{"id":81,"date":"2026-06-15T16:49:49","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T15:49:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/chapter\/the-building-blocks-of-reality-lucretius-on-body-and-void-de-rerum-natura-book-i-416-508\/"},"modified":"2026-06-17T14:34:31","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T13:34:31","slug":"the-building-blocks-of-reality-lucretius-on-body-and-void-de-rerum-natura-book-i-416-508","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/chapter\/the-building-blocks-of-reality-lucretius-on-body-and-void-de-rerum-natura-book-i-416-508\/","title":{"raw":"The Building Blocks of Reality: Lucretius on Body and Void (De rerum natura, Book I, 416\u2013508)","rendered":"The Building Blocks of Reality: Lucretius on Body and Void (De rerum natura, Book I, 416\u2013508)"},"content":{"raw":"
\n

1. Introductory Context: The Science and \u201cMagic\u201d of Lucretius<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/header>The work of Titus Lucretius Carus represents a unparalleled intersection of poetic mastery and speculative scientific inquiry. As Albert Einstein observed in his 1924 foreword to the landmark edition by Hermann Diels, Lucretius\u2019s poem exerts a distinct \u201cmagic\u201d on those who feel like spectators of their own age rather than participants in its prevailing intellectual attitudes. Einstein was particularly struck by Lucretius\u2019s \u201cdeep conviction\u201d regarding the \u201ccausal connectedness\u201d of natural phenomena\u2014the fundamental belief that the world is intelligible through the regular motion of immutable atoms. This firm confidence in the universe\u2019s intelligibility is nowhere more apparent than in the lines presented in this module (I. 416\u2013508), where Lucretius establishes the mechanical necessity of atoms and void as the sole constituents of reality.\n\nLucretius operated as an \u201cindependent man\u201d who, despite lacking the empirical results of modern physics, imagined the world through \u201clively senses and reasoning.\u201d His atomistic-mechanical worldview, which Einstein found profoundly impressive, attributed all phenomena\u2014warmth, color, and even life itself\u2014to the geometric-mechanical movements of atoms. For Einstein, the reception of Diels\u2019s translation was equally significant; he noted that Diels\u2019s verses \u201cread so naturally\u201d that the reader forgets they are engaging with a translation, allowing the Epicurean spirit to emerge with its original clarity.\n\nThe preservation of this worldview across two millennia is itself a historical phenomenon. Naturalist David Attenborough classifies the printed book as a \u201cmeme\u201d\u2014a vital vehicle for embedding human experience and handing it down across generations outside the biological body. Attenborough identifies the 1515 Venice edition of Lucretius, published by the Aldine Press, as one of his \u201cmost precious books.\u201d This\u00a0octavo<\/b>\u00a0edition, noted for its \u201cwonderfully elegant italic script,\u201d exemplifies the transition from the fragile manuscript tradition to the stabilized print culture of the Renaissance, ensuring that the Lucretian \u201cmeme\u201d survived to influence the architects of modern science.\n

2. Parallel Text: [CORPVS ET INANE ESSE NATVRAM RERVM] (Lines 416\u2013508)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Line<\/td>\nLatin (Diels, 1923)<\/td>\nEnglish Translation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
416<\/td>\nargumentorum sit copia missa per auris.<\/td>\nThat the full supply of arguments be poured into your ears.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
417<\/td>\nSed nunc ut repetam coeptum pertexere dictis:<\/td>\nBut now to resume the weaving of the task begun:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n[CORPVS ET INANE ESSE NATVRAM RERVM]<\/b><\/td>\n[THAT NATURE CONSISTS OF BODY AND VOID]<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
418<\/td>\nomnis ut est igitur per se natura duabus<\/td>\nAll nature, then, as it exists by itself, is built<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
420<\/td>\nconstitit in rebus; nam Corpora sunt et inane,<\/td>\nOf two things: for there are bodies and there is void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
421<\/td>\nhaec in quo sita sunt et qua diuersa mouentur.<\/td>\nIn which these bodies are placed and through which they move.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
422<\/td>\ncorpus enim per se communis dedicat esse<\/td>\nFor that body exists, the general sense of mankind declares;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
423<\/td>\nsensus; cui nisi prima fides fundata ualebit,<\/td>\nAnd unless our faith in this sense be firmly grounded,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
424<\/td>\nhaut erit occultis de rebus quo referentes<\/td>\nThere will be no principle to which we may refer<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
425<\/td>\nconfirmare animi quicquam ratione queamus.<\/td>\nTo confirm anything by the reasoning of the mind.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
426<\/td>\ntum porro locus ac spatium, quod inane uocamus,<\/td>\nFurthermore, if there were no place and space, which we call void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
427<\/td>\nsi nullum foret, haut usquam sita corpora possent<\/td>\nBodies could nowhere be situated,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
428<\/td>\nesse neque omnino quoquam diuersa meare;<\/td>\nNor could they move at all in any direction;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
429<\/td>\nid quod iam supera tibi paulo ostendimus ante.<\/td>\nThis is what we have already shown you a little above.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
430<\/td>\nPraeterea nihil est quod possis dicere ab omni<\/td>\nBesides, there is nothing which you can say is distinct<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
431<\/td>\ncorpore seiunctum secretumque esse ab inani,<\/td>\nFrom all body and separate from the void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
432<\/td>\nquod quasi tertia sit numero natura reperta.<\/td>\nTo be discovered as a third nature in the count.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
433<\/td>\nnam quod cumque erit, esse aliquit debebit id ipsum,<\/td>\nFor whatever shall exist, must be something in itself,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
434<\/td>\ncui si tactus erit quamuis leuis exiguusque,<\/td>\nWhich, if it be tangible, however light and small,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
