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2E N 1 



The morjl of the fable is jull and ingenious, viz. that 



boiindaiies are facred, and never fiiould be moved. 



. F. Meneftrier has attempted to reduce the compoiUion 



and refoliitlon of enigmas to a kind of art, with lixed 



nilej, and principles, which he calls the philofophy of 



•Kuigmatic images. 



• ^MG.MA, the fuhj.-c! of an, fiiould be fomethir.g cafily 



conceived, and generally known. 



JEjjigmas, tkc form of, confifls in tlie words, which, 

 whether they be in profe or verfe, contain either fome de- 

 fcription, a queftion, or a profopopccia. Thoftf of the lall 

 kind are the molt pleafmg, inafrauch as they give life and 

 ECtion to things, which otherwife iiave them not. They 

 are commonly involved cither in a pnn or metaphor, or 

 lometimes in both. In fuch fancies, contrary to tiie prin- 

 ciples of good metaphor, and good writing, perplexity is 

 cr.iifcd, not by accident, but by defign, and the pleafm-e 

 lie,', in being able to refolve it. To make an acnigma, there- 

 fore, tuo things are to be pitched on, which bear fome re- 

 fcmblance to each other, as the fun, and a monarch ; or a 

 (hip, and a houie ; and on this refcmblance is to be raifed a 

 fuperflrutture of contrarieties to aniufe and perplex. It is 

 caiier to find great fubjctfs for xnigmas in figures than in 

 words, inafmuch as painting attracts the eyes, and excites 

 the attention to difcover the fenfe. The fubjeds of cenig- 

 nias in painting are to be taken titlier from hiiloi-y or fable ; 

 the compofition here is a kind of metamoi-phofis, wherein, 

 e. g. human figures are changed into trees, and rivers into 

 metals. This converfion, however, does not depend merely 

 on caprice ; there muil be fomething of fuitablencfs, and 

 even erudition to authorife it. Thus the battle of Con- 

 llantine againll Maxentius may be taken for the fubjefl; of 

 an aenigma, to reprefent the game of chefs : tlie fign which 

 appeareel in the heavens with the words, In hoc Jigno vinccs, 

 may properly enough reprefent the fecret of this game, 

 which confiils in fnving the king. It is much eafier to turn 

 mythology into xnigmao, than hi/lory. Accordingly feveral 

 have imagined, that the conquek of the golden fleece was 

 DO other than the tranfmutation of metals ; and that the 

 fable of Circe was the art of chemiilry in osnlgma. Enig- 

 mas of pure invention are a kind of poetiy, and more iiibtle 

 than thofe drawn from mythology ; fmee here the matter 

 itfelf is to be created : inftead of adopting fome hiif ory or 

 received fable, fomething probable is feigned, the chief 

 aftion whereof is known, ». o-. a fhipwreck, a conliagration, 

 an amphitheatre, or the like. It is effeniial to enigmas, 

 that the hiflory or fable under which they are prefcntcd, be 

 known to evciy body ; otherwife it will comprehend two 

 enigmas initead of one ; the firit of the hiilory or fable, the 

 fecond of the fenfe in v/nich it is to be taken. Another 

 elfcntial iTjle of tiie xnigma is, that it only admits of one 

 fenfe. Every senigma wliich is fufceptive of different inter- 

 pretations, all equally natural, is fo far imperfect. 



