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← De eruditione filiorum nobilium (On the Education of Noble Children)/Book 1 · De eruditione filiorum nobilium
Chapter 44Erud.1.44

De uitanda ornatus superfluitate.

The Nature of Superfluous Adornment

The chapter opens by defining superfluous adornment—elaborate garments, painted faces, arranged hair—and cites John's dialogue and the psalmist to show how worldly display distracts the mind and masks the true self.

Superfluous adornment consists in the exquisite choosing of garments, the arranging of hair, the painting of the face, and things of this kind — about which John says in the dialogue to Basil, book six: 'The painted beauty of the face and eye, the artificially colored cheeks, the adornment of the head, the dyeing of hair, costly garments, the splendor of jewels, the scent of pigments, and other such things that belong to the world of women are grave matters for disturbing the mind, unless they have been enclosed with great vigor of chastity.' These things — that is what he says. Hence the psalmist speaks of the lovers of the world, whose — namely — Their tents and storehouses abound, full. 'Their daughters,' he says, 'are adorned and decorated so as to be the likeness of a temple.' And Ovid in the book on Remedies, book ten: We are dazzled by finery; everything is covered with gems and gold. The least part of it all is the girl herself.1

Jerome on the Arts of Deceptive Dress

Jerome is quoted at length describing how elaborate dress, deliberate dishevelment, and calculated grooming are all strategies of feigned modesty that reveal a mind bent on display.

And so on the subject of elaborate dress, Jerome says to a mother and daughter: 'The very clothing … . . It is a sign of a silent mind if the garment has no crease, if it drags along the ground so that you seem taller, if the tunic has been deliberately torn so that something inside shows — it covers what is ugly and reveals what is beautiful, O breasts … . . With little bands the hair is pressed tight, and with a curling belt the chest is drawn in more snugly; the hair is arranged to fall over the forehead or over the ears. The cloak sometimes slips down so as to bare the white shoulders, and then, as if it hadn't wanted to be seen, it quickly hides what it willingly uncovered.

Peter, Cyprian, and the Dyeing of Hair

Building on Jerome's description of feigned modesty, the text turns to 1 Peter 3:3–4 and Cyprian to condemn hair dyeing and cosmetic falsification as offenses against sincerity, truth, and the Creator's work.

And when in public she covers her face as if out of modesty, with the art of prostitutes she displays only that which, once revealed, can please the most. These are Jerome's words. As for hair, the apostle Peter also forbids women its excessive adornment, saying in his first canonical letter, chapter three: 'Let it not be the outward braiding of hair, or the wearing of gold, or the clothing of garments, but the hidden person of the heart, in the incorruptibility of a quiet and modest spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.'✦ Therefore the dyeing or coloring of hair is condemned all the more severely by the judgment of the saints. Hence Cyprian in his book on the discipline and dress of virgins: 'Let us feast,' he says, 'not in the yeast of malice and wickedness, but in the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.'✦ Can sincerity and truth endure, when things that are genuine are defiled by the adulterations of artificial colors, by the dyes of cosmetics, and what is true is changed into falsehood? Your Lord says: you cannot make a single hair white or black.✦ And do you, to overcome the voice of your Lord, wish to prove yourself superior by a bold attempt and a sacrilegious contempt — you dye your hair with the evil omen of things to come, and now you aim to make your hair flame-colored for yourself?

Jerome on Face-Painting and the Veil of Antichrist

Jerome warns that face-painting kindles lust, prevents true compunction, and constitutes the veil of Antichrist, since the Creator no longer recognizes his own work.

So says Cyprian. For this reason Jerome also says to Aleta: 'Beware, lest you dye your daughter's hair and thereby summon something for her from the fires of hell.' On the subject of face-painting, Jerome also says in his book On the Preservation of Widowhood: 'What business does a Christian woman have with rouge and white lead, one of which feigns the blush of cheeks and lips, the other the pallor of mouth and neck?' Fire is the fuel of young men's lusts, and a shameless mind's telltale sign. How can she weep for her own sins when she strips her skin bare with tears and draws furrows across her face? That adornment is not the Lord's — it is the veil of Antichrist. With what confidence does she lift her face to heaven when the Creator does not recognize it? So says Jerome.