435<\/td>\n[augmine uel grandi uel paruo denique (dum sit)]<\/td>\n[In an increase either large or small (provided it exist)]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
436<\/td>\ncorporis augebit numerum summamque sequetur:<\/td>\nIt will increase the number of body and follow its sum:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
437<\/td>\nsin intactile erit, nulla de parte quod ullam<\/td>\nBut if it be intangible, such that it cannot at any point<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
438<\/td>\nrem prohibere queat per se transeire meantem,<\/td>\nHinder anything from passing through it,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
439<\/td>\nscilicet, hoc id erit, uacuum quod inane uocamus.<\/td>\nSurely, this will be that which we call empty void.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
440<\/td>\npraeterea per se quod cumque erit, aut faciet quid<\/td>\nMoreover, whatever exists by itself, will either act<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
441<\/td>\naut aliis fungi debebit agentibus ipsum,<\/td>\nOr must suffer while other things act upon it,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
442<\/td>\naut erit ut possint in eo res esse gerique;<\/td>\nOr it will be such that things can exist and happen in it;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
443<\/td>\nat facere et fungi sine corpore nulla potest res,<\/td>\nBut nothing can act or suffer without body,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
444<\/td>\nnec praebere locum porro nisi inane uacansque.<\/td>\nNor can anything provide place except the empty void.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
445<\/td>\nergo praeter inane et corpora tertia per se<\/td>\nTherefore, besides void and bodies, no third nature<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
446<\/td>\nnulla potest rerum in numero natura relinqui,<\/td>\nCan be left remaining in the count of things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
447<\/td>\nnec quae sub sensus cadat ullo tempore nostros,<\/td>\nNor one that can fall at any time under our senses,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
448<\/td>\nnec ratione animi quam quisquam possit apisci.<\/td>\nNor one that any man can grasp by reasoning.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
449<\/td>\nNam quae cumque cluent, aut his coniuncta duabus<\/td>\nFor whatever things are mentioned, you will find them<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
450<\/td>\nrebus ea inuenies aut horum euenta uidebis.<\/td>\nEither as properties of these two or as their accidents.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
451<\/td>\nconiunctum est id quod nusquam sine permitiali<\/td>\nA property is that which can nowhere be separated<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
452<\/td>\ndiscidio potis est seiungi seque gregari;<\/td>\nWithout a fatal breakdown of the thing;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
453<\/td>\npondus uti saxis, calor ignist, liquor aquai,<\/td>\nAs weight is to rocks, heat to fire, liquidity to water,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
454<\/td>\ntactus corporibus cunctis, intactus inani;<\/td>\nTouch to all bodies, and intangibility to the void;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
455<\/td>\nseruitium contra, paupertas, diuitiaeque,<\/td>\nWhereas slavery, poverty, and riches,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
456<\/td>\nlibertas, bellum, concordia, cetera quorum<\/td>\nLiberty, war, concord, and other things whose<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
457<\/td>\naduentu manet incolumis natura abituque,<\/td>\nArrival or departure leaves the nature of the thing intact,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
458<\/td>\nhaec soliti sumus, ut par est, euenta uocare.<\/td>\nThese we are accustomed, rightly, to call accidents.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
459<\/td>\ntempus item per se non est, sed rebus ab ipsis<\/td>\nTime likewise exists not by itself, but from things themselves<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
460<\/td>\nconsequitur sensus, transactum quid sit in aeuo,<\/td>\nFollows the sense of what has been done in the past,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
461<\/td>\ntum quae res instet, quid porro deinde sequatur;<\/td>\nThen what is present, and what is to follow thereafter;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
462<\/td>\nnec per se quemquam tempus sentire faten dumst<\/td>\nAnd it must be admitted that no one feels time by itself<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
463<\/td>\nsemotum ab rerum motu placidaque quiete.<\/td>\nSeparate from the motion of things and their quiet rest.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
464<\/td>\ndenique Tyndaridem raptam belloque subactas<\/td>\nFinally, when they say that the daughter of Tyndareus was ravished<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
465<\/td>\nTroiiugenas gentis cum dicunt esse, uidendumst<\/td>\nAnd the Trojan race subdued in war, we must see<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
466<\/td>\nne forte haec per se cogant nos esse fateri,<\/td>\nThat they do not force us to admit these things exist in themselves,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
467<\/td>\nquando ea saecla hominum, quorum haec euenta fuerunt<\/td>\nSince those generations of men, of whom these were accidents,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
468<\/td>\ninreuocabilis abstulerit iam praeterita aetas.<\/td>\nIrrevocable past time has already carried away.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
469<\/td>\nnamque aliud terrast, aliud regionibus ipsis<\/td>\nFor one thing may be said of the land, another of the regions<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
470<\/td>\neuentum dici poterit quod cumque erit actum,<\/td>\nWherein every act was performed,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
471<\/td>\ndenique materies si rerum nulla fuisset,<\/td>\nFinally, if there had been no matter for things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
472<\/td>\nnec locus ac spatium, res in quo quaeque geruntur,<\/td>\nNor place and space, in which all things are done,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
473<\/td>\nnumquam Tyndaridis forma conflatus amoris<\/td>\nNever would the flame of love, kindled by the beauty of Tyndareus\u2019 daughter,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
474<\/td>\nignis Alexandri Phrygio sub pectore gliscens<\/td>\nIn the Phrygian breast of Alexander,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
475<\/td>\nclara accendisset saeui certamina belli,<\/td>\nHave set ablaze the famous contests of cruel war,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
