Lines 458-485 Flashcards
evado ad summi fastigia culminis, unde
I escape to the highest point of the roof, from where
tela manu miseri iactabant inrita Teucri.
the wretched Trojans were hurling useless spears with vigour.
turrim in praecipiti stantem summisque sub astrat
There was a tower standing on a sheer edge and raised from the top of the roof to the stars
eductam tectis, unde omnis Troia videri
from which the whole of Troy
et Danaum solitae naves et Achaica castra,
the ships of the Greeks and the Greek camp could be seen,
adgressi ferro circum, qua summa labantes
Having attacked round all its sides with tools, where the highest
iuncturas tabulata dabant, convellimus altis
storeys offered unsteady joints, we tore it from its high
sedibus impulimusque, ea lapsa repente ruinam
position and gave it a push, as it fell suddenly
cum sonitu trahit et Danaum super agmina late
it dragged along destruction with a roar and fell far and wide over the host of Greeks.
incidit. ast alii subeunt, nec saxa nec ullum
But others took their place, and in the meantime neither rocks nor any
telorum interea cessat genus.
type of weapons ceased.
Vestibulum ante ipsum primoque in limine Pyrrhus
Before the very doorway and in the first threshold, Pyrrhus
exsultat telis et luce coruscus aena;
exalts in his weapons, glittering with bronze light;
qualis ubi in lucem coluber mala gramina pastus,
like when a snake that has grazed on harmful herbs,
frigida sub terra tumidum quem bruma tegebat,
which cold winter once concealed swollen up beneath the earth,
nunc, positis novus exuviis nitidusque iuventa,
now fresh with its scales shed and shining with youth,
lubrica convolvit sublato pectore terga
coils together its slippery back, with its body raised into the light,
arduus ad solem, et linguis micat ore trisulcis.
rising up to the sun, and flickers from its mouth with its triple-forked tongue.
una ingens Periphas et equorum agitator Achillis,
together with him, huge Periphas and the driver of the horses of Achilles,
armiger Automedon, una omnis Scyria pubes
Automedon, the armour-bearer, and with him all the Scyrian youth
succedunt tecto et flammas ad culmina iactant.
advances from the building and hurls flames to the rooftops.
ipse inter primos correpta dura bipenni
He himself, among the first with an axe seized,
limina perrumpit postisque a cardine vellit
breaks through the strong doorway and tears the bronze posts from their hinges;
aeratos; iamque excisa trabe firma cavavit
and now with a beam cut out, he hollowed out the strong
robora et ingentem lato dedit ore fenestram.
wood and produced a huge opening with a gaping mouth.
apparet domus intus et atria longa patescunt;
The house within appears and long hallways lie open;
apparent Priami et veterum penetralia regum,
The inner rooms of Priam and of the ancient kings appear,
armatosque videt stantes in limine primo.
and he sees armed men standing in front of the doorway.