THE LETTERS OF SIDONIUS
BOOK I. n. TO AGRICOLA
genuinum molarem invidia non fixerit, actutum tibi
a nobis volumina numerosiora percopiosis scaturientia sermocinationibus multiplicabuntur. vale.
from fastening a jaw-tooth on these new absurdities as
well, there will straightway pour in upon you roll after
roll gushing with exuberant garrulity. Farewell.
II
II
SIDONIVS AGRICOLAE SVO
SALVTEM
SIDONIUS TO HIS DEAR AGRICOLA,
GREETING *
1. Saepenumero postulavisti ut, quia Theudorici
regis Gothorum commendai populis fama civilitatem,
litteris tibi formae suae quantitas, vitae qualitas
significaretur. pareo libens, in quantum epistularis
pagina sinit, laudans in te tarn delicatae sollicitudinis
ingenuitatem. igitur vir est et illis dignus agnosci
qui eum minus familiariter intuentur : ita personam
suam deus arbiter et ratio naturae eonsummatae
felicitatis dote sociata cumula veruni ; mores autem
huiuscemodi, ut laudibus eorum nihil ne regni
quidem defrùdet invidia. 2. si forma quaeratur:
corpore exacto, longissimis brevior, procerior eminentiorque mediocribus. capitis apex rotundus, in
quo paululum a planitie frontis in verticem caesaries
refuga crispatur. cervix non sedet enervis sed stat
nervis.1 geminos orbes hispidus superciliorum
1. Seeing that report commends to the world the
graciousness of Theodoric,1 King of the Goths, you
have often asked me to describe to you in writing
the dimensions of his person and the character of his
life. I am delighted to do so, subject to the limits
of a letter, and I appreciate thé honest spirit which
prompts so nice a curiosity. Well, he is a man
who deserves to be studied even by those who are
not in close relations with him. In his build the will
of God and Nature’s plan have joined together to
endow him with a supreme perfection ; and his
character is such that even the jealousy which
hedges a sovereign has no power to rob it of its
glories. 2. Take first his appearance. His figure
is well-proportioned, he is shorter than the very
tall, taller and more commanding than the average
man. The top of his head is round, and on it his
curled hair retreats gently from his even forehead.
His neck is not squat and sinewless but erect and
sinewy. Each eye is encircled by a shaggy arch of
1 enervis sed stat add. ego-, codd. varie turbati.
* It is generally agreed that this Agricola was a son of the
Emperor Avitus (and therefore a brother-in-law of Sidonius).
Sec II. 12. 1 sq. He rose to high office, perhaps to the
Praetorian Prefecture of the Gauls. Eventually he entered
the priesthood. We cannot with certainty date this letter
early in the reign of Theodoric, as many do. The last sentence
of § 9 seems to imply that Sidonius was at the Gothic court
when he wrote it; in that case it would have been quite
334
'
natural for Agricola to ask him for a description of Theodoric
and his ways. Even though Agricola, as the son of Avitus,
must have heard a good deal about the Gothic king, he would
be interested in reading an up-to-date record of Sidonius’s
impressions.
1 Theodoric II. (reigned a.d. 453-466).
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THE LETTERS OF SIDONIUS
coronat arcus ; si vero cilia flectantur, ad malas
medias palpebrarum margo prope pervenit. aurium
legulae, sicut mos gentis est, crinium superiacentium
flagellis operiuntur. nasus venustissime incurvus.
labra subtilia nec dilatatis oris angulis ampliata, pilis
infra narium antra fruticantibus cotidiana succisio.
barba concavis hirta temporibus, quam in subdita j
vultus parte surgentem stirpitus tonsor assiduus ;
genis ut adhuc vesticipibus evellit. 3. menti, gutturis, colli, non obesi sed suculenti, lactea cutis, quae
propius inspecta iuvenali rubore suffunditur ; namque
hunc illi crebro colorem non ira sed verecundia facit.
teretes umeri, validi lacerti, dura bracchia, patulae
manus, recedente alvo pectus excedens.1 * aream
dorsi humilior inter excrementa costarum spina
discriminat, tuberosum est utrumque musculis
prominentibus latus, in succinctis regnat vigor
ilibus. corneum femur, internodia poplitum bene
mascula, maximus in minime rugosis genibus honor ;
crura suris fuita turgentibus et, qui magna sustentat t •
membra, pes modieus. 4. si actionem diurnam,
quae est forinsecus expòsita, perquiras : antelucanos ,
sacerdotum suorum coetus minimo comitatu expetit, '
grandi sedulitate veneratur; quamquam, si sermó
1 excedens Luetjohann : accédons.
1 t.e. he does not let his moustache grow.