476<\/td>\nnec clam durateus Troiianis Pergama partu<\/td>\nNor would the wooden horse, by its night-birth of Greeks,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
477<\/td>\ninflannnasset equos nocturno Graiiugenarum;<\/td>\nHave set fire to the Trojan citadel;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
478<\/td>\nperspicere ut possis res gestas funditus omnis<\/td>\nSo that you may see that all events utterly<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
479<\/td>\nnon ita ut corpus per se constare neque esse,<\/td>\nDo not exist or consist in themselves as body does,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
480<\/td>\nnec ratione cluere eadem qua constet inane,<\/td>\nNor are they spoken of in the same way as the void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
481<\/td>\nsed magis ut merito possis euenta uocare<\/td>\nBut rather that you may rightly call them accidents<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
482<\/td>\ncorporis atque loci, res in quo quaeque gerantur.<\/td>\nOf body and of place, in which all things are carried on.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
483<\/td>\nCorpora sunt porro partim primordia rerum<\/td>\nBodies, moreover, are partly the first-beginnings of things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
484<\/td>\npartim concilio quae constant principiorum.<\/td>\nAnd partly those which consist of a union of first-beginnings.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
485<\/td>\nsed quae sunt rerum primordia, nulla potest uis<\/td>\nBut those which are the first-beginnings, no force can<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
486<\/td>\nstinguere; nam solido uincunt ea corpore demum.<\/td>\nQuench; for they prevail at last by their solid body.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
487<\/td>\netsi difficile esse uidetur credere quicquam<\/td>\nAlthough it seems difficult to believe that anything<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
488<\/td>\nin rebus solido reperiri corpore posse.<\/td>\nCan be found among things with a solid body.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
489<\/td>\ntransit enim fulmen caeli per saepta domorum,<\/td>\nFor the lightning of heaven passes through the walls of houses,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
490<\/td>\nclamor ut ac uoces, ferrura candescit in igni,<\/td>\nAs do shouts and voices; iron glows white in the fire,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
491<\/td>\ndissiliuntque fero feruenti saxa uapore;<\/td>\nAnd rocks fly asunder in fierce, boiling heat;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
492<\/td>\ncum labefactatus rigor auri soluitur aestu,<\/td>\nWhen the hardness of gold is loosened and melted by heat,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
493<\/td>\ntum glacies aeris flamma deuicta liquescit;<\/td>\nThen the ice of bronze, overcome by flame, turns liquid;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
494<\/td>\npermanat calor argentum penetraleque frigus,<\/td>\nHeat and piercing cold penetrate through silver,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
495<\/td>\nquando utrumque manu retinentis pocula rite<\/td>\nSince we have felt both when holding cups in our hand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
496<\/td>\nsensimus infuso lympharum rore superne.<\/td>\nAs the dew of water was poured in from above.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
497<\/td>\nusque adeo in rebus solidi nihil esse uidetur.<\/td>\nSo much does it seem that there is nothing solid in things.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
498<\/td>\nSed quia uera tarnen ratio naturaque rerum<\/td>\nBut because true reasoning and the nature of things<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
499<\/td>\ncogit, ades, paucis dum uersibus expediamus<\/td>\nForces us, attend, while in a few verses we explain<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
500<\/td>\nesse ea quae solido atque aeterno corpore constent,<\/td>\nThat those things exist which consist of solid and eternal body,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
501<\/td>\nsemina quae rerum primordiaque esse docemus,<\/td>\nWhich we show to be the seeds and first-beginnings of things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
502<\/td>\nunde omnis rerum nunc constet summa creata.<\/td>\nFrom which the whole sum of things now created is composed.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
503<\/td>\nPrincipio quoniam duplex natura duarum<\/td>\nIn the first place, since a twofold nature of two<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
504<\/td>\ndissimilis rerum longe constare repertast,<\/td>\nWidely different things has been found to exist,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
505<\/td>\ncorporis atque loci, res in quo quaeque geruntur,<\/td>\nNamely of body and of place, in which each thing is done,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
506<\/td>\nesse utramque sibi per se puramque necessest.<\/td>\nIt must be that each exists by itself and pure.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
507<\/td>\nnam qua cumque uacat spatium, quod inane uocamus,<\/td>\nFor wherever the space which we call void is empty,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
508<\/td>\ncorpus ea non est; qua porro cumque tenet se<\/td>\nThere body is not; and wherever body holds itself,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

3. Critical Apparatus: Testimonia and Codices<\/h2>\n
    \n \t
  • 489.490:<\/b>\u00a0Cf.\u00a0VI 228. 229<\/i><\/li>\n \t
  • 489:<\/b>\u00a0fulmen<\/i>\u00a0O*Q1<\/b>:\u00a0flurnen<\/i>\u00a0O* Q*G<\/b>;\u00a0caeli<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>:\u00a0cali<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>:\u00a0caelum<\/i>\u00a0Lachm.<\/li>\n \t
  • 490:<\/b>\u00a0ut<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>\u00a0utroque loco:\u00a0it<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>, probante Lachm.\u00a0ac<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>\u00a0VI 229<\/i>:\u00a0ad<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>\u00a0hoc loco.<\/li>\n \t
  • 491:<\/b>\u00a0fere<\/i>\u00a0fortasse recte Wakefield;\u00a0feruentia<\/i>\u00a0Marullus.<\/li>\n \t
  • 492:<\/b>\u00a0cum<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>:\u00a0tum<\/i>\u00a0It.<\/li>\n \t
  • 495:<\/b>\u00a0trumque<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 504:<\/b>\u00a0longe rerum<\/i>\u00a0Bentley.<\/li>\n \t
