| PHEBI CLARO ... | WITH PALE PHOEBUS ... |
| Anon. (10th.c. | trans. A.S.Kline (from Provençal) |
Phebi claro nondum orto iubare Fert aurora lumen terris tenue Spiculator pigris clamat surgite Lalba par umet mar atra sol Poy pas abigil miraclar tenebras En incautos ostium insidie Torpentesque gliscunt intercipere Quos suadet preco clamat surgere Lalba par umet mar atra sol Poy pas abigil miraclar tenebras Ab arcturo disgregatur aquilo Poli suos condunt astra radios Orienti tenditur septemtrio Lalba par umet mar atra sol Poy pas abigil | With pale Phoebus, in the clear east, not yet bright, Aurora sheds, on earth, ethereal light: While the watchman, to the idle, cries: ‘Arise!’ Dawn now breaks; sunlight rakes the swollen seas; Ah, alas! It is he! See there, the shadows pass! Behold, the heedless, torpid, yearn to try And block the insidious entry, there they lie, Whom the herald summons urging them to rise. Dawn now breaks; sunlight rakes the swollen seas; Ah, alas! It is he! See there, the shadows pass! From Arcturus, the North Wind soon separates. The star about the Pole conceals its bright rays. Towards the east the Plough its brief journey makes. Dawn now breaks; sunlight rakes the swollen seas; Now, alas! It is he! |
Note: The third verse suggests a summer sky in northern latitudes, say late July, when Arcturus sets in the north-west at dawn.
Trans. Copyright © A.S.Kline 2010