(work in progress: 17.10.26)
Topic / Level 4; clothing [1]
[1] vestis, -is [3/f]: [i] a garment, i.e. a single
article / item of clothing; [ii] clothes, clothing = (pl.) vestēs
[i] itaque inter sē commūtant vestem et
nōmina (Plautus)
Therefore, they exchange clothes and names with each
other.
[ii] quandō ego tibi ancillās, penum, lānam,
aurum, vestem, purpuram, bene praebeō nec quicquam egēs (Plautus)
Since I well provide you with maids and pantry goods, wool,
gold, clothes, and purple, and you do not lack anything
- aurum, -ī [2/n]: gold
- aureus, -a, -um: golden
- lāna, -ae [1/f]: wool
- purpura, -ae [1/f]: purple [see the
next post]
[2] vestīmentum, -ī [2/n]: [i] (sg.) article of
clothing; [ii] (pl.) vestīmenta, -ōrum: clothes, clothing
Note: the same singular / plural distinction is preserved in
French: vêtement (an article of
clothing); vêtements (clothes)
[i] From Plautus:
MENAECHMVS
Agedum odōrāre hanc quam ego habeō pallam.
quid olet? …
Come now, smell this cloak I’ve got. What’s it smell
like? …
PENICVLVS
Summum olfactāre oportet vestīmentum muliebre,
nam ex istōc locō spurcātur nāsum odōre …
One should sniff the top edge of a woman’s garment, because
from lower down, the nose gets fouled by the smell.
- palla, -ae [1/f]: the translation as
“cloak” does not convey the specific function; it was a type of cloak or loose
garment worn by women over the gown (stola, -ae [1/f]) and held together
by brooches (fībula, -ae [1/f])
[ii] In Dē Agri Cultura, Cato the Elder refers to the
articles of clothing to be issued to farm hands (familiae), and gives us
an early example of recycling:
Vestīmenta familiae:
Clothing (allowance) for the hands:
tunicam p. IIIS*,
a tunic of 3½ feet / 3½ feet (long)
[*p: abbreviation for the measurement pedēs
(feet); S: abbreviation for sēmis (half) = tunicam pedum trium et
semis]
sāga alternīs annīs.
and blankets every other year.
quotiēns cuique tunicam aut sagum
dabis, prius veterem accipitō, unde centōnēs fīant.
When you issue the tunic or the blanket to
anyone, first take back the old one from which patchwork may be made.
sculpōneās bonās alternīs annīs dare oportet.
A good pair of wooden shoes should be issued every
other year.
- centō, -ōnis [3/m]:
patchwork; an article of clothing made of several pieces sewn together
- sāgum, -ī [2/n]: [i] military cloak; [ii] (here) a coarse woollen
blanket, i.e. a blanket for wrapping around the body
- sculpōneae, -ārum
[1/f/pl]: inferior kind of wooden shoe with a thick sole; clog
- tunica, -ae [1/f]: one of the most common items of everyday Roman clothing and worn by men and women of different classes either as an undergarment or as the main article of clothing
Topic / Level 4; clothing [2] The colour purple
[i]
quandō ego tibi ancillās, penum, lānam, aurum,
vestem, purpuram, bene praebeō nec quicquam egēs (Plautus)
Since I well provide you with maids and pantry goods, wool,
gold, clothes, and purple, and you do not lack anything.
- purpura, -ae [1/f]: purple; here, the
character is referring to purple-coloured garments
- purpureus, -a, um: purple
Tyrian purple dye was produced from the secretion of
Mediterranean sea snails, especially species of murex, vast numbers of which
were needed to produce even a small quantity, thus making purple garments
symbols of wealth, prestige and power:
https://adckl.blogspot.com/2024/06/180724-level-1-bright-white-politicians.html
[ii] However, while the character may be implying that the
clothes are expensive, Pliny the Elder, referring to different types of tree,
mentions the manufacture of the colour – or something similar to it – by a
different process and certainly not for the wealthy:
Nōn nisi in aquōsīs prōveniunt salicēs, alnī,
populī, siler, ligustra …, item vaccīnia Ītaliae in aucupiīs
sata, Galliae vērō etiam purpurae tinguendae causā ad
servitiōrum vestēs
Willows, alders, poplars, the siler and the privet, …, will
only grow in places where there is water, and the same is the case with
the whortleberry, grown in bird-snares in Italy, but in Gaul also to
supply purple dye for slaves' clothes.
