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The interpretation of Ganymede

Faculty Advisor

Date

1998

Keywords

Martianus Capella, puer, Cupid, Remigius, Johannes Scottus, Ganymede, myth, Berlin commentary

Abstract (summary)

The Commentary on Martianus Capella contains an interesting, and largely isolated, example of historical rationalization in the gloss on the lemma "Verum quidam redimitus" (De nuptiis I, 90). The passage as a whole concerns the identification and interpretation of the puer in the sentence "verum quidam redimitus puer ad os compresso digito salutari silentium commonebat." It is first suggested that the reference is to Cupid, which is in accord with the terse comments of two earlier commentators, Remigius and Johannes Scottus. Breaking new ground, however, the author of the Berlin commentary offers Ganymede as an alternative, and it is his presentation of this myth which shall be treated here.

Publication Information

Garstad, Benjamin. “The Interpretation of Ganymede.” Appendix to The Berlin Commentary on Martianus Capella’s De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii, Book II, ed., Haijo Jan Westra. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1998, pp. 161-7.

DOI

Notes

Item Type

Book Chapter

Language

English

Rights

All Rights Reserved