Ovid – Actaeon

Metamorphoses 3.190-201, 228-231

… spargēnsque comās ultrīcibus undīs 190

addidit haec cladis praenūntia verba futūrae:

“nunc tibi mē positō vīsam vēlāmine narrēs,

sī poteris narrāre, licet.” nec plūra mināta

dat sparsō capitī vīvācis cornua cervī,

dat spatium collō summāsque cacūminat aurēs, 195

cum pedibusque manūs, cum longīs bracchia mūtat

crūribus et vēlat maculōsō vellere corpus.

additus et pavor est. fugit Autonoēïus hērōs

et sē tam celerem cursū mīrātur in ipsō.

ut vērō vultūs et cornua vīdit in undā, 200

“mē miserum!” dictūrus erat: vox nūlla secūta est.

…

ille fugit per quae fuerat loca saepe secūtus,

(heu!) famulōs fugit ipse suōs. clāmāre libēbat

“Actaeōn ego sum, dominum cognōscite vestrum!” 230

verba animō dēsunt: resonat lātrātibus aether.

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Notes
Meter: dactylic hexameters
190 spargēns (nom.; subject is Diana) = “splashing” comās = “hair” ultrīcibus undīs lit. “with avenging waves” (abl.); unda may equal aqua, by poetic license191 addidit = “added” haec … verba = “these words” praenūntius, -a, -um: predictive, prophetic, forewarning cladis … futūrae (gen.; cf. clades) = “of future destruction”192 nunc tibi … narrēs … licet = “now you may tell” vīsam = “seen”, with mē positō … vēlāmine lit. “with my veil put aside”193 nec plūra mināta lit. “And not having threatened more”194 sparsus, -a, -um: “sprinkled, splashed”; sparsō capitī (dat.), lit. “to his splashed head” cornua = “horns” vīvācis with cervī: “long-lived”, i.e. a mature stag with a full spread of antlers195 cacūminat = “sharpens, makes pointed” aurēs = “ears”196 pedibus … longīs … crūribus are ablatives with cum: “feet” and “shanks” respectively manūs = “hands”, bracchia = “arms”197 maculōsō vellere is ablative: “with dappled hide”198 additus est = “was added” et pavor = “cowardice also” fugit is present: “flees” Autonoēïus (a matronymic) = “son of Autonoë”199 et sē tam celerem cursū mīrātur in ipsō = “and he marvels that he is so swift in his actual flight”200 ut = “as” vīdit = “saw”; vultūs here means “appearance” dictūrus erat = “he had intended to say”228 fugit per loca per quae saepe secūtus fuerat: “he flees through regions through which he had (previously) often given pursuit”229 (heu!) = “Alas!” ipse = “he himself”, i.e., the Master clāmāre libēbat = “He intended to shout”230 cognōscite (imperative) = “Recognize!” dēsunt animō (ablative) = “fall short or fail of his intention” latrātibus = “with barks” aethēr = “the heaven”

Titian, Diana & Actaeon