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Miserarum est neque amori dare ludum neque dulci mala vino lavere, aut exanimari metuentis patruae verbera linguae. Tibi qualum Cythereae puer ales, tibi telas operosaeque Minervae studium aufert, Neobule, Liparaei nitor Hebri, Simul unctos Tiberinis humeros Lavit in undis, eques ipso melior Bellerophonte, neque pugno, neque segni pede victus, Catus idem per apertum fugientis agitato grege cervos iaculari et celer alto latitantem fruticeto excipere aprum.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Horace, Carmina recensuit variatate Lectionis, tomus secundus, Leipzig: "F. C. G. Vogelii," 1809. Appears in Liber III, no. 12, pages 146 - 149; and confirmed with Q. Horatii Flacci Opera: The Works of Horace, third edition, volume I, Dublin: McGlashan and Gill, 1856, from Carmen XII, pages 218 - 219.
Text Authorship:
- by Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65 BCE - 8 BCE), "Ad Neobulen", appears in Carmina (Odes), in 3. Liber III (Book III), no. 12 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Jan Novák (1921 - 1984), "Miserarum est", from Cantica latina, no. 9 [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Johann Heinrich Voss (1751 - 1826) , "Neobule an sich selbst" ; composed by Carl Loewe, Otto Taubert.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Grant Hicks) , copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Mario Rapisardi) , no title, written 1883, appears in Le odi di Orazio, in 3. Libro terzo, no. 12
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Melanie Trumbull
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 65
It is the way of unhappy women neither to indulge love nor to wash away ills with sweet wine, or to be troubled by fear of a lashing from an uncle's tongue. The Cytherean's winged boy steals from you your wool-basket, your weaving and your devotion to diligent Minerva, Neobule, as soon as the splendor that is Hebrus of Lipara bathes his well-oiled shoulders in the waters of the Tiber, a better horseman than Bellerophon himself, undefeated by slowness of fist or of foot, clever also at spearing deer in the open as they flee in a startled herd, and swift to capture the boar lurking in a tall thicket.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of titles:
"Ad Neobulen" = "To Neobule"
"Miserarum est" = "It is the way of unhappy women"
Note for stanza 2, line 2, "Minerva": goddess of wisdom and various arts, mentioned here for her association with weaving.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from Latin to English copyright © 2026 by Grant Hicks, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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Based on:
- a text in Latin by Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65 BCE - 8 BCE), "Ad Neobulen", appears in Carmina (Odes), in 3. Liber III (Book III), no. 12
This text was added to the website: 2026-09-30
Line count: 12
Word count: 110