Cyprian: Adulterating God's Creation

Cyprian argues that applying cosmetics adulterates God's creation, invoking Genesis 1:26 and the analogy of a painter whose work is defaced by a second artist.

And so does Cyprian, where he says above: 'I think that not only virgins and widows, but also married women and all women should be warned, so that they not …' . . … they should in no way adulterate creation by applying yellow color or the blackness of powder or redness, or any ointment corrupting what is natural. God says: 'Let us make man in our image and likeness.'✦ And does anyone dare to change and transform what God has made? They raise hands against God, when they strive to reshape and transfigure what he formed, not knowing that everything born is the work of God, and whatever is changed is the work of the devil. If any painter had rendered someone's face and appearance and the quality of their body with a rival color, and another artist were to lay hands on the now-completed and painted image, as if more skilled, and reshape what was already formed and already painted — that would seem a grave injury to the first painter and a just indignation. And do you think you'll get away with bearing so shamelessly the audacity of such recklessness — an offense against God the artist?'

Ambrose on Destroying God's Picture

Ambrose condemns face-painting as destroying the picture of God, a work of vice and fraud rather than beauty, and declares that God does not recognize his own colors or face when they are artificially altered.

So says Cyprian. Likewise Ambrose, in the sixth book of the Hexameron: 'You would destroy the picture of God, O woman, if you were to smear your face with artificial whiteness, if you were to cover it with purchased redness.' That picture is one of vice, not of beauty. . . Of fraud, not of simplicity. . . It's temporary — wiped away by rain or sweat. That painted image deceives and cheats, so that you neither please the one you long to please — who sees that what makes you pleasing is not your own but something foreign — and you displease your own Creator, who sees in you his own work destroyed.2 . . For if you bring in some craftsman other than the original artist, one who —3 . . covers it over with new work — won't that one be indignant, who has recognized that his own work has been adulterated?4 So don't strip away God's image and take on the image of a prostitute — that is, adulterate what God has made. It's a serious crime to suppose that a human being paints you better than God does — serious enough that God himself would say of you: 'I don't recognize my own colors.' . . my image.✦ . . my face, which I myself formed.✦

Noble Women Must Shun What Prostitutes Practice

Having presented Ambrose's words, the author draws the practical conclusion that noble and holy women must detest cosmetic adornment precisely because prostitutes practice it, and Ennodius is cited in ironic mockery of those who dye their faces and then pretend to virtue.

I reject, therefore, what is not mine; I seek the one who painted you. These are Ambrose's words.5 And indeed, because prostitutes are accustomed to do this as a matter of practice, noble girls and holy women ought, for that very reason, to shun and detest such things entirely, on account of the shameful impression they create.6 Hence Ennodius speaks to those who are not afraid to do such things, as if with irony and mockery:7 Dye your glowing faces with rosy purple, and then put on a show of good character to match.

Cyprian on Scandal and the Stricter Standard for Virgins

Cyprian warns that sumptuous adornment lures the young, kindles sin, and makes the adorned woman a sword and poison to observers; for consecrated virgins such behavior is mortal sin, and Jerome adds that facial adornment belongs to the devil's displays.

