Larentia Hercules and Mater Matuta (Tib. II 5)

Thus the vulgate text though it involves several difficulties. Magister obviously the same person as the iuuenis in being the love of the puella is rather strange for owner, the meaning suggested by the context : for he is in the position to give her a reward. This reward, though consisting in caseus et Candidus agnus , is called fecundi munera ruris. On festa die K. Flower Smith (1913) comments : Parilia has been suggested but of course no specific holiday is meant. The poet is intentionally indefinite. Yet R. Merkelbach is inclined to take the day as the Parilia of 21 April : An diesem Tag hatten einst die Hirten ihr neues Jahr begonnen, an diesem Tag begann spater auch ein neues Jahr im Leben der Stadt1. In this way comparing sections 21-38 and 79104 he can see their cohesion and the unity of the elegy. However, Tibullus' own addition of saepe is rather contradictory to festa die. Smith must be right : Tibullus did not think of a definite festival date, otherwise he would not have added saepe. Nevertheless, the scene described as taking place festa die is bound to mirror an annual or calendaric custom. Apparently Tibullus did not understand the old tradition behind his own words. Finally, diti is quite unexpected in the rather poor situation of Proto-Rome. In view of these difficulties we may wonder whether the vulgate text is correct. In fact, the reading diti seems to go back to Muretus above all (Lenz2 : diti cum recc. (?) Mu. : ditis co : dictis P)2

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