[iii] When Jesus is mocked:
et induunt eum purpuram
et inpōnunt eī plectentēs spīneam corōnam (Vulgate)
And they clothe him in purple: and,
twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it upon him.
One commentator (Wessel) has suggested that it was a scarlet military cloak: “a cast-off and faded rag, but with color enough left in it to suggest the royal purple.”
Topic / Level 4; clothing [3]
[1] vestītus, -ūs [4/m]: clothing, clothes (used collectively)
[2] amictus, -ūs [4/m]:
a general term for outer clothing; “a garment that one throws
about or on him” (Lewis & Short)
[i]
Itidem habet petasum ac vestītum (Plautus)
He has a travelling hat and clothes just like
mine.
[ii]
Crēdō enim tē audīsse, cum apud Caesarem prō
populō fieret, vēnisse eō muliebrī vestītū [ablative] virum (Cicero)
For I think you have heard that, when the sacrifice was being
performed at Caesar’s house on behalf of the people, a man came there in
women’s clothing.
[iii]
Nihil est facilius, quam amictum imitārī
alicuius aut statum aut mōtum (Cicero)
Nothing is easier than imitating someone’s dress,
posture, or movement.
[iv]
Habēbat amictuī [dative] pallium candidum,
quod superne circumiēcerat (Apuleius)
He had a white cloak for a covering, which he
had thrown around himself from above [ = over the upper part of his body]
- petasus, -ī [2/m] < Anc. Gk: πέτασος
[pétasos], a flat felt hat, with a broad and round brim; originally worn by the
Ancient Greeks and Etruscans, the Romans wore a similar hat in the country, and
when travelling; “in the city it was generally used only in the theatre, as
a protection from the sun” (Thurston Peck); the images are of both Greek
and Roman origin
- pallium, -ī [2/n]: cloak, particularly
Greek style; “At all periods of Greek
life the characteristic outdoor garment, both of men and women, was a mantle or
shawl, consisting of a rectangular piece of cloth.” (Smith et al: A Dictionary
of Greek and Roman Antiquities)
The nouns vestītus and amictus are derived from
the verbs:
- vestiō, -īre, -īvī / -iī, vestītus [4]:
clothe
- amiciō, -īre, amicuī / amixī, amictus [4]:
dress; clothe; cover; throw round: “exclusively of upper
garments” (Lewis and Short)
From the perfect passive participles of the verbs, we have:
- vestītus, -a, -um: (having
been) dressed; clothed
- amictus, -a, um: (having been) dressed; covered
[v]
vīlicus is autem cum corōnā, candidē [adverb]
vestītus, lautus exōrnātusque ambulat (Plautus)
But the farm overseer walks about wearing a crown, dressed
in dazzling white, smartly and elegantly adorned.
[vi]
Sedēbat in rōstrīs conlēga tuus (1) amictus
togā purpureā [ablative], (2) in sellā aureā, (3) corōnātus
(Cicero)
Your colleague was sitting on the Rostra, draped in
a purple toga, on a golden chair, and crowned.”
The subject of the sentence (conlēga) refers to Caesar. Note
the use of the tricolon associating Caesar with three honours: (1) the
right to dress in purple, (2) the use of a golden chair, and (3) the wearing of
a type of crown.
[3] habitus, -ūs [4/m]: while the noun may refer to
clothing, it has a wider range of meanings, such as ‘appearance’ e.g. the
person’s demeanour, posture, emotional state or character
[i]
Vērum hoc ūnum tamen cōgitātō : modus omnibus
rēbus, soror, optimus est habitū (Plautus)
The translation does not make the meaning of habitus
explicit:
But do consider this one fact: moderation in all things is the
best policy [ = in terms of appearance], my dear.
[ii] Note the distinction between habitus and vestītus
in the following quotation from Cicero:
Erant aēnea duo praetereā signa, nōn maximā
vērum eximiā venustāte, virginālī habitū atque vestītū
There were two bronze statues, not very large but of
exceptional beauty, in the appearance and dress of a maiden
[4] amiculum, -ī [2/n]: outer garment, often rendered
as ‘cloak’
[i]
Amiculum hoc sustolle saltem
(Plautus)
At least take up this cloak.
[ii]
Saepe, cum aliquem offēnsum fortūnā vidēret minus
bene vestītum, suum amīculum dedit (Nepos)
Often, when he saw somebody ill-treated by fortune and less
well dressed [some translations render this as ‘poorly clad’], he gave him
his cloak.