From all these words of the holy teachers, it's clear that through such things the sincerity of chastity is violated in Christian women, and especially in virgins. Whence Cyprian, in the passage cited above: 'If you adorn yourself more sumptuously and walk publicly in a way that draws attention, you lure the eyes of the young onto you, you draw the sighs of young men after you,' . . you kindle the fuel of sinning, so that even if you yourself do not perish, you still destroy others, and you offer yourself to those who see as both a sword and a poison. You cannot be excused on the grounds that you are chaste and modest in mind,8 Your improper adornment and immodest dressing reproaches you.' These are Cyprian's words. Finally, for virgins consecrated to God, such things are forbidden all the more strictly, and there is no doubt that for them it is a mortal sin. And so the same passage from blessed Cyprian is added: 'You can no longer be counted among the maidens of Christ, you who live in such a way that you can be loved.' . . Clothed in silk and purple, they cannot put on Christ. Adorned with gold and pearls and necklaces, they have lost the ornaments of the heart and breast. Who would not curse this and flee from what has been destruction to others? Who desires and takes up what has been for another's death as a sword? . . . Certainly, virgins. . . — those who have composed themselves with such arts among virgins I don't think should be counted, but like sheep that are infected and diseased, lest by their contagion they pollute the others, they should be kept away from the holy and pure flock of virginity.' These are Cyprian's words. And hence also Jerome, to the virgin Demetrias: 'When,' he says, 'you in the world were, the things that were of the world you loved — namely,

Parental Instruction and Divine Vengeance on the Virgin's Behalf

Atlethe warns mothers against painting faces consecrated to Christ; the story of Pretaxata illustrates divine vengeance when a woman braided a consecrated virgin's hair against God's will, and the text concludes that even natural beauty is vain and harmful.

to polish the face. . . and to paint and adorn the hair, and to build up a towering crown of the head with another woman's tresses. . . But now, because you have left the world, a second time after baptism you have renounced the devil and his displays.' See, it is suggested by Jerome's words that this kind of hair arrangement and facial adornment belongs to the devil's displays. For this reason Atlethe also writes about the instruction of a daughter: 'Beware,' she says, 'lest with white lead and rouge you paint faces consecrated to Christ, nor weigh down the neck with gold and pearls, nor adorn the head with jewels, nor the hair with ceruses.' . . ceruses. Pretaxata, a most noble woman of former times, at the command of her husband Hemecio — who was the uncle of the virgin Eustachia — changed her dress and adornment, and braided her neglected hair in the worldly fashion, seeking to overcome both the virgin's resolve and the mother's desire. . . That same night she saw an angel of God in her dreams, terrible in appearance, threatening her and saying: 'You have dared to prefer the authority of a man over Christ, and to touch the head of the virgin of God with your sacrilegious hands.' Those things are already drying up now — so that you may feel, tormented, what you have done, and when the fifth month is finished, you will be led down to the realm of the dead. But if you persist in this crime, you will be bereaved of your husband and your sons together. All things were carried out in order, and swift destruction marked the wretched woman's belated repentance. Thus Christ takes vengeance on those who violate his temple; thus he defends his gems and most precious ornaments. These are Jerome's words. Finally, as has already been shown in the third book of this work, in the chapter on the honorableness of adornment, not only must honorable persons avoid painting the face and arranging the hair, but neither should one pursue natural beauty of face or body. Because it is vain and fleeting and, as in many cases, harmful. For it feeds pride and empty glory and unchastity and even foolishness, according to that saying of Petronius: 'Beauty rarely mixes with wisdom.'

Beauty as Snare: Scripture, the Philosopher, and the Pit

Proverbs 11:22 compares a beautiful woman without sense to a gold ring in a pig's snout; the philosopher calls beauty a lure to unchastity; Tibullus is cited to warn against selling one's beauty for profit.

And so the proverb gets it right: foolishness is tied to beauty.✦ In chapter twelve, where it says: 'A gold ring in a pig's snout — a beautiful woman who lacks good sense.'✦ And the gloss there says: 'Just as if you were to put a gold ring in a pig's nostrils, it plunges into the mud all the same; so a prostitute defiles and pollutes the beauty of her face and dress in the filth of pleasure.'✦ Nor does it harm, as has been said, only the one who possesses it, but also the one who looks upon her, since she entices him toward unchastity — as the second philosopher says: 'Beauty is . . carnal happiness. . . human desire.' That's why prostitutes make a public display of themselves for profit, in the words of Tibullus: Let the beauty one is anxious to sell, and the full price one is eager to carry away in hand, be far from us.9

Vainglory, Scandal, and the Cistern of Seduction

Even those who adorn themselves for empty glory rather than lust sin mortally; Chrysostom and Augustine warn that displaying beauty administers poison and that even wishing to be desired is sinful; the open cistern of Exodus becomes a metaphor for the seductive woman whose appearance captures all who see her, and Ambrose commands women's silence in church.