  • 424:<\/b>\u00a0quo<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0quo se ferentes<\/i>\u00a0Q<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 425:<\/b>\u00a0animi<\/i>\u00a0G1<\/b>:\u00a0anm<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 427:<\/b>\u00a0haut usquam<\/i>\u00a0Q<\/b>:\u00a0haud usquam<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>:\u00a0haustusquam<\/i>\u00a0O*<\/b>:\u00a0hauctusquam<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 429:<\/b>\u00a0supera tibi<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>\u00a0IV 672<\/i>:\u00a0superat ibi<\/i>\u00a0O*G<\/b>:\u00a0superat . ibi<\/i>\u00a0Q*<\/b>:\u00a0superat tibi<\/i>\u00a0O1Q1<\/b>:\u00a0supra tibi<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>\u00a0I 531<\/i>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 433:<\/b>\u00a0aliquo<\/i>\u00a0Bockem\u00fcller non transpositis vv. 434.435.<\/li>\n \t
  • 435.434:<\/b>\u00a0transposuit cod. Laur. 35,32.<\/li>\n \t
  • 437:<\/b>\u00a0ullam<\/i>\u00a0]\u00a0ulla<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 442:<\/b>\u00a0possint<\/i>\u00a0F:\u00a0possunt<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 446:<\/b>\u00a0relinqui<\/i>\u00a0It.:\u00a0reliqui<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 448:<\/b>\u00a0Nec<\/i>\u00a0OGQ<\/b>:\u00a0Nam<\/i>\u00a0Ecl. Sang.<\/li>\n \t
  • 449:<\/b>\u00a0coniuncta duabus<\/i>\u00a0Non.,\u00a0O1Q1<\/b>\u00a0(ss. i. e. inseparabilia\u00a0Q1<\/b>):\u00a0coniuncto duobus<\/i>\u00a0O* Q*G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 452:<\/b>\u00a0discido<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>;\u00a0greagari<\/i>\u00a0O*Q* G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 453:<\/b>\u00a0saxis<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>:\u00a0saxi<\/i>\u00a0It.:\u00a0saxist<\/i>\u00a0Wakefield;\u00a0calor ignist<\/i>\u00a0Bockem\u00fcller:\u00a0ignis<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 454:<\/b>\u00a0delet Lachm. propter\u00a0intactus<\/i>\u00a0barbaram uocem.\u00a0cunctis<\/i>\u00a0G1<\/b>:\u00a0coniunctis<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 455:<\/b>\u00a0diuitiaeque<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>:\u00a0diuiaeque<\/i>\u00a0O*Q*<\/b>:\u00a0diuia aeque<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 458:<\/b>\u00a0euento<\/i>\u00a0O*Q* G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 459:<\/b>\u00a0per se<\/i>]\u00a0personae<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>;\u00a0sed<\/i>]\u00a0de<\/i>\u00a0O*<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 467:<\/b>\u00a0fuerunt<\/i>\u00a0O1G<\/b>:\u00a0fuerit<\/i>\u00a0O*Q*<\/b>:\u00a0fuerint<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0fuere<\/i>\u00a0LF<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 469:<\/b>\u00a0terrast<\/i>\u00a0scripsi:\u00a0terris<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.\u00a0alid<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.\u00a0regionibus<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>:\u00a0legionibus<\/i>\u00a0Wakefield.<\/li>\n \t
  • 473:<\/b>\u00a0forma<\/i>\u00a0O*QG<\/b>:\u00a0formae<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>.\u00a0amoris<\/i>\u00a0Wakefield:\u00a0amore<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 474:<\/b>\u00a0sub<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>:\u00a0suo<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 477:<\/b>\u00a0equos<\/i>\u00a0O*Q* G<\/b>:\u00a0equus<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>:\u00a0equo<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 479:<\/b>\u00a0ita ut<\/i>\u00a0O*<\/b>:\u00a0ita ueluti<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>: om.\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 480:<\/b>\u00a0cluere<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0fluere<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0luere<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.\u00a0constet<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0constat<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 484:<\/b>\u00a0quae<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0qua<\/i>\u00a0O*Q*G<\/b>\u00a0(glossam add. ubi\u00a0O1<\/b>).<\/li>\n \t
  • 486:<\/b>\u00a0corpore<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0corpora<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 487:<\/b>\u00a0uidentur<\/i>\u00a0Q*G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 500:<\/b>\u00a0constent<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0constet<\/i>\u00a0OQ*G<\/b>.<\/li>\n \t
  • 506:<\/b>\u00a0puruinque<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nSigla Legend:<\/b>\n
      \n \t
    • O:<\/b>\u00a0Codex Leidensis Vossianus Oblongus (9th century).<\/li>\n \t
    • Q:<\/b>\u00a0Codex Leidensis Vossianus Quadratus (9th century).<\/li>\n \t
    • G:<\/b>\u00a0Schedae Haunienses (Gottorpienses) (9th century fragments).<\/li>\n \t
    • V:<\/b>\u00a0Schedae Vindobonenses (f. 9-14) (9th century fragments).<\/li>\n \t
    • U:<\/b>\u00a0Schedae Vindobonenses (f. 15-18) (9th century fragments).<\/li>\n \t
    • O1\/Q1:<\/b>\u00a0Corrections by later medieval or Renaissance hands.<\/li>\n \t
    • Os:<\/b>\u00a0The \u201cSaxon\u201d corrector of the 9th century.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      4. Editorial Methodology Note<\/h2>\nThe textual transmission of Lucretius relies on an archetype exarated in capital letters, likely in the 4th century, before being transcribed into an \u201cInsular\u201d or Anglo-Saxon script. This module adheres to the \u201cAbsolute Grounding\u201d in the Carolingian-era manuscripts established by Hermann Diels, while distinguishing between layers of historical correction.\n\nCentral to this methodology are two primary correctors: the 9th-century \u201cSaxon\u201d corrector (Os<\/b>), who used an Anglo-Saxon hand to resolve obscurities in the primary text (O<\/b>), and the later corrector (O1<\/b>), identified by scholar Tangl as potentially the 11th-century monk Otloh of Emmeram. While Renaissance or \u201cPoggiano\u201d influences are acknowledged where they clarify the 15th-century reception, priority is given to the 9th-century codices. Furthermore, the orthography intentionally preserves the\u00a0inconstantia<\/i>\u00a0(inconsistency) found in the original period\u2014such as the variation between\u00a0quom<\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0cum<\/i>\u2014eschewing modern \u201ccivilized\u201d corrections to respect the poem\u2019s linguistic antiquity.","rendered":"
      \n

      1. Introductory Context: The Science and \u201cMagic\u201d of Lucretius<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/header>\n