[iii]
et, cum tibi virō liceat purpurā in vestem
strāgulam ūtī, mātrem familiae tuam purpureum amiculum habēre nōn
sinēs, et equus tuus speciōsius īnstrātus erit quam uxor vestīta?
(Livy)
And, although you as a husband may use purple for a coverlet
will you not allow your wife to have a purple cloak, and your horse
will be more splendidly covered than your wife (is) dressed?
- īnstrātus, -a, -um: covered
< īnsternō, -ere, īnstrāvī, īnstrātus [3]: cover (over)
- vestis strāgula
At first sight, the use of vestis may suggest that
clothing is being referred to, and there are examples of mistranslations.
However, the adjective strāgulus, -a, -um describes anything used for spreading
over or covering something. In the passage Livy is referring to the use
of the colour purple for bed covers, and not clothing. The same meaning is
confirmed in Cicero and, again, Livy, both of whom list furnishings:
[iv]
quid praetereā caelātī argentī, quid strāgulae
vestis, quid pictārum tabulārum, quid signōrum, quid marmoris apud illum
putātis esse? (Cicero)
What quantities besides of embossed plate, of quilts;
of paintings, of statues, and of marble, do you think he has in his
house? (Cicero)
[v]
iī prīmum lēctōs aerātōs, vestem strāgulam
pretiōsam, plagulās … et alia textilia … Rōmam advēxērunt
(Livy)
These men brought into Rome for the first time, bronze
couches, costly coverlets, tapestry … and other fabrics
- textile, -is [3/n]: fabric; textile
- plagula, -ae [1/f]: dependent upon context, the noun – which is rare – has different meanings: bed cover, bed curtain, tapestry
Topic / Level 4; clothing [4] the Digest of Justinian (1)
The Digest of Justinian is a 6th-century AD compilation of
classical Roman legal writings commissioned by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian
I. The extract – which we will look at
over three posts - deals with inheritance law regarding personal property,
ornaments, and clothing—determining precisely what items belong to specific
categories when named in a Roman will.
[i]
Vestīmenta omnia aut virīlia sunt aut puerīlia aut muliebria
aut commūnia aut familiārica.
All garments are either for men, for boys (children), for
women, common to all, or for the household servants.
- vestīmenta virīlia: men’s clothing
- vestīmenta puerīlia: boys’ / children’s clothing; in the context of the extract, it is boys’ clothing being referred to
- vestīmenta muliebria: women’s clothing
- vestīmenta familiārica: clothing for slaves / household servants
[ii]
virīlia sunt, quae ipsīus patris familiae causā
parāta sunt, …
Men’s (clothing) is that provided for the benefit of the head
of the household, …
… velutī togae tunicae palliola vestīmenta
strāgula amfitapa* et sāga reliquaque similia.
… such as togas, tunics, little cloaks (hoods),
bedspreads, rugs, cloaks and other similar items.
- palliolum, -ī [2/n]: little cloak; hood
*amfitapa is a rendering of the Greek word ἀμφιτάπης [amphitapes], a thick rug
or carpet with pile on both sides
[iii]
puerīlia sunt, quae ad nūllum alium ūsum
pertinent nisi puerīlem …
Boys’ (clothes) are those which are suitable for no other use
than that of boys [a more fluent rendering:
boys’ clothes are those used only for this purpose] …
… velutī togae praetextae āliculae
chlamydēs pallia quae fīliīs nostrīs comparāmus.
… such as toga praetextae, short cloaks, (Greek
style) cloaks and mantles that we provide for our sons.
- ālicula, -ae [1/f]: (rare) “a short
cloak coming down to the elbows, worn by boys, and spoken of as worn by boys
and huntsmen” (Thurston Peck)
- chlamys, -idis [3/f] < Anc. Gk.
χλαμύς [khlamús]: a short poncho-like cloak caught up on the shoulder, worn by
hunters, soldiers, and horsemen in Ancient Greece
- praetextus, -a, -um:
fringed; edged; bordered < praetexō, -ere, praetexuī, praetextus: (in
weaving) fringe; edge; border
Before a freeborn Roman boy reached adulthood, he wore an amulet around his neck: bulla, -ae [1/f]; it indicated his freeborn status and was believed to protect him from evil influences. Roman girls wore a similar crescent-shaped amulet known as a lūnula, -ae [1/f] (‘little moon’).
No comments:
Post a Comment