The Birth of the Myrmidons
Attonitus tanto miserarum turbine rerum,
"Iuppiter o!" dixi, "si te non falsa loquuntur 615
dicta sub amplexus Aeginae Asopidos isse,
nec te, magne pater, nostri pudet esse parentem,
aut mihi redde meos aut me quoque conde sepulcro!"
ille notam fulgore dedit tonitruque secundo.
"accipio sintque ista precor felicia mentis 620
signa tuae!" dixi, "quod das mihi, pigneror omen."
forte fuit iuxta patulis rarissima ramis
sacra Iovi quercus de semine Dodonaeo;
hic nos frugilegas adspeximus agmine longo
grande onus exiguo formicas ore gerentes 625
rugosoque suum servantes cortice callem;
dum numerum miror, "totidem, pater optime," dixi,
"tu mihi da cives et inania moenia supple!"
intremuit ramisque sonum sine flamine motis
alta dedit quercus: pavido mihi membra timore 630
horruerant, stabantque comae; tamen oscula terrae
roboribusque dedi, nec me sperare fatebar;
sperabam tamen atque animo mea vota fovebam.
nox subit, et curis exercita corpora somnus
occupat: ante oculos eadem mihi quercus adesse 635
et ramos totidem totidemque animalia ramis
ferre suis visa est pariterque tremescere motu
graniferumque agmen subiectis spargere in arvis;
crescere quod subito maius maiusque videtur
ac se tollere humo rectoque adsistere trunco 640
et maciem numerumque pedum nigrumque colorem
ponere et humanam membris inducere formam.
somnus abit: damno vigilans mea visa querorque
in superis opis esse nihil; at in aedibus ingens
murmur erat, vocesque hominum exaudire videbar 645
iam mihi desuetas; dum suspicor has quoque somni
esse, venit Telamon properus foribusque reclusis
"speque fideque, pater", dixit "maiora videbis:
egredere!" egredior, qualesque in imagine somni
visus eram vidisse viros, ex ordine tales 650
adspicio noscoque: adeunt regemque salutant.
vota Iovi solvo populisque recentibus urbem
partior et vacuos priscis cultoribus agros,
Myrmidonasque voco nec origine nomina fraudo.
corpora vidisti; mores, quos ante gerebant, 655
nunc quoque habent: parcum genus est patiensque laborum
quaesitique tenax et quod quaesita reservet.
hi te ad bella pares annis animisque sequentur,
cum primum qui te feliciter attulit Eurus'
(Eurus enim attulerat) 'fuerit mutatus in Austros.' 660
Vocab
614: attonitus, -a, -um: astonished, stunned
614: turbō, turbinis m.: whirlwind, turmoil
616: amplexus, -ūs m.: embrace
617: pudeō, pudēre, puduī, puditum: it shames, causes shame
619: fulgor, fulgōris m.: flash, lightning
619: tonitrus, -ūs m.: thunder
623: quercus, -ūs f.: oak tree
624: frūgilegus, -a, -um: grain-gathering
625: formīca, -ae f.: ant
625: exiguus, -a, -um: small, tiny
626: rūgōsus, -a, -um: wrinkled, rough
626: callis, callis m.: path, track
629: intremō, intremere, intremuī: to tremble, shake
630: horreō, horrēre, horruī: to dread, shiver
638: granifer, granifera, graniferum: grain-bearing
641: maciēs, maciēi f.: thinness, leanness
656: tenāx, tenācis: tenacious, persistent
Latin Text and Notes
With Vocab at the Bottom
Notes
Line 614: “Attonitus tanto miserarum turbine rerum” contains an ablative of cause/instrument in turbine rerum (“by the turmoil of events”). Ovid opens with strong emotional intensity and shock.
Line 615: “Iuppiter o!” is a direct address in the vocative. Aeacus appeals personally and emotionally to Jupiter as his divine father.
Lines 615-616: “si te non falsa loquuntur dicta…isse” contains an indirect statement with te…isse after loquuntur.
Line 618: “aut mihi redde meos aut me quoque conde sepulcro” uses the balanced repetition aut…aut to express two desperate alternatives: restoration or death.
Line 619: “ille notam fulgore dedit tonitruque secundo” includes ablatives of means in fulgore and tonitru. Jupiter communicates through lightning and thunder as divine signs.
Line 623: The sacred oak “de semine Dodonaeo” alludes to Dodona, the ancient Greek oracle of Zeus where sacred oaks were prophetic. The tree serves as a symbol of divine communication.
Lines 624-625: “frugilegas…formicas” is notable because frugilegus is a hapax legomenon in surviving Latin literature, meaning this is its only recorded occurrence. The compound literally means “grain-gathering,” perfectly describing the industrious ants.
Line 625: “grande onus exiguo ore gerentes” creates vivid contrast between grande and exiguo. Ovid emphasizes the ants’ impressive strength despite their tiny size.
Lines 627-628: “totidem, pater optime…tu mihi da cives” shows Aeacus directly comparing the number of ants to the number of citizens he hopes to receive. Totidem means “the same number.”
Lines 629-630: “intremuit ramisque sonum sine flamine motis alta dedit quercus” personifies the oak tree. The movement “without wind” suggests supernatural divine action.
Line 631: “stabantque comae” literally means “his hairs stood up.” This physical imagery conveys fear, awe, and religious reverence before divine power.
Line 639: “crescere quod subito maius maiusque videtur” uses repetition in maius maiusque to emphasize gradual transformation and increasing wonder.
Lines 640-642: The transformation scene is central to Ovid’s theme of metamorphosis. The ants lose their black color and many feet while taking on human form.
Lines 649-650: “quales…tales” forms a correlative structure connecting the dream vision to reality. The men Aeacus sees are exactly like those from his dream.
Lines 655-657: The final lines emphasize that the Myrmidons retain ant-like qualities even as humans. They are hardworking, enduring, thrifty, and persistent.