      The work of Titus Lucretius Carus represents a unparalleled intersection of poetic mastery and speculative scientific inquiry. As Albert Einstein observed in his 1924 foreword to the landmark edition by Hermann Diels, Lucretius\u2019s poem exerts a distinct \u201cmagic\u201d on those who feel like spectators of their own age rather than participants in its prevailing intellectual attitudes. Einstein was particularly struck by Lucretius\u2019s \u201cdeep conviction\u201d regarding the \u201ccausal connectedness\u201d of natural phenomena\u2014the fundamental belief that the world is intelligible through the regular motion of immutable atoms. This firm confidence in the universe\u2019s intelligibility is nowhere more apparent than in the lines presented in this module (I. 416\u2013508), where Lucretius establishes the mechanical necessity of atoms and void as the sole constituents of reality.<\/p>\n

      Lucretius operated as an \u201cindependent man\u201d who, despite lacking the empirical results of modern physics, imagined the world through \u201clively senses and reasoning.\u201d His atomistic-mechanical worldview, which Einstein found profoundly impressive, attributed all phenomena\u2014warmth, color, and even life itself\u2014to the geometric-mechanical movements of atoms. For Einstein, the reception of Diels\u2019s translation was equally significant; he noted that Diels\u2019s verses \u201cread so naturally\u201d that the reader forgets they are engaging with a translation, allowing the Epicurean spirit to emerge with its original clarity.<\/p>\n

      The preservation of this worldview across two millennia is itself a historical phenomenon. Naturalist David Attenborough classifies the printed book as a \u201cmeme\u201d\u2014a vital vehicle for embedding human experience and handing it down across generations outside the biological body. Attenborough identifies the 1515 Venice edition of Lucretius, published by the Aldine Press, as one of his \u201cmost precious books.\u201d This\u00a0octavo<\/b>\u00a0edition, noted for its \u201cwonderfully elegant italic script,\u201d exemplifies the transition from the fragile manuscript tradition to the stabilized print culture of the Renaissance, ensuring that the Lucretian \u201cmeme\u201d survived to influence the architects of modern science.<\/p>\n

      2. Parallel Text: [CORPVS ET INANE ESSE NATVRAM RERVM] (Lines 416\u2013508)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
      Line<\/td>\nLatin (Diels, 1923)<\/td>\nEnglish Translation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      416<\/td>\nargumentorum sit copia missa per auris.<\/td>\nThat the full supply of arguments be poured into your ears.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      417<\/td>\nSed nunc ut repetam coeptum pertexere dictis:<\/td>\nBut now to resume the weaving of the task begun:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      <\/td>\n[CORPVS ET INANE ESSE NATVRAM RERVM]<\/b><\/td>\n[THAT NATURE CONSISTS OF BODY AND VOID]<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      418<\/td>\nomnis ut est igitur per se natura duabus<\/td>\nAll nature, then, as it exists by itself, is built<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      420<\/td>\nconstitit in rebus; nam Corpora sunt et inane,<\/td>\nOf two things: for there are bodies and there is void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      421<\/td>\nhaec in quo sita sunt et qua diuersa mouentur.<\/td>\nIn which these bodies are placed and through which they move.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      422<\/td>\ncorpus enim per se communis dedicat esse<\/td>\nFor that body exists, the general sense of mankind declares;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      423<\/td>\nsensus; cui nisi prima fides fundata ualebit,<\/td>\nAnd unless our faith in this sense be firmly grounded,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      424<\/td>\nhaut erit occultis de rebus quo referentes<\/td>\nThere will be no principle to which we may refer<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      425<\/td>\nconfirmare animi quicquam ratione queamus.<\/td>\nTo confirm anything by the reasoning of the mind.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      426<\/td>\ntum porro locus ac spatium, quod inane uocamus,<\/td>\nFurthermore, if there were no place and space, which we call void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      427<\/td>\nsi nullum foret, haut usquam sita corpora possent<\/td>\nBodies could nowhere be situated,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      428<\/td>\nesse neque omnino quoquam diuersa meare;<\/td>\nNor could they move at all in any direction;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      429<\/td>\nid quod iam supera tibi paulo ostendimus ante.<\/td>\nThis is what we have already shown you a little above.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      430<\/td>\nPraeterea nihil est quod possis dicere ab omni<\/td>\nBesides, there is nothing which you can say is distinct<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      431<\/td>\ncorpore seiunctum secretumque esse ab inani,<\/td>\nFrom all body and separate from the void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      432<\/td>\nquod quasi tertia sit numero natura reperta.<\/td>\nTo be discovered as a third nature in the count.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      433<\/td>\nnam quod cumque erit, esse aliquit debebit id ipsum,<\/td>\nFor whatever shall exist, must be something in itself,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      434<\/td>\ncui si tactus erit quamuis leuis exiguusque,<\/td>\nWhich, if it be tangible, however light and small,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      435<\/td>\n[augmine uel grandi uel paruo denique (dum sit)]<\/td>\n[In an increase either large or small (provided it exist)]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      436<\/td>\ncorporis augebit numerum summamque sequetur:<\/td>\nIt will increase the number of body and follow its sum:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      437<\/td>\nsin intactile erit, nulla de parte quod ullam<\/td>\nBut if it be intangible, such that it cannot at any point<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      438<\/td>\nrem prohibere queat per se transeire meantem,<\/td>\nHinder anything from passing through it,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      439<\/td>\nscilicet, hoc id erit, uacuum quod inane uocamus.<\/td>\nSurely, this will be that which we call empty void.