[272] Serv. mentions a reading ‘hinc,’ supported by a correction in one of Ribbeck's cursives. Wagn. and Forb. explain ‘iam’ as “de eo quod nondum est, sed suo tempore certe fiet,” referring to 4. 566., 6. 676., 8. 42., 11. 708, Tibull. 2. 5. 56, in all of which passages ‘iam’ means ‘at once,’ a sense inapplicable here. We must rather take it therefore as contrasting Alba and its long-lived dynasty with the preceding members of the series. ‘And here the kingdom shall endure three hundred years.’ ‘Iam’ then will mean, at this point of the series of events. As ‘regnabitur’ is impersonal, we should rather have expected “a gente Hectorea.” The epithet ‘Hectorea’ is of course not strictly applicable.
[273] It is difficult to say whether ‘regina’ or ‘sacerdos’ is to be taken as the adjective. With the combination Weidner comp. v. 382 below, “matre dea.” ‘Regina,’ ‘princess,’ 6. 28, note, as Antigone is termed τὴν βασιλίδα in Soph. Ant. 941. ‘Sacerdos,’ a Vestal.
[274] For the construction ‘Marte gravis,’ and the meaning represented by it, see note on G. 3. 506. “Gravida ex aliquo” is used by Ter. Hec. 3. 3. 32, and Ovid (Met. 3. 260) has “gravidam de semine Iovis.” ‘Partu dabit’ = “pariet.” Comp. “Furtivo partu sub luminis edidit oras,” 7. 660.
[275] Lupae tegmine laetus: comp. Hor. 3 Od. 4. 34, “laetum equino sanguine Concanum,” and the similar use of “gaudeo.” Prop. 5. 10. 20 describes Romulus with a helmet of wolf-skin; but Virg., as Henry remarks, doubtless meant the ‘tegmen’ to cover the whole person.
[276] Comp. note on G. 2. 345. The notion here is that of succession. ‘The nation shall then pass into the hands of Romulus.’ There is nothing to warrant the notion of Thiel and Forb. that ‘excipiet’ = “accipiet asylo.” ‘Mavortia’ may point at once to the birth of Romulus, the worship of Mars at Rome, and the martial character of the nation.
[278] ‘His,’ as opposed to their predecessors, whose date was limited. ‘Metas’ probably refers to the bounds of the empire (‘rerum’), ‘tempora’ to its duration. ‘Meta’ however may be transferred from space to time, 10. 472. With ‘his tempora pono’ we may compare “Stat sua cuique dies,” 10. 467.
[280] Metu is commonly taken with ‘fatigat’ (like “omnia magno Ne cesses turbare metu,” 11. 400), expressing the terror which Juno spreads through the universe. It may however, and perhaps better, be taken, as Serv. suggests, for the alarm which Juno feels at the course of destiny, if we compare v. 23, “id metuens,” and 10. 9. ‘Fatigat’ will then mean, keeps earth, air, and sea astir, by constantly traversing them and exciting their powers; so “remigio noctemque diemque fatigant,” 8. 92. Thus Virg. may have had in his eye Il. 4. 26, where Here complains of the toil which she and her horses have undergone in persecuting the Trojans: comp. also Il. 8. 478 foll.
[281] The phrase ‘in melius referre’ is twice used in Virg. (here and 11. 425) for ‘to amend.’ Serv. refers to Ennius (A. 289) as saying that Juno became reconciled to the Romans in the second Punic war. There would naturally be different opinions about the time when her sentiments changed: Horace has his own, 3 Od. 3. 16 foll.: Virg. seems to put the date earlier, 12. 841, though elsewhere, as in 10. 11 foll., he intimates that the gods take part in the struggle between Rome and Carthage.
[282] Macrobius (Sat. 6. 5) says that Laberius was the author of this line; and Suetonius (Aug. 40) tells a story of Augustus' quoting it. It had probably become a stock line to express the grandeur of imperial Rome. ‘Gentem togatam’ is not a tame addition, being sufficiently characteristic; so that there is no need with Heyne to seek a point in any antithesis between “arma” and “toga.” Hor. 3 Od. 5. 10, “Anciliorum et nominis et togae Oblitus.”
[283] Sic placitum, οὕτως δέδοκται. Jupiter is speaking destiny. It will be observed that ‘lustra’ being a strictly Roman measure of time, Jupiter is thus made to speak the language of the great nation. ‘As Rome's years roll on.’
