīcō, -ere [3]: say

> dīctō, -āre [1]: repeat; say often > Engl. deriv: dictate

> dictitō, -āre [1]: repeat; maintain (e.g. keep saying, stick to your point of view) 

clāmō, -āre [1]: shout > clāmitō [1]: yell (i.e. not just give a single ‘shout’ but to keep doing it)

currō, -ere [3]: run > cursō, -āre [1]: run around; run here and there

Many of these do not necessarily convey that specific idea in translation e.g. spectō, -āre [1]: watch (i.e. keep looking at something), nor, depending on context, does it always have to be expressed. Some have lost that frequentative idea completely or it is not obvious e.g. habitō, -āre [1]: live; reside

gestō, -āre [1] is the frequentative form of gerō, -ere [3]: carry; Comenius uses it to describe an action which donkeys and mules regularly do

That frequentative idea is still in the English derivative: gestation period < La: gestātiō, -iōnis [3/f]: bearing; carrying < gestō, -āre i.e. referring to the period of time during which an animal or human child is carried within the mother; equally, it can refer to the way in which an idea or plan develops over time

Taking a look at some of the ancient depictions of elephants, it’s clear that they knew what they looked like! The hieroglyph is spot on! However, a few examples of Mediaeval images suggest that they had heard about them, but had never seen one …

[i] An elephant, owned by Henry III, was on show in the Tower of London in 1255; Matthew Paris drew it, and, yes, it’s an elephant (10/10 from the art teacher)! Similarly [ii] is from almost the same time; however [iii] to [iv] would suggest that, although there were lifelike illustrations,  few artists had ‘googled’ an elephant in the 13^th century! There is evidence of this type of work in the Renaissance period where artists depicted particular “beasts” based on vague and inconsistent descriptions of them. What is interesting is that many Mediaeval depictions of elephants feature a “trumpet” like trunk e.g. [iii] and [iv], no doubt influenced by the sound that elephants make. I feel a bit sorry for number [v]; I’m not surprised he looks so miserable having been painted in that way!