Link Copied!
Pliny the Elder Quotes (0-)
Philosopher, Emperor, Author
About Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (23 β 79), called Pliny the Elder was a Roman author, naturalist, natural philosopher, naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic Naturalis Historia (Natural History), which became an editorial model for encyclopedias.
Best Pliny the Elder Quotes
Shortest
Earliest
Explore our curated collection of the most famous and impactful Pliny the Elder quotes.
βHaec est Italia diis sacraβ
βThe bird of passage known to us as the cuckoo.β
βruinis inminentibus musculi praemigrant...β
βIt has become quite a common proverb that in wine there is truth.β
βCum grano salis.
• Translation: With a grain of salt.β
• Translation: With a grain of salt.β
βAbsentes tinnitu aurium prΓ¦sentire sermones de se receptum est.β
βLet not things, because they are common, enjoy for that the less share of our consideration.β
βIt is ridiculous to suppose that the great head of things, whatever it be, pays any regard to human affairs.β
βIt is far from easy to determine whether she [Nature] has proved to man a kind parent or a merciless stepmother.β
βMan alone at the very moment of his birth, cast naked upon the naked earth, does she [Nature] abandon to cries and lamentations.β
βFrom the days of Father Bacchus to Alexander the Great, their kings are reckoned at 154, whose reigns extend over 6451 years and 3 months.β
βEverything is soothed by oil, and this is the reason why divers send out small quantities of it from their mouths, because it smooths every part which is rough.β
βTo laugh, if but for an instant only, has never been granted to man before the fortieth day from his birth, and then it is looked upon as a miracle of precocity.β
βBears when first born are shapeless masses of white flesh a little larger than mice, their claws alone being prominent. The mother then licks them gradually into proper shape.β
βIn comparing various authors with one another, I have discovered that some of the gravest and latest writers have transcribed, word for word, from former works, without making acknowledgment.β
βMan is the only one that knows nothing, that can learn nothing without being taught. He can neither speak nor walk nor eat, and in short he can do nothing at the prompting of nature only, but weep.β
βThe agricultural population, says Cato, produces the bravest men, the most valiant soldiers, and a class of citizens the least given of all to evil designsβ¦. A bad bargain is always a ground for repentance.β
Pliny the Elder Quotes by Topic
Find exactly what you are looking for by browsing this categorized list of Pliny the Elder quotes by topic.
Pliny the Elder on Purple 3 quotes
βAnd then is it thought to have a most commendable and excellent die, when it is as deepe a red as bloud that is cold and setled, blackish at the first sight, but looke betweene you and the light, it carieth a bright and shining lustre. And hereupon it is, that Homer calleth bloud, Purple.β
Pliny the Elder on Bugonia 2 quotes
β2 Georg. B. iv. 1. 284, et seq.β
Pliny the Elder on Samothrace 2 quotes
βThe most harbourless of all isles.β
Pliny the Elder on Mice
Pliny the Elder on Palmyra
Pliny the Elder on Superstition
Pliny the Elder on Birth
βMan alone at the very moment of his birth, cast naked upon the naked earth, does she abandon to cries and lamentations.β
Pliny the Elder on Abandonment
βMan alone at the very moment of his birth, cast naked upon the naked earth, does she abandon to cries and lamentations.β
Pliny the Elder on Life
βNatura, vero nihil hominibus brevitate vitΓ¦ prΓ¦stitit melius.
Nature has given man no better thing than shortness of life.β
Pliny the Elder on Birds
βThe fesant hens of Colchis, which have two ears as it were consisting of feathers, which they will set up and lay down as they list.β
Pliny the Elder on Fruit
βAs touching peaches in general, the very name in Latine whereby they are called Persica, doth evidently show that they were brought out of Persia first.β
What Pliny the Elder Said About Others
Discover personal opinions Pliny the Elder shared regarding contemporaries.
Pliny the Elder on Tiberius
βIndeed, he was never without it; for he had raised beds made in frames upon wheels, by means of which the cucumbers were moved and exposed to the full heat of the sun; while, in winter, they were withdrawn, and placed under the protection of frames glazed with mirrorstone.β
Quotes About Pliny the Elder
Gain deeper perspective through quotes about Pliny the Elder from others.
George Henry Lewes on Pliny the Elder
βPliny... makes the statement, and for untrustworthiness of statement he cannot easily be surpassed.β
Misattributed Quotes
Quotes mistakenly credited to Pliny the Elder
About Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (23 β 79), called Pliny the Elder was a Roman author, naturalist, natural philosopher, naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic Naturalis Historia (Natural History), which became an editorial model for encyclopedias.