jEnigmas, thi folution or CKplanatlon of, forms a kind 

 of exercife, that is as difficult as it is amufing, and 

 that affords feope for invention and penetration. By 

 the folution of an aenigma we are to underftand 

 the difcovery of a motto correfponding to the aclion 

 and perfons reprefented in a pifture, taken either from 

 hiftory or mythology. This motto muft, either by itfelf 

 or its attendant circumftances, divert the fpeciators, and 

 furnifh occafion for difplaying wit, and introducing pieces 

 of poetry to illuftrate the fubjeft and awaken the attention 

 of the audience. Thofe xnigmas which are exprefied by 

 figures, are more difhcult of folution tlian fuch as confift of 

 words, becaufe images may have a greater variety of figni- 

 fications than word.; ; fo that to fix tlie.Ti to a particular 



ienle, we muR apply every fituntion, fymbol, S:c. wiihom 

 omitting a cireunillance belonging to liiem. As there are 

 few pvrfons in hiHory or mythology that iiave not fome 

 particular character, this chaniilcr mull be regarded, in 

 order to determine what the figure in any pninting fignifics, 

 and to difcover how it agrees witli the fubjecl of rliich we 

 would explain it. Thus, if Proteus be reprefented in a 

 piAure, it may be taken to denote inconjlancy, and ap])hed 

 cither to a pliyfical or moral fubjetf, the character of which 

 is mutability ; e. q. an almanack which exprefTes the varia- 

 ble weather, feaions, heat, cold, itorms, and the like. 

 The colours of figures may alfo help to unriddle what they 

 mean, e. g. luhitc is ;ui emblem of innoetnce, red of mo- 

 defly, green of hope, blacl: of forrow, &c. ^Vhen figures 

 are accompanied with I'yuibcjls, they are more detcnninate ; 

 thefe being, as it were, the fold of xnigmas, and the key 

 that opens the myllery of them. Of all the fymbols that 

 occur in the writings of thofe who have treated of the fiiii- 

 ject, thofe only of Pythagoras are truly xnigmatieal, which, 

 under obfcure proverbs, convey lefions of morality: as whea 

 he ufes the phrafe IJatcvam ne trcmjilias to lignify, tlo no in- 

 jii/Ure. Some xnigmas are fo complicated, that no rule* 

 will ferve for the folution of them, and that they occafiori 

 great perplexity to thole who endeavour to interpret them. 

 Such is that ancient and celebrated xnigma, called A'ltrii 

 Lalia crifpi.!, which has puzzled many learned perfons, who 

 have directed their attention to fubjefts of this nature. 

 There are two copies of it, each of which claims authen- 

 ticity. The one, formerly engraven on marble and more 

 lately cut in frefli charai^ers, by order of Achilles Volta, 

 is preferved by the family of Volta at Cafaralta near 

 Bologna, and is as follows : 



D. M. 

 JiX\^ Lxlia Crifpis, 

 Nee vir, nee nnJier, nee androgyna, 

 Nee puella, nee juvenis, nee anus. 

 Nee calla, nee meretrix, nee pudica, 

 Sed omnia. 

 Sublata 

 Neque fame, neqne ferro, neque veneno, 



Scd omnibus. 

 Nee coclo, nee aquis, nee tcrris, 

 Sed ubique jacet. 

 Lucius Agatho Pmscius 

 Nee maritus, nee amator, nee necefrarius, 

 Neque mocrens, neque gaudens, neque flens, 



Hanc 

 Nee molem, nee pvramidem, nee fepulehrum. 



Seel omnia, 

 Seit et nefeit ciii pofuerit." 

 Thus trandatcd ; JFJ'ia Litlia Crifpis, luho tuas nalher male, 

 female, nor hermaphrodite ; neither a girl, nor a young tvonun, 

 nor an old ivoman ; neither cha/le, nor a ivliore, nor a inodtjl 

 ■woman; but all thefe. She died neither by famine, nor Jword, 

 nor poifon ; hut by all thefe. She lies neither in the air, nor 

 in the ivaler, nor in the earth ; but ivery where. Lucius 

 Jigatho Prifius, neither hnjband, nor lover, nor relation, nei- 

 ther forro-wful, nor rejoicing, nor weeping, ere fled this, ivhich 

 is neither fabric, nor Pyramid, nor tomb ; but all thefe ; but to 

 •uihom, he hnoius, and does not know.'" 



The Other copy of this xnigma wasfound written in Cothic 

 letters in a MS. at Milan, introduced with A.M. P. P.l). in- 

 flead of D.M. diis manihus, which an anonymous author (Act. 

 Erud. Lipf. Menf. Mart. 1732) interpreting the riddle of 

 a monument erected by one of the /Elian family to his own 

 foul, decyphers thus : anima: mci! propria dlcu : at the end is 

 the following addition ; viz. 



O o 3 " Hoc 