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BOOK I. n. TO AGRICOLA
■
|
1
H
brow; when his eyelids droop, the extremities of
the lashes reach almost half-way down the cheeks.
The tips of his ears, according to national fashion,
are hidden by wisps of hair that are trained over
them. His nose is most gracefully curved; his lips
are delicately moulded and are not enlarged by any
extension of the corners of the mouth. Every day
there is a clipping of the bristles that sprout beneath
the nostril-cavities.1 The hair on his face grows
heavily in the hollows of the temples, but as it
springs up upon the lowest part of the face the
barber constantly roots it out from the cheeks,
keeping them as though they were still in the
earliest stage of manly growth. 3. His chin, throat
and neck suggest not fat but fullness ; the skin is
milk-white, but if closely looked at it takes on a
youthful blush, for this tint is frequently produced
in his case by modesty, not by ill-temper. His
shoulders are well-shaped, his upper arms sturdy,
his forearms hard, his hands broad. The chest is
prominent, the stomach recedes ; the surface of his
back is divided by a spine that lies low between
the bulging ribs; his sides swell with protuberant
muscles. Strength reigns in his well-girt loins.
His thigh is hard as horn ; the upper legs from joint
to joint are full of manly vigour; his knees are
completely free from wrinkles and full of grace ; the
legs have the support of sturdy calves, but the feet
which bear the weight of such mighty limbs are of
no great size. 4. And now you may want to know
all about his everyday life, which is open to the
public gaze. Before dawn he goes with a very small
retinue to the service conducted by the priests of
his faith, and he worships with great earnestness,
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THE LETTERS OF SIDONIUS
BOOK I. n. TO AGRICOLA
secretus, possis animo advertere quod servet istam
pro consuetudine potius quam pro ratione reverentiam. reliquum mane regni administrandi cura
sibi deputat, circumsistit sellam comes armiger ;
pellitorum turba satellitum ne absit, admittitur, ne
obstrepat, eliminatur, sieque pro foribus immurmurat
exclusa velis, inclusa cancellis. inter haec intromissis gentium legationibus audit plurima, pauca
respondet ; si quid tractabitur, differt ; si quid
expedietur, accelerat, hora est secunda : surgit e
solio aut thesauris inspiciendis vacaturus aut stabulis.
5. si venatione nuntiata procedit, arcum lateri
innectere citra gravitatem regiam iudicat; quem
tamen, si comminus avem feramque aut venanti aut
vianti fors obtulerit, manui post tergum reflexae
puer inserit nervo lorove fluitantibus ; quem sicut
puerile computat gestare thecatum, ita muliebre
accipere iam tensum. igitur acèeptum modo sinuatis 1 e regione capitibus intendit, modo ad talum
pendulum nodi parte conversa languentem chordae
laqueum vagantis digito superlabente prosequitur;
et mox spicula capit implet expellit ; quidve cupias
percuti prior admonet ut eligas 2 ; eligís quid feriat :
though (between ourselvesr) one can see that this
devotion is a matter of routine rather than of con­
viction. The administrative duties of his sovereignty
claim the rest of the morning. Nobles in armour
have places near his throne; a crowd of guards in
their dress of skins is allowed in so as to be at
hand, but excluded from the presence so as not to
disturb ; and so they keep up a hum of conver­
sation by the door, outside the curtains but within
the barriers. Meanwhile deputations from various
peoples are introduced, and he listens to a great
deal of talk, but replies shortly, postponing business
which he intends to consider, speeding that which is
to be promptly settled. The second hour comes : he
rises from his throne, to pass an interval in inspect­
ing his treasures or his stables. 5. When a hunt has
been proclaimed and he sallies forth, he considers it
beneath his royal dignity to have his bow slung at
his side ; but if in the chase or on the road chance
presents bird or beast within his range, he puts his
hand behind his back, and an attendant places the
bow in it, with the string or thong hanging loose ;
for he thinks it childish to carry the bow in a case,
and womanish to take it over ready strung. When
he takes it he either holds it straight in front of him
and bends the two ends and so strings it, or he rests
upon his raised foot the end which has the knot,
and runs his finger along the loose string until he
comes to the dangling loop ;2 then he takes up the
arrows, sets them in place, and lets them fly. Or
he may urge you first to choose what quarry you
wish to be struck down : you choose what he is to
L sinuatis FR : insinuatie.
2 ut eligas add. ego.
1 Or possibly “ if one talks to him in private.”
2
One end oí the string is permanently knotted to one
“ horn ” of the bow, the other end has a loop, which can be
easily slipped on to the other horn. Theodoric raises one foot,
keeping the heel on the ground, and rests the strung end of the
bow on that foot, while the other end rests against his body
or is firmly held in one hand. He then stoops, bending the bow
at the same time. Taking hold of the string at the end where
it is tied to the bow, he runs his fingers along it, thus
338
straightening it out, until they reach the loop, which he
duly attaches.