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      440<\/td>\npraeterea per se quod cumque erit, aut faciet quid<\/td>\nMoreover, whatever exists by itself, will either act<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      441<\/td>\naut aliis fungi debebit agentibus ipsum,<\/td>\nOr must suffer while other things act upon it,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      442<\/td>\naut erit ut possint in eo res esse gerique;<\/td>\nOr it will be such that things can exist and happen in it;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      443<\/td>\nat facere et fungi sine corpore nulla potest res,<\/td>\nBut nothing can act or suffer without body,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      444<\/td>\nnec praebere locum porro nisi inane uacansque.<\/td>\nNor can anything provide place except the empty void.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      445<\/td>\nergo praeter inane et corpora tertia per se<\/td>\nTherefore, besides void and bodies, no third nature<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      446<\/td>\nnulla potest rerum in numero natura relinqui,<\/td>\nCan be left remaining in the count of things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      447<\/td>\nnec quae sub sensus cadat ullo tempore nostros,<\/td>\nNor one that can fall at any time under our senses,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      448<\/td>\nnec ratione animi quam quisquam possit apisci.<\/td>\nNor one that any man can grasp by reasoning.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      449<\/td>\nNam quae cumque cluent, aut his coniuncta duabus<\/td>\nFor whatever things are mentioned, you will find them<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      450<\/td>\nrebus ea inuenies aut horum euenta uidebis.<\/td>\nEither as properties of these two or as their accidents.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      451<\/td>\nconiunctum est id quod nusquam sine permitiali<\/td>\nA property is that which can nowhere be separated<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      452<\/td>\ndiscidio potis est seiungi seque gregari;<\/td>\nWithout a fatal breakdown of the thing;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      453<\/td>\npondus uti saxis, calor ignist, liquor aquai,<\/td>\nAs weight is to rocks, heat to fire, liquidity to water,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      454<\/td>\ntactus corporibus cunctis, intactus inani;<\/td>\nTouch to all bodies, and intangibility to the void;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      455<\/td>\nseruitium contra, paupertas, diuitiaeque,<\/td>\nWhereas slavery, poverty, and riches,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      456<\/td>\nlibertas, bellum, concordia, cetera quorum<\/td>\nLiberty, war, concord, and other things whose<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      457<\/td>\naduentu manet incolumis natura abituque,<\/td>\nArrival or departure leaves the nature of the thing intact,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      458<\/td>\nhaec soliti sumus, ut par est, euenta uocare.<\/td>\nThese we are accustomed, rightly, to call accidents.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      459<\/td>\ntempus item per se non est, sed rebus ab ipsis<\/td>\nTime likewise exists not by itself, but from things themselves<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      460<\/td>\nconsequitur sensus, transactum quid sit in aeuo,<\/td>\nFollows the sense of what has been done in the past,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      461<\/td>\ntum quae res instet, quid porro deinde sequatur;<\/td>\nThen what is present, and what is to follow thereafter;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      462<\/td>\nnec per se quemquam tempus sentire faten dumst<\/td>\nAnd it must be admitted that no one feels time by itself<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      463<\/td>\nsemotum ab rerum motu placidaque quiete.<\/td>\nSeparate from the motion of things and their quiet rest.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      464<\/td>\ndenique Tyndaridem raptam belloque subactas<\/td>\nFinally, when they say that the daughter of Tyndareus was ravished<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      465<\/td>\nTroiiugenas gentis cum dicunt esse, uidendumst<\/td>\nAnd the Trojan race subdued in war, we must see<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      466<\/td>\nne forte haec per se cogant nos esse fateri,<\/td>\nThat they do not force us to admit these things exist in themselves,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      467<\/td>\nquando ea saecla hominum, quorum haec euenta fuerunt<\/td>\nSince those generations of men, of whom these were accidents,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      468<\/td>\ninreuocabilis abstulerit iam praeterita aetas.<\/td>\nIrrevocable past time has already carried away.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      469<\/td>\nnamque aliud terrast, aliud regionibus ipsis<\/td>\nFor one thing may be said of the land, another of the regions<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      470<\/td>\neuentum dici poterit quod cumque erit actum,<\/td>\nWherein every act was performed,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      471<\/td>\ndenique materies si rerum nulla fuisset,<\/td>\nFinally, if there had been no matter for things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      472<\/td>\nnec locus ac spatium, res in quo quaeque geruntur,<\/td>\nNor place and space, in which all things are done,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      473<\/td>\nnumquam Tyndaridis forma conflatus amoris<\/td>\nNever would the flame of love, kindled by the beauty of Tyndareus\u2019 daughter,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      474<\/td>\nignis Alexandri Phrygio sub pectore gliscens<\/td>\nIn the Phrygian breast of Alexander,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      475<\/td>\nclara accendisset saeui certamina belli,<\/td>\nHave set ablaze the famous contests of cruel war,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      476<\/td>\nnec clam durateus Troiianis Pergama partu<\/td>\nNor would the wooden horse, by its night-birth of Greeks,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      477<\/td>\ninflannnasset equos nocturno Graiiugenarum;<\/td>\nHave set fire to the Trojan citadel;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      478<\/td>\nperspicere ut possis res gestas funditus omnis<\/td>\nSo that you may see that all events utterly<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      479<\/td>\nnon ita ut corpus per se constare neque esse,<\/td>\nDo not exist or consist in themselves as body does,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      480<\/td>\nnec ratione cluere eadem qua constet inane,<\/td>\nNor are they spoken of in the same way as the void,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      481<\/td>\nsed magis ut merito possis euenta uocare<\/td>\nBut rather that you may rightly call them accidents<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      482<\/td>\ncorporis atque loci, res in quo quaeque gerantur.