Others, though, who also believe they're acting chastely, do it for the sake of empty glory — echoing that line of Ovid cited above:10 They also delight in the chaste praises of beauty. But in this they actually harm themselves more than others, because they sin mortally even if they don't lead anyone else astray. So with that word of Matthew in chapter six — 'Everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart' — Chrysostom says: 'If a woman adorns herself and draws the eyes of men to herself, even if she inflicts no wound, she will face the ultimate punishment.'✦11 For she has administered poison, even if no one has been found to drink it. These are the words of Chrysostom. So also Augustine in his Rule: 'Not only to desire, but even to wish to be desired, is sinful.' Moreover, even if she neither desires nor wishes to be desired, yet displays her beauty only in an indiscreet and disordered way, she casts a snare for others and sins mortally, according to that saying of Ecclesiasticus 27: 'Whoever sets a snare for another will perish in it, and whoever digs a pit will fall into it.'12 Hence it is also said in Exodus 26: 'If anyone opens a cistern and digs it and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, the owner of the cistern will pay the price of the animals.'✦13 But whatever is dead will be his.✦ For a cistern that is open and not covered is the appearance of a man or woman adorned with the trappings of a prostitute, prepared for the seizing of souls, namely. Neck outstretched, hair loose or elaborately styled, face uncovered. Thus it is written in Proverbs. 22: 'A deep pit is the mouth of another; he with whom the Lord is angry will fall into it.'✦ And in the same book, 23: 'A prostitute is a deep pit, and a narrow well is a foreign woman.'✦ Into this pit an ox or an ass falls, since anyone at all—just or unjust, wise or foolish—is captured by its appearance, just as Holofernes was immediately captured in the eyes of Judith, as it is read in Judith 10. Then the owner of the cistern is bound to pay the price and keep the dead animal for himself, because the death of that person's soul is imputed to him, and his own soul is bound, through that one's loss, to the penalty of eternal punishment. Concerning this as well, Ambrose in his book On Elijah and Fasting: 'The Apostle,' he says, 'commands women to be silent in church as well, and to ask their husbands at home.'✦

Public Display, Dancing, and the Call to Veil

Ambrose describes shameless public behavior—tossing hair, trailing tunics, dancing—as defiling heaven and polluting earth; Proverbs commands keeping far from such women; and the Apostle's command that women cover their heads is interpreted as protection against causing scandal to spiritual men.

Indeed, those who are shameless in the streets—even without men present, under the gaze of undisciplined youths—lead their choruses, tossing their hair, trailing their tunics, clapping their hands, stamping their feet, making their voices ring out, provoking in the youths desires for themselves, with theatrical movement, a wanton eye, and disgraceful mockery. The circle of young people watches, and a wretched spectacle takes shape amid the falls and stumblings of those dancing. Heaven is defiled by an impure gaze, and the earth is polluted by shameful dancing, which is struck down on account of indecent dances. These are the words of Ambrose. Therefore it is said in Proverbs about such things: v: 'Keep your way far from her.' For, as has been said, she is to be avoided like a deep pit. Hence the Apostle also commands her to be covered, first, to the heart. 1 Corinthians 11: 'If a woman does not cover herself,' he says, 'let her hair be cut off.'✦ And further on: 'A woman ought to have a covering on her head because of the angels' — that is, because of clergy or spiritual men — so that they do not fall because of her.✦ To display one's beauty for the slaughter of souls — that is, to cause scandal to one's neighbors — is to place a stumbling block before them for their ruin. Hence it is said in Ecclesiasticus 9: 'Do not gaze upon a virgin, lest you be scandalized by her beauty.' In keeping with this is the passage cited above from Cyprian, about her who stirs up the fuel of sin in the young and exposes herself to those who see her like a sword and poison. 'Who,' he asks, 'would not detest and flee from what has been the ruin of others? Who would desire and take up what has served as a sword for another's death?' In fact, as Augustine says in the Mirror or Rule for Clerics, 'it is not only sinful to desire such attention, but even to want to be desired.'