339
THE LETTERS OF SIDONIUS
quod elegeris ferit; et, si ab alterutro errandum est,
rarius fallitur figentis ictus quam destinantis ob tutus.
6. si in convivium venitur, quod quidem diebus
profestis simile privato est, non ibi impolitam congeriem liyentis argenti mensis cedentibus suspiriosus
minister imponit; maximum tunc pondus in verbis
est, quippe cum illic aut nulla narrentur aut seria,
toreumatum peripetasmatumque modo conchyliata
profertur supellex, modo byssina. cibi arte, non
pretio placent, fercula nitore, non pondere, scyphorum paterarumque raras oblationes facilius est ut
aecuset sitis quam recuset ebrietas. quid multis?
videas ibi elegantiam Graecam abundantiam Galil­
eanani celeritatem Italam, publicam pompam priva­
tam diligentiam regiam disciplinam, de luxu autem
ilio sabbatario narrationi meae supersedendum est,
qui nec latentes potest latere personas. 7. ad
coepta redeatur. dapibus expleto somnus meridianus saepe nullus, semper exiguus. quibus horis viro
1 Toreuma should, mean a piece of ornamental metal-work,
e.g. a chased vase or cup ; but Sirmond is undoubtedly right
in thinking that Sidonius connected the word with torus,
as did Prudentius (Psychom. 370) and Salvian (Ad Eccl. IV.
33). For other examples in Sidonius see II. 13. 6, IX. 13. 5
v. 14. Sirmond takes it to mean the coverings of the couch,
but this does not suit the epithet sericatum, “ covered with
silk,” in Bk. II., and the expression rutilum toreuma bysso in
Bk. IX., foe. cit., does not favour, though it does not absolutely
exclude, such an interpretation. All difficulty disappears if we
suppose that the word was regarded as an ornate substitute for
torus, “ couch,” or, more strictly, the mattress of the couch,
over which a covering (peristroma) was placed. Peripetasma
is applied to a spreading drapery, whether a hanging or a
covering. Here the reference is probably to the perisiromata,
which often hung down far over the side of the couch, and
BOOK I. n. TO AGRICOLA
strike, and he strikes what you have chosen. Should
a mistake be made by either, it is more often the
eyesight of the selector than the aim of the bowman
that is at fault. 6. When one joins him at dinner
(which on all but festival days is just like that of a
private household), there is no unpolished conglomer­
ation of discoloured old silver set by panting attend­
, ants on sagging tables; the weightiest thing on
these occasions is the conversation, for there are
either no stories or only serious ones. The couches,
with their spreading draperies, show an array
sometimes of scarlet cloth, sometimes of fine linen.1
The viands attract by their skilful cookery, not by
their costliness, the platters by their brightness, not
by their weight. Replenishment of the goblets or
wine-bowls comes at such long intervals that there
is more reason for the thirsty to complain than for
the intoxicated to refrain. To sum up : you can
find there Greek elegance, Gallic plenty, Italian
briskness ; the dignity of state, the attentiveness of
a private home, the ordered discipline of royalty.
But as to the luxury of the days of festival I had
better hold my tongue, for even persons of no
note cannot fail to note it. 7. To resume the
story : after satisfying his appetite he never takes
more than a short midday sleep, and often goes
without it. In the hours when the gaming-board 2
toreumatum peripetasmatumque vauy be regarded as a
hendiadys.
2 Tabula may here be used for tabula lusoria or as the name
of a particular board-game, on which see R. G. Austin in
Greece and Rome IV. (1933), pp. 77-79. In any case the
game described in this passage is one of those in which both
dice and pieces were used, as in the various forms of
backgammon.