<\/td>\nOf body and of place, in which all things are carried on.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      483<\/td>\nCorpora sunt porro partim primordia rerum<\/td>\nBodies, moreover, are partly the first-beginnings of things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      484<\/td>\npartim concilio quae constant principiorum.<\/td>\nAnd partly those which consist of a union of first-beginnings.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      485<\/td>\nsed quae sunt rerum primordia, nulla potest uis<\/td>\nBut those which are the first-beginnings, no force can<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      486<\/td>\nstinguere; nam solido uincunt ea corpore demum.<\/td>\nQuench; for they prevail at last by their solid body.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      487<\/td>\netsi difficile esse uidetur credere quicquam<\/td>\nAlthough it seems difficult to believe that anything<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      488<\/td>\nin rebus solido reperiri corpore posse.<\/td>\nCan be found among things with a solid body.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      489<\/td>\ntransit enim fulmen caeli per saepta domorum,<\/td>\nFor the lightning of heaven passes through the walls of houses,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      490<\/td>\nclamor ut ac uoces, ferrura candescit in igni,<\/td>\nAs do shouts and voices; iron glows white in the fire,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      491<\/td>\ndissiliuntque fero feruenti saxa uapore;<\/td>\nAnd rocks fly asunder in fierce, boiling heat;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      492<\/td>\ncum labefactatus rigor auri soluitur aestu,<\/td>\nWhen the hardness of gold is loosened and melted by heat,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      493<\/td>\ntum glacies aeris flamma deuicta liquescit;<\/td>\nThen the ice of bronze, overcome by flame, turns liquid;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      494<\/td>\npermanat calor argentum penetraleque frigus,<\/td>\nHeat and piercing cold penetrate through silver,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      495<\/td>\nquando utrumque manu retinentis pocula rite<\/td>\nSince we have felt both when holding cups in our hand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      496<\/td>\nsensimus infuso lympharum rore superne.<\/td>\nAs the dew of water was poured in from above.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      497<\/td>\nusque adeo in rebus solidi nihil esse uidetur.<\/td>\nSo much does it seem that there is nothing solid in things.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      498<\/td>\nSed quia uera tarnen ratio naturaque rerum<\/td>\nBut because true reasoning and the nature of things<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      499<\/td>\ncogit, ades, paucis dum uersibus expediamus<\/td>\nForces us, attend, while in a few verses we explain<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      500<\/td>\nesse ea quae solido atque aeterno corpore constent,<\/td>\nThat those things exist which consist of solid and eternal body,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      501<\/td>\nsemina quae rerum primordiaque esse docemus,<\/td>\nWhich we show to be the seeds and first-beginnings of things,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      502<\/td>\nunde omnis rerum nunc constet summa creata.<\/td>\nFrom which the whole sum of things now created is composed.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      503<\/td>\nPrincipio quoniam duplex natura duarum<\/td>\nIn the first place, since a twofold nature of two<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      504<\/td>\ndissimilis rerum longe constare repertast,<\/td>\nWidely different things has been found to exist,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      505<\/td>\ncorporis atque loci, res in quo quaeque geruntur,<\/td>\nNamely of body and of place, in which each thing is done,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      506<\/td>\nesse utramque sibi per se puramque necessest.<\/td>\nIt must be that each exists by itself and pure.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      507<\/td>\nnam qua cumque uacat spatium, quod inane uocamus,<\/td>\nFor wherever the space which we call void is empty,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      508<\/td>\ncorpus ea non est; qua porro cumque tenet se<\/td>\nThere body is not; and wherever body holds itself,<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

      3. Critical Apparatus: Testimonia and Codices<\/h2>\n
        \n
      • 489.490:<\/b>\u00a0Cf.\u00a0VI 228. 229<\/i><\/li>\n
      • 489:<\/b>\u00a0fulmen<\/i>\u00a0O*Q1<\/b>:\u00a0flurnen<\/i>\u00a0O* Q*G<\/b>;\u00a0caeli<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>:\u00a0cali<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>:\u00a0caelum<\/i>\u00a0Lachm.<\/li>\n
      • 490:<\/b>\u00a0ut<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>\u00a0utroque loco:\u00a0it<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>, probante Lachm.\u00a0ac<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>\u00a0VI 229<\/i>:\u00a0ad<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>\u00a0hoc loco.<\/li>\n
      • 491:<\/b>\u00a0fere<\/i>\u00a0fortasse recte Wakefield;\u00a0feruentia<\/i>\u00a0Marullus.<\/li>\n
      • 492:<\/b>\u00a0cum<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>:\u00a0tum<\/i>\u00a0It.<\/li>\n
      • 495:<\/b>\u00a0trumque<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 504:<\/b>\u00a0longe rerum<\/i>\u00a0Bentley.<\/li>\n
      • 424:<\/b>\u00a0quo<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0quo se ferentes<\/i>\u00a0Q<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 425:<\/b>\u00a0animi<\/i>\u00a0G1<\/b>:\u00a0anm<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 427:<\/b>\u00a0haut usquam<\/i>\u00a0Q<\/b>:\u00a0haud usquam<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>:\u00a0haustusquam<\/i>\u00a0O*<\/b>:\u00a0hauctusquam<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 429:<\/b>\u00a0supera tibi<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>\u00a0IV 672<\/i>:\u00a0superat ibi<\/i>\u00a0O*G<\/b>:\u00a0superat . ibi<\/i>\u00a0Q*<\/b>:\u00a0superat tibi<\/i>\u00a0O1Q1<\/b>:\u00a0supra tibi<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>\u00a0I 531<\/i>.<\/li>\n
