120. exstructas: exstruere, to heap up, pile up.
dapibus: daps, s. and pl. = feast, banquet.
tostae: torrere,to burn, roast.
frugis: frux,grain;frugis tostae, = bread, with egere (which may take the gen. as well as the abl.). Ovid’s point is that the feast included all kinds of food, from the simplest to the most elaborate.
121. sive: conj., if; sive…sive, if…or if.
Cerealia: adj., of Ceres; with munera = bread. The repeated phrases, each with slight variation (Cerealia…munera…Cerealia dona, and cp. in 124–25 dapes…dente parabat,…dapes…dente premebat), serve much the same purpose as the word repetitions in 109–17.
dextra: sc. manu.
122. rigebant: rigere, to be stiff, hard.
123. convellere: to tear apart, devour.
124. lammina: sometimes spelled lamina, thin metal plate.
premebat: here, covered, surrounded.
125. auctorem muneris: = Bacchus and, by METONYMY, wine.
126. fusile: molten, liquefied, fluid.
Vix spes ipse suas animo capit aurea fingens omnia. Gaudenti mensas posuere ministri 120 exstructas dapibus nec tostae frugis egentes. Tum vero, sive ille sua Cerealia dextra munera contigerat, Cerealia dona rigebant; sive dapes avido convellere dente parabat, lammina fulva dapes admoto dente premebat. 125 Miscuerat puris auctorem muneris undis; fusile per rictus aurum fluitare videres.
“Bacchus Discovering Ariadne on Naxos” Louis Le Nain, 1648 Musée des Beaux-Arts, Orleans, France
Giraudon/Art Resource, NY.
127. attonitus: thunderstruck, astounded.
128. voverat: vovere, to vow, pray for.
129. famem: fames, hunger.
130. urit: urere, to burn.
meritus: lit., having deserved = as he deserved, deservedly.
torquetur: torquere,to twist, torment.
inviso…ab auro: ABL. OF AGENT, as indicated by the prep., rather than the more prosaic ABL. OF MEANS; with the adj. inviso Ovid personifies the gold as a malevolent entity.
131. splendida: shining, as Midas’ arms now are turning to gold.
132. Lenaee: Lenaeus, another name for Bacchus.
133. miserere: misereri, to pity.
precor: precari,to pray, beseech.
specioso:beautiful, fine, splendid, often, as here, with reference to something deceptively attractive.
eripe: sc. me.
damno: damnum,injury, loss, curse.
134. mite: gentle, mild; sc. est.
deum: = deorum.
peccasse: = peccavisse; sc. se as subj. of the IND. STATE., dependent on (eum) fatentem.
135. pacti…fide: as (by) a guarantee of their agreement.
solvit: lit., loosened = canceled.
136. neve: and that…not.
circumlitus: circumlinere,to surround; note the WORD-PICTURE, as Midas/circumlitus is “surrounded” by the words optato…auro.
137. vade: vadere, to go.
Sardibus: Sardes, pl., Sardis, capital of Lydia.