34°
VOL
o
341
THE LETTERS OF SIDONIUS
BOOK I. n. TO AGRICOLA
tabula cordi, tesseras colligit rapide, inspicit sollicite,
volvit argute, mittit instanter, ioculanter compellat,
patienter exspectat. in bonis iactibus tacet, in
malis ridet, in neutris irascitur, in utrisque philosophatur. secundas fastidit vel timere vel facere,
quarum opportunitates spernit oblatas, transit
oppositas. sine motu evaditur, sine colludio evadit,
putes ilium et in calculis arma tractaré : sola est
illi cura vincendi. 8. cum ludendum est, regiam
séquestrât tantisper severitatem, hortatur ad ludum
libertatem communionemque. dicam quod sentio :
timet timeri. denique oblectatur commotione
superati et turn demum credit sibi non cessisse
collegam, cum fidem fecerit victoriae suae bilis
aliena, quodque mirere, saepe illa laetitia minimis
occasionibus veniens ingentium negotiorum merita
fortunat, tunc petitionibus diu ante per patrociniorum naufragia iactatis absolutionis subitae
portus aperitur; tune etiam ego aliquid obsecraturus feliciter vincor, quando mihi ad hoc tabula
perit, ut causa salvetur. 9. circa nonam recrudescit
molis illa regnandi. redeunt pulsantes, redeunt
attracts him he is quick to pick up the dice ; he
examines them anxiously, spins them with finesse,
throws them eagerly; he addresses them jestingly
and calmly awaits the result. If the throw is lucky,
he says nothing ; if unlucky, he smiles ; in neither
case does he lose his temper, in either case he is a
real philosopher. As for a second throw, he is too
proud either to fear it or to make it ; when a chance
of one is presented he disdains it, when it is used
against him he ignores it.1 He sees his opponent’s
piece escape without stirring, and gets his own free
without being played up to. You would actually think
he was handling weapons when he handles the pieces
on the board ; his sole thought is of victory. 8. When
it is the time for play he throws off for a while the
stern mood of royalty and encourages fun and free­
dom and good-fellowship. My own opinion is that
he dreads being feared. Further, he is delighted
at seeing his defeated rival disgruntled, and it is
only his opponent’s ill-temper which really satisfies
him that the game has not been given him. Now
comes something to surprise you ; the exultation
which comes upon him on these trivial occasions
often speeds the claims of important transactions.
At such times the haven of a prompt decision is
thrown open to petitions which have for a long
time previously been in distress through the founder­
ing of their advocates. I myself at such times, if
I have a favour to ask, find it fortunate to be
beaten by him, for I lose my pieces2 to win my
cause. 9. About the ninth hour the burden of royal
business is taken up afresh. Back come the im­
1
We do not know' enough about the game to understand this.
Secundae (sc. tesserasi) is obviously a technical term. Prob­
ably at certain junctures the player was allowed the option
of a second throw. The translation given of oppositas accords
with Dr.
Semple’s view.
2
Tabula may here be the name of the game, but more
probably it is a collective term for a player’s pieces, as
perire was a technical term in such games for “to be
taken.”
343
THE LETTERS OF SIDONIUS
BOOK I. n. TO AGRICOLA
summoventes ; ubique litigiosus frémit ambitus,
qui tractus in vesperam cena regia interpellante
rarescit et per áulicos deinceps pro patronorum
varietate dispergitur, usque ad tempus concubiae
noctis excubaturus. sane intromittuntur, quam­
quam raro, inter cenandum mimici sales, ita ut
nullus conviva mordacis linguae felle feriatur ; sic
tamen quod illic nec organa hydraulica sonant nee
sub phonasco vocalium concentus meditatum acroama
simul intonat; nullus ibi lyristes choraules meso­
chorus tympanistria psaltria canit, rege solum illis
fidibus delenito, quibus non minus mulcet virtus
animum quam cantus auditum. 10. cum surrexerit,
inchoat nocturnas aulica gaza custodias ; armati
regiae domus aditibus assistant, quibus horae primi
soporis vigilabuntur. sed iam quid meas istad ad
partes, qui tibi indicanda non multa de regno sed
pauca de rege promisi? simul et stilo finem fieri
decet, quia et tu cognoscere viri non amplius quam
stadia personamque voltasti et ego non historiam
sed epistulam efficere curavi, vale.
portunate petitioners, back come the marshals to
drive them off; everywhere the rivalry of the dis­
putants makes an uproar. This continues till even­
ing; then the royal supper interrupts and the
bustle fades away, distributing itself among the
various courtiers whose patronage this or that party
enjoys; and thus they keep watch till the night­
watches. It is true that occasionally (not often) the
banter of low comedians is admitted during supper,
though they are not allowed to assail any guest with
the gall of a biting tongue. In any case no hydraulic
organs are heard there, nor does any concert-party
under its trainer boom forth a set performance in
chorus ; there is no music of lyrist, flautist or dance­
conductor, tambourine-girl or female citharist ; for the
king finds a charm only in the string music which com­
forts the soul with virtue just as much as it soothes
the ear with melody. 10. When he rises from the
table, the night-watch is first posted at the royal
treasury and armed sentries are set at the entrances
to the palace, who will keep guard through the
hours of the first sleep.
But I have already exceeded my part, for I
promised to tell you a little about the king, not a
long story about his rule ; it is also fitting that my
pen should come to a stop because you desired to
hear only of the tastes and personality of the great
man and because I took it upon myself to write a
letter, not a history. Farewell.
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