      • 433:<\/b>\u00a0aliquo<\/i>\u00a0Bockem\u00fcller non transpositis vv. 434.435.<\/li>\n
      • 435.434:<\/b>\u00a0transposuit cod. Laur. 35,32.<\/li>\n
      • 437:<\/b>\u00a0ullam<\/i>\u00a0]\u00a0ulla<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 442:<\/b>\u00a0possint<\/i>\u00a0F:\u00a0possunt<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 446:<\/b>\u00a0relinqui<\/i>\u00a0It.:\u00a0reliqui<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 448:<\/b>\u00a0Nec<\/i>\u00a0OGQ<\/b>:\u00a0Nam<\/i>\u00a0Ecl. Sang.<\/li>\n
      • 449:<\/b>\u00a0coniuncta duabus<\/i>\u00a0Non.,\u00a0O1Q1<\/b>\u00a0(ss. i. e. inseparabilia\u00a0Q1<\/b>):\u00a0coniuncto duobus<\/i>\u00a0O* Q*G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 452:<\/b>\u00a0discido<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>;\u00a0greagari<\/i>\u00a0O*Q* G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 453:<\/b>\u00a0saxis<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>:\u00a0saxi<\/i>\u00a0It.:\u00a0saxist<\/i>\u00a0Wakefield;\u00a0calor ignist<\/i>\u00a0Bockem\u00fcller:\u00a0ignis<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 454:<\/b>\u00a0delet Lachm. propter\u00a0intactus<\/i>\u00a0barbaram uocem.\u00a0cunctis<\/i>\u00a0G1<\/b>:\u00a0coniunctis<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 455:<\/b>\u00a0diuitiaeque<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>:\u00a0diuiaeque<\/i>\u00a0O*Q*<\/b>:\u00a0diuia aeque<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 458:<\/b>\u00a0euento<\/i>\u00a0O*Q* G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 459:<\/b>\u00a0per se<\/i>]\u00a0personae<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>;\u00a0sed<\/i>]\u00a0de<\/i>\u00a0O*<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 467:<\/b>\u00a0fuerunt<\/i>\u00a0O1G<\/b>:\u00a0fuerit<\/i>\u00a0O*Q*<\/b>:\u00a0fuerint<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0fuere<\/i>\u00a0LF<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 469:<\/b>\u00a0terrast<\/i>\u00a0scripsi:\u00a0terris<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.\u00a0alid<\/i>\u00a0G*<\/b>.\u00a0regionibus<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>:\u00a0legionibus<\/i>\u00a0Wakefield.<\/li>\n
      • 473:<\/b>\u00a0forma<\/i>\u00a0O*QG<\/b>:\u00a0formae<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>.\u00a0amoris<\/i>\u00a0Wakefield:\u00a0amore<\/i>\u00a0OQG<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 474:<\/b>\u00a0sub<\/i>\u00a0OQ<\/b>:\u00a0suo<\/i>\u00a0G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 477:<\/b>\u00a0equos<\/i>\u00a0O*Q* G<\/b>:\u00a0equus<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>:\u00a0equo<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 479:<\/b>\u00a0ita ut<\/i>\u00a0O*<\/b>:\u00a0ita ueluti<\/i>\u00a0O1<\/b>: om.\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 480:<\/b>\u00a0cluere<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0fluere<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0luere<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.\u00a0constet<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0constat<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 484:<\/b>\u00a0quae<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0qua<\/i>\u00a0O*Q*G<\/b>\u00a0(glossam add. ubi\u00a0O1<\/b>).<\/li>\n
      • 486:<\/b>\u00a0corpore<\/i>\u00a0O<\/b>:\u00a0corpora<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 487:<\/b>\u00a0uidentur<\/i>\u00a0Q*G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 500:<\/b>\u00a0constent<\/i>\u00a0Q1<\/b>:\u00a0constet<\/i>\u00a0OQ*G<\/b>.<\/li>\n
      • 506:<\/b>\u00a0puruinque<\/i>\u00a0QG<\/b>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Sigla Legend:<\/b><\/p>\n

          \n
        • O:<\/b>\u00a0Codex Leidensis Vossianus Oblongus (9th century).<\/li>\n
        • Q:<\/b>\u00a0Codex Leidensis Vossianus Quadratus (9th century).<\/li>\n
        • G:<\/b>\u00a0Schedae Haunienses (Gottorpienses) (9th century fragments).<\/li>\n
        • V:<\/b>\u00a0Schedae Vindobonenses (f. 9-14) (9th century fragments).<\/li>\n
        • U:<\/b>\u00a0Schedae Vindobonenses (f. 15-18) (9th century fragments).<\/li>\n
        • O1\/Q1:<\/b>\u00a0Corrections by later medieval or Renaissance hands.<\/li>\n
        • Os:<\/b>\u00a0The \u201cSaxon\u201d corrector of the 9th century.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          4. Editorial Methodology Note<\/h2>\n

          The textual transmission of Lucretius relies on an archetype exarated in capital letters, likely in the 4th century, before being transcribed into an \u201cInsular\u201d or Anglo-Saxon script. This module adheres to the \u201cAbsolute Grounding\u201d in the Carolingian-era manuscripts established by Hermann Diels, while distinguishing between layers of historical correction.<\/p>\n

          Central to this methodology are two primary correctors: the 9th-century \u201cSaxon\u201d corrector (Os<\/b>), who used an Anglo-Saxon hand to resolve obscurities in the primary text (O<\/b>), and the later corrector (O1<\/b>), identified by scholar Tangl as potentially the 11th-century monk Otloh of Emmeram. While Renaissance or \u201cPoggiano\u201d influences are acknowledged where they clarify the 15th-century reception, priority is given to the 9th-century codices. Furthermore, the orthography intentionally preserves the\u00a0inconstantia<\/i>\u00a0(inconsistency) found in the original period\u2014such as the variation between\u00a0quom<\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0cum<\/i>\u2014eschewing modern \u201ccivilized\u201d corrections to respect the poem\u2019s linguistic antiquity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"menu_order":32,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-81","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":18,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/81","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/81\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/81\/revisions\/82"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/18"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/81\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=81"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=81"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.psgaesthetics.uk\/lucretius\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=81"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}