This picture from Wikimedia Commons is of the Medea Sarcophagus (in the Altes museum in Berlin). Wiki also provide the following description from left to right of the picture:
Isn’t it fantastic! Sorry if I have given away more of the story than you would have liked, but I think it is such a great picture and I just had to share it with you!
a) Iásón et Médéa é Thessaliá expulsí ad urbem Corinthum vénérunt, cúius urbis Creón quídam régnum tum obtinébat. Erat autem Creontí fília úna, nómine Glaucé. Quam cum vídisset, Iásón cónstituit Médéae uxórí suae núntium mittere eó cónsilió, ut Glaucén in mátrimónium dúceret. At Médéa ubi intelléxit quae ille in animó habéret, írá graviter commóta iúre iúrandó cónfírmávit sé tantam iniúriam ultúram. Hóc igitur cónsilium cépit. Vestem parávit summá arte textam et variís colóribus ínfectam; hanc mortiferó quódam venénó tinxit, cúius vís tális erat ut sí quis eam vestem induisset, corpus éius quasi ígní úrerétur. Hóc factó vestem ad Glaucén mísit; illa autem nihil malí suspicáns dónum libenter accépit, et vestem novam móre féminárum statim induit.Isn’t it fantastic! Sorry if I have given away more of the story than you would have liked, but I think it is such a great picture and I just had to share it with you!
b)
Some words have been chosen for special consideration and are listed below. For the words not included in this list please refer to the WORDLIST in PAGES TOP RIGHT SIDE BAR. If you need help with points of grammar raised in today's excerpt, consult ESSENTIAL GRAMMAR NOTES also top right side bar.
c)
e – preposition ‘from’ followed by ablative case.
expulsi – perfect past participle ‘having been expelled/thrown out’
ad – preposition ‘towards’ followed by accusative case.
venerunt – third person plural perfect of venire.
cuius urbis – genitive of feminine relative adjective (qui quae quod), agreeing with genitive of third declension feminine noun urbs, urbis meaning therefore ‘of which town’.
Creon quidam – Creon, the name of the ruler (you will notice that names usually come first in this kind of phrase) followed by the indefinite adjective quidam ‘a certain’, together therefore ‘a certain Creon’,
regnum tum obtinebat – Literally, ‘the royal power/kingdom – at that time – was holding (imperfect singular of obtinere)’ but perhaps the meaning is better grasped ‘was ruling at that time’.
Erat autem Creonti – Literally, there was –now/however – to Creon (dative) meaning ‘Creon had’ . The verb sum with a dative noun or pronoun is often used to express possession ‘est mihi = I have; cui erant = to which there were = which had (see Hercules second labour).
nomine – ablative ‘by name’, or as we would probably say ‘called’.
Quam cum vidisset – quam is here what is sometimes called a connecting relative. This means that it connects this sentence to the one before as quam refers to Creon’s daughter who has just been mentioned. Literally it is ‘whom when he had seen’ but we would probably say something like ‘when he saw her, Jason etc’.
nuntium – a message, notice, announcement; in this context it means a notice of divorce, which given the circumstances seems somewhat harsh, don’t you think?.
ut Glaucen in matrimonium duceret – a purpose clause after ut takes the verb in the subjunctive ‘to marry Glauce’. Ducere came to mean marry, because the bridegroom led his bride in a wedding procession to his own home so it can only be used of a man; when a woman marries the word used is nubere (to put on a veil) and can only be used of a woman.
quae in animo haberet – Literally, what (things) he was having (subjunctive) in his mind better understood by ‘what he intended’.
confirmavit – confirmare can mean to confirm, strenthen, and to assert positively, declare, or pledge.
jure jurandum – ablative of jusjurandum, oath, which is often written separately, as here, means ‘by an oath’.
ulturam – as often happens with the future infinitive in the accusative and infinitive construction esse is omitted. We have the accusative and infinitive as this is another example of reported speech, or indirect discourse if you prefer, she pledged that etc.; her words were ‘I will be avenged’ being reported as ‘she said she would be avenged’.
