"Carthago" is the Latin word for Carthage.
"Mary on the ruins of Carthago" is a variant of the phrase "Marius on
the ruins of Carthage." The phrase refers to Caius Marius, a Roman
general, who is depicted in this well-known painting sitting in a
brooding pose:
Marius Contemplating the Ruins of Carthage (John Vanderlyn)
http://classics.furman.edu/~rprior/imgs/RCU1/1-053.jpg
A reference to Marius on the ruins of Carthage has come to symbolize a
person who is surveying something in a thoughtful way, as in these
quotes:
"Lord Lucan was seen for hours sitting up to his knees in sludge amid
the wreck of his establishment, meditative as Marius amid the ruins of
Carthage."
Sevastopol: Norrys Note on the 'Storm' of November 14th
http://www.sevastopol-adventure.com/storm.htm
"Having reached the bottom, he sat amid the occasional china, like
Marius among the ruins of Carthage, and endeavored to ascertain the
extent of his injuries."
Classic Novels: Something New
http://www.classic-novels.com/author/wodehouse/something_new/somethingnew035.shtml
"Arriving at the office next day, Roland found a scene of desolation,
in the middle of which, like Marius among the ruins of Carthage, sat
Jimmy, the vacant-faced office boy."
ManyBooks: A Man of Means
http://manybooks.net/pages/wodehousetext05mnmns10/49.html
I was aware of the phrase because I had encountered it in the works of
P.G. Wodehouse, the author of the last two quotes cited above.
A bit of info about Marius and how he got to Carthage:
"MARIUS, CAIUS, a celebrated Roman general, born near Arpinum, uncle
by marriage to Julius Caesar and head of the popular party, and the
rival of Sulla; conquered the Teutons and the Cimbri in Gaul, and made
a triumphal entry into Rome; having obtained command of the war
against Mithridates, Sulla marched upon the city and drove his rival
beyond the walls; having fled the city, he was discovered hiding in a
marsh, cast into prison, and condemned to die; to the slave sent to
execute the sentence he drew himself haughtily up and exclaimed,
'Caitiff, dare you slay Caius Marius?' and the executioner fled in
terror of his life and left his sword behind him; Marius was allowed
to escape; finding his way to Africa, he took up his quarters at
Carthage, but the Roman praetor ordered him off; 'Go tell the
praetor,' he said to the messenger sent, 'you saw Caius Marius sitting
a fugitive on the ruins of Carthage'; upon this he took courage and
returned to Rome, and along with Cinna made the streets of the city
run with the blood of the partisans of Sulla; died suddenly (156-88
B.C.)."
SimpleStartPage: Marius, Caius
http://simplestartpage.com/2305M_MARIUS-CAIUS.HTML
My Google search strategy:
Google Web Search: "marius" "ruins of carthage"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22marius%22+%22ruins+of+carthage%22
I hope this is precisely what you needed to know. If anything is
unclear or incomplete, please request clarification; I'll gladly offer
further assistance before you rate my answer.
Best regards,
pinkfreud |