[284] Assaracus is the ancestor through whom Aeneas was related to the royal house of Troy. Comp. Il. 20. 230. ‘The descendants of Aeneas shall triumph over those of Achilles (‘Phthiam’), Agamemnon (‘Mycenas’), and Diomede (‘Argos’).’ Comp. 6. 838, “Eruet ille Argos Agamemnoniasque Mycenas, Ipsumque Aeaciden, genus armipotentis Achilli.”
[286] Caesar, Augustus (Julius Caesar by adoption); not, as Serv. thinks, Julius, who could hardly be said to be laden with the spoils of the East, and who was not the primary object of a Roman's homage. We may observe that he is not distinctly spoken of here as Julius Caesar, which would have been ambiguous, but is called Caesar, the gentile name Julius being mentioned as connecting him with Iulus. It may seem against this that his apotheosis is spoken of v. 289; but we may be meant to understand the deification as taking place during his life, as we know it to have done, E. 1. 44 note, Hor. 2 Ep. . 15. With the whole passage comp. 6. 791 foll. ‘Pulchra Troianus origine,’ from the high line of Troy; as though it had been “pulchra Troianorum origine.” This connects the line with those which precede. It is conceivable however, as has been suggested to me, that ‘pulchra’ may refer to Augustus' personal beauty, an allusion to which would be appropriate in a speech to Venus.
[287] Qui terminet, ‘destined to bound.’ See on 7. 99.
[288] For the alleged origin of the Julii from Iulus see Merivale, Hist. vol. i. p. 97, who observes that the great Julius seems to have been the first to assert it. “Caesar et omnis Iuli Progenies,” 6. 789. ‘Demissum:’ comp. G. 3. 35. For the apposition ‘Iulius—nomen’ comp. “Silvius, Albanum nomen” 6. 763, and Hor. 2 S. 5. 62, “iuvenis Parthis horrendus, ab alto Demissum genus Aenea.”
[289] Spoliis Orientis onustum. For similar compliments to Augustus as conqueror of the East, see G. 2. 171., 4. 560, A. 8. 724 foll. Serv. mentions another reading, ‘honestum,’ which would easily arise from the spelling ‘honustum,’ frequently found in old MSS.
[290] Hic quoque, as well as Aeneas, v. 259. “Damnabis tu quoque votis” E. 5. 80. See on v. 286.
[291] As it is expressed elsewhere, 6. 792, E. 4. 8, the iron age will pass into the golden.
[292] These four deities are chosen, as Henry remarks, as typical of the primitive and golden age of Rome. Vesta has been mentioned before in a similar connexion G. 1. 498, Romulus and Remus G. 2. 533. The union of the two latter, as Heyne observes, symbolizes the end of civil broils. Numa (Livy 1. 21) established the worship of Fides. Comp. Hor. Car. Saec. 57, “Iam Fides et Pax et Honor Pudorque priscus.” ‘Cana’ occurs 5. 744, as an epithet of Vesta.
[293] Iura dabunt, ‘shall impose laws,’ not, ‘shall administer justice’ (“ius dicent” or “reddent”) Henry. The function in Virg. is generally a royal one, v. 507., 3. 137., 5. 758 note: see however 8. 670. ‘Ferro et conpagibus artis’ (a hendiadys) should be taken, as Henry says, with ‘dirae.’ ‘The gates of war grim with closelywelded plates ofiron.’ It will answer then to “ferratos postis” 7. 622. ‘Conpagibus’ would not be a natural expression for bolts or bars, in spite of the parallel 7. 609. The word is twice used for planking, above v. 126 and 2. 51. The allusion is to the closing of the temple of Janus A. U. C. 725. Virg. prefers calling it the temple of War here and in 7. 607, where it is described at length; and this agrees with Plut. Numa 19, quoted on the latter passage. Comp. also the lines of Ennius (?) cited by Hor. 1 S. 4. 60, “postquam Discordia tetra Belli ferratos postis portasque refregit.”
[294] Impius, on account of the civil wars. G. 1. 511. The imagery in this passage is supposed to be derived from a painting of Apelles mentioned by Pliny 35. 10, representing War fettered, which was placed by Augustus in his own forum. Germanus Valens thinks that there is an allusion to a statue of Ares, mentioned by Pausanias, representing the god bound and seated on a pile of arms; the meaning of the binding being apparently that he was not to pass over to the enemy.
[295] Saeva arma 8. 482, &c. ‘Manus post terga revinctum’ 2. 57. Here ‘manus’ is inferred from ‘post tergum.’ ‘Nodi’ are coupled with ‘vincla’ Lucr. 6.356.
[297-304] ‘Mercury is sent down to dispose Dido and the Carthaginians to welcome the Trojans.’