mortifero quodam veneno - ablative phrase, notice the word order; literally 'with a deadly certain poison' which we would probably express as 'with a certain deadly poison'. Don't forget that Latin often employs a different word order from what we are used to, but we can usually tell which words belong together by their case and number.
ut si quis ... induisset – ‘such that if someone (quis is the indefinite pronoun) should put it on’.
quasi igni ureretur – literally, as if with fire (ablative of the third declension noun ignis ignis) he/she/it was being burned (third person singular imperfect passive subjunctive of uro, urere). Notice that ignis is one of the third declension nouns that take i in the ablative singular (not e). We have here the imperfect subjunctive as quasi introduces an imagined comparison.
nihil mali – literally, nothing of bad, this is the partitive genitive and is often to be found after a word indicating a quantity or amount of something (compare plus cibi – ‘more food’, literally ‘more of food’.; we would say ‘nothing bad.’
more feminarum – ablative of mos custom, in the way of, as is the custom of followed by the genitive plural of femina ‘as is the custom of women’.
Note: This section is not translated into idiomatic English but is intended, together with the notes, to give you the gist of the meaning; you can then come up with your own improved translation. Lines marked with an * in particular need to be reworked to sound like proper English.
Iason et Medea e Thessalia expulsi
After Jason and Medea were expelled from Thessaly
ad urbem Corinthum venerunt,
the came to the city of Corinth,
cuius urbis Creon quidam
(of) which city a certain Creon
regnum tum obtinebat.
at that time was ruling.
Erat autem Creonti filia una,
Now Creon had a daughter,
nomine Glauce.
called Glauce.
Quam cum vidisset,
When he had seen her,
Iason constituit Medeae uxori suae
Jason decided to his wife Medea*
nuntium mittere
a notice of divorce to send*
eo consilio,
of his decision,
ut Glaucen in matrimonium duceret.
to marry Glauce.
At Medea ubi intellexit
But Medea when she realised
quae ille in animo haberet,
what he intended
ira graviter commota
felt very angry
iure iurando confirmavit
and pledged on oath
se tantam iniuriam ulturam.
to avenge herself of such a great wrong.
Hoc igitur consilium cepit.
So she hatched this plot.
Vestem paravit summa arte textam
She prepared a garment woven with great skill
et variis coloribus infectam;
and of various colours dyed;*
hanc mortifero quodam veneno tinxit,
this she soaked with a certain deadly poison,
cuius vis talis erat
which was of such potency
ut si quis eam vestem induisset,
that when anyone put that garment on,
corpus eius quasi igni ureretur.
her body would seem as if consumed by fire.
Hoc facto vestem ad Glaucen misit;
When this was done she gave the garment to Glauce
illa autem nihil mali suspicans
She however suspecting nothing bad
donum libenter accepit,
accepted the gift gladly,
et vestem novam
and the new garment
more feminarum statim induit.
as is the custom with women, she put on at once.
d) The following section is for you to copy and compose your own translation.
Iason et Medea e Thessalia expulsi
ad urbem Corinthum venerunt,
cuius urbis Creon quidam
regnum tum obtinebat.
Erat autem Creonti filia una,
nomine Glauce.
Quam cum vidisset,
Iason constituit Medeae
uxori suae nuntium mittere eo consilio,
ut Glaucen in matrimonium duceret.
At Medea ubi intellexit
quae ille in animo haberet,
ira graviter commota
iure iurando confirmavit
se tantam iniuriam ulturam.
Hoc igitur consilium cepit.
Vestem paravit summa arte textam
et variis coloribus infectam;
hanc mortifero quodam veneno tinxit,
cuius vis talis erat
ut si quis eam vestem induisset,
corpus eius quasi igni ureretur.
Hoc facto vestem ad Glaucen misit;
illa autem nihil mali suspicans
donum libenter accepit,
et vestem novam
more feminarum statim induit.
