TO THE COMPENDIUM OF VIRTUES, THE UNIQUE GEM

of the Muses, who carries away the World in admiration of himself, scarcely imitable,

Oracle of the Antipodes; a polyglot original: "πολυ-γλώσσω" (poly-glōssō) — a man of many languages. Hero, the Flower of Fulda, Citizen of Italy,

Roman Pallas, Pallas is a title for Athena, the goddess of wisdom; the poet suggests Kircher is the embodiment of wisdom in Rome. Very Reverend and Eminent

Father in CHRIST, Father ATHANASIUS

KIRCHER of the Society of JESUS.

Just honor pursues you, Kircher; to have fled
Does not profit you; it is swift—you flee, it flies.
When Virtue refuses rewards, she brings rewards to you.
The more you refuse these, the more she will give.
Fulda Kircher's birthplace in Germany. claims you as her own, but Latium The region of Italy containing Rome. rejoices in the honor;
If she, by nursing you, gave you your very Being—
Rome claims you as her own. But if Fulda wishes
To contend with the Romans, by a judge’s decree
The suit must be settled; let the decision of the case be thus:
Let the mind be Rome's, let the worth of genius be Fulda's.
Let Rome celebrate your Name in eternal circles,
And let Fulda engrave your Symbols Likely referring to Kircher's work on hieroglyphics and symbolic communication, or his printer's emblems. in her printing-presses.
Let the goal of your renown not only be that you know the Lands,
The Stars, the Sea, or whatever vast Mathesis The Greek-derived term for the mathematical sciences, which in the 17th century included astronomy, geography, and music. holds,
Or that you use the languages of the Antipodes, A term for people or places on the exact opposite side of the globe. and have summoned
The buried symbols of Memphis An ancient capital of Egypt; Kircher was famous for his pioneering (though often speculative) attempts to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs. for the Romans with a new art:
We desire something greater—let there be a Trumpet through which Fame speaks,
And let the heavens be seen to tremble at the sound:
Kircher, this is your Art; a pleasure granted to Eagles
That they may gaze upon the sun with a fixed eye. In historical bestiaries and folklore, the eagle was the only creature capable of looking directly into the sun; the poet compares Kircher’s intellect to the eagle's sight.