grammar question from Ovid

Latin Learning Latin
1

Hello, all, I’m trying to understand the grammar of these two lines from the Metamorphoses, Book XIII, lines 514-5:

postque tot amissos tu nunc, quae sola levabas
maternos luctus, hostilia busta piasti!

This is Hecuba lamenting the loss of her latest family member, Polyxena, who was just sacrificed at the tomb of Achilles to propitiate his shade.

The word giving me problems is “amissos”, clearly past participle of “amitto”, “the lost ones”, but in the accusative plural. So what’s the subject? Is it just in apposition with “maternos luctus”, moved outside the relative clause, where I would attempt to translate as “afterwards, you who alone were alleviating the causes of motherly lamentation, (namely) so many (sons and daughters) lost, have now propitiated the shade of an enemy (by being sacrificed).”

Can anyone tell me if I’ve understood it correctly or if not, where I’m going wrong? Thanks!

Dave S

2

Hi Ieisulin,

I’d say amissos depends on post: “after so many lost ones,…” > “after the loss of so many,…”.

3

Really? I thought about that given that “post tot amissos” are all grouped together, but it seemed strange to me that the preposition could be used like that to govern a past participle. But I see now in my dictionary a phrase is quoted from Cicero as an example of “post” meaning “after” (in time): “post Brutum consulem” which seems like the same usage as here. I’m so used to such a sense being achieved using an ablative absolute…but I guess the time can be made explicit with a preposition… OK… It worries me whenever I over-complicate some grammar point like this. Anyway, thanks for responding!

Dave S

4

I’m so used to such a sense being achieved using an ablative absolute

Doesnt the ablative absolute construction in dating usually mean “when” ?

In L&S there are many examples of post + accusative participle used in the same way as your Ovid example:

"Of time, after, since: aliquot post menses, Cic. Rosc. Am. 44, 128: maxima post hominum memoriam classis, since the memory of man, Nep. Them. 5, 3: post M. Brutum proconsulem, after the proconsulate, Cic. Phil. 2, 38, 97.—So with part. constr.: post urbem conditam, since the city was founded, Cic. Cat. 4, 7, 14: post homines natos, id. Brut. 62, 224; id. Mil. 26, 69: sexennio post Veios captos, after the taking of Veii, id. Div. 1, 44, 100 al. —Put after the noun: hunc post, Cic. Tusc. 2, 6, 15.—With quam: decessit post annum quartum quam expulsus fuerat, Nep. Arist. 3, 3; cf.: post annum quintum, quo expulsus erat, id. Cim. 3, 3: post id, post illa, after this, after that, afterwards: post id cum lassus fueris, Plaut. Cas. 1, 42: qui foret post illa natus, Enn. ap. Cic. Div. 1, 21, 42 (Trag. v. 67 Vahl.): eum numquam post illa vidi, Plaut. Curc. 4, 2, 43: post illa, Ter. Phorm. 347: post haec deinde, then after this, and next, Col. 3, 4: post Hectora, Ov. M. 12, 607.

5

OK, thanks, no doubt you’re both right.

Dave S