E. T. Merrill, Commentary on Catullus, Poem 113

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On the profligacy of a Maecilia. Pleitner emends in v. 2 to Mucillam, as a diminutive of Mucia, understanding the reference to be to the daughter of Q. Mucius Scaevola, married to Pompey soon after the death of Aemilia, his second wife, and divorced by him upon his return from the conquest of Mithradates, on the charge of adultery, especially with Julius Caesar. The mention of Pompey's consulships gives some color to this view, but as Maecilia is a well-known Roman name, and this epigram was written in 55 B.C. (cf. v. 2), seven years after the divorce of Mucia and several years after her marriage to M. Aemilius Scaurus, it is needless to emend the MSS. in order to bring in a special reason for the reference to Pompey.

consule Pompeio: in the year 70 B.C., with M. Licinius Crassus.

Cinna: doubtless the poet C. Helvius Cinna mentioned in Catul. 10.29 and Catul. 95.1; cf. Intr. 63ff.

[2] Maeciliam: dependent upofi an infinitive euphemistically omitted with solebant; cf. such constructions as Pl. Cist. 37 “viris cum suis praedicant nos solere” ; Mart. 3.76.4 “cum possis Hecuben, non poles Andromachen” .

[2] consule iterum: in the year 55 B.C., with the same colleague as before.

[3] manserunt: etc. i.e. there are still two, but it is two thousand. If the reading be correct, the numeral unum, which is not infrequently joined with distributive pronouns, is here used instead of the distributive utrumque because of the contrast with the numeral milia; ‘to each one has accrued a thousand.’ But the expression of such an idea by crescere with an accusative with in is unprecedented, the meaning apparently demanding increscere with the dative.

Catullus. Catullus. E. T. Merrill. Cambridge. Harvard University Press. 1893.

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E. T. Merrill, Commentary on Catullus
E. T. Merrill, Ed.

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E. T. Merrill, Commentary on Catullus E. T. Merrill, Ed.

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