A Roundabout Curse: Camilla's Demise, Servius, In Aen.11.8.42

“You paid the cruel punishment...” A person ‘pays,’ who uses money. Here it is used as a metaphor for the death penalty. This has a fairly long explanation: the Volsci come from the Hylinas River, and Amazons are said to live there. Camilla ‘paid the penalty’ because she fought against the Trojans, when her predecessor agreed to be their allies [i.e, Penthesilea].

 --Servius, In. Aen.11.842

 

crudele luisti supplicium iuris verbo usus est. 'luere' enim debere dicitur qui pecuniam solvit: quod hic usurpatum est in capitis poenam. quidam huius loci longam expositionem tradunt: Volscos a Volscatibus Hylinis originem ducere, †exclytas autem, inter quos Amazones sunt, regionem Illyricam incolere. luisse ergo supplicium Camillam dicunt, quae adversum Troianos arma tulerit, quibus maiores eius auxilium constat tulisse, id est Penthesileam.

 

SERVIUS	MAP:
Name:  Maurus Servius Honoratus Date:  4th – 5th c. CE (???) Works:  In Vergilii carmina comentarii	REGION  1
BIO:	Timeline:
Little is known about the author or manuscript tradition for the grammatical commentary of Vergil’s Aeneid.	BYZANTINE / LATE LATIN