Read the original Latin

Ornatus autem superfluus consistit in uestium exquisicione et crinium conposicione et faciei depictione et huiusmodi, de quibus dicit iohannes in dyalogo ad basilium libro vi: ‘Pulcritudo uultus et oculi depicti, infecte maxille et capitis ornatus et tinctura crinium ac vestes preciose, gemmarumque splendor et pigmentorum odor et alia que pertinent ad mundum muliebrem grauia sunt ad perturbandum animum, nisi multo castitatis uigore concluserit.’ Hec ille. Hinc de amatoribus seculi dicit psalmista, quorum sc. habundant tabernacula et promptuaria eorum plena. ‘Filie,’ inquit, ‘eorum conposite et circumornate ut similitudo templi.’ Et ouidius in libro de remediis io:

Decipimur cultu, gemmis auroque teguntur omnia; pars minima est ipsa puella sui.

Itaque de curiosa uestis aptacione dicit Jeronimus ad matrem et filiam: ‘Vestis ipsa . . . tacentis animi est indicium, si rugam non habeat, si per terram, ut alcior uidearis, trahatur, si de industria dissuta sit tunica, ut aliquid intus appareat operiatque quod fedum est et aperiat quod formosum, papille . . . fasciolis conprimuntur et crispanti cingulo angustius pectus artatur; capilli uel in frontem uel in aures defluunt. Palliolum interdum cadit, ut candidos nudet humeros et quasi uideri noluerit celat festina, quod uolens detexerit.

Et quando in publico quasi per uerecundiam operit faciem, lupanariarum arte id solum ostendit quod ostensum magis placere potest.’ Hec Jeronimus. Capillorum uero superfluum ornatum prohibet apostolus Petrus etiam mulieribus dicens in Ia canonica iiio: ‘Quarum sit non extrinsecus capillatura aut circundacio auri aut indumenti uestimentorum cultus, sed qui absconditus cordis est homo in incorruptibilitate quieti et modesti spiritus qui est in conspectu dei locuples.’ Capillarum igitur infectio siue tinctio multo magis reprobatur sanctorum iudicio. unde cyprianus in libro de disciplina et habitu uirginum: ‘Epulemur,’ inquit, ‘non in fermento malicie et nequicie sed in azimis sinceritatis et ueritatis. Numquid sinceritas perseuerat et ueritas, quando que sincera sunt polluuntur colorum adulteriis, medicaminum fucis in mendacium uera mutantur? Dominus tuus dicit: non potes facere capillum unum album aut nigrum. Et tu ad uincendam domini tui uocem uis te esse pociorem audaci conatu et sacrilego contemptu, crines tuos malo presagio futurorum inficis, iamque capillos tibi flammeos auspicaris.’

Hec cyprianus. propter hoc eciam dicit Jeronimus ad aletham: ‘Caue, ne filie tue capillum infeceris et aliquid ei de iehenne ignibus auspiceris.’ De faciei quoque depictione dicit Jeronimus in libro de viduitate seruanda: ‘quid facit in facie christiane purpurissus et cerusa, quorum alterum ruborem genarum labiorumque mentitur, alterum candorem oris et colli? Ignis est iuuenum fomenta libidinum, impudice mentis indicium. Quomodo flere potest pro peccatis suis que cutem nudat lacrimis et sulcos in faciem ducit? Ornatus iste non domini est, sed uelamen antichristi. Qua fiducia uultus ad celum erigit quos conditor non agnoscit?’ Hec Jeronimus.

Hinc et cyprianus, ubi supra: ‘Non solum uirgines ac uiduas sed eciam nuptas et omnes feminas puto admonendas, ut opus dei . . . et plasma nullatenus adulterent adhibito flauