The Works of Virgil (4th-5th century) - Page 19

THE GEORGICS

BOOK IV

They alone Virgil is referring to the bees, whom he treats throughout this book as a miniature human civilization. hold their children in common and share the dwellings of their city as one; they pass their lives under the majesty of great laws. They alone know a fixed fatherland and certain household gods original: "penates"; in Roman religion, the Penates were deities who protected the pantry and the inner household. Here, Virgil uses the term to suggest the bees have a sacred, domestic loyalty to their hive.. Mindful of the winter to come, they undergo toil in the summer and store what they have gathered in a common pool for all to use.

For some, by settled agreement, keep watch over the food supply and work in the fields; some, within the enclosures of their homes, lay down the "tear" of the narcissus original: "narcissi lacrimam"; this likely refers to the nectar or the clear, sap-like fluid found in the flower's cup. and the sticky gum from tree bark as the first foundations for the honeycombs; then they hang the clinging wax. Others lead out the mature offspring, the hope of the race; others pack the purest honey and stretch the cells to their limit with liquid nectar.

To some, the duty of guarding the gates has fallen by lot, and in their turn they watch for rains and the clouds of the sky, or they receive the loads of those arriving, or, forming a battle line, they drive the drones—a lazy herd original: "ignavum pecus"; Virgil describes the male drones as idle because they do not gather nectar or participate in the hive's labor.—away from the stalls. The work glows with heat, and the fragrant honey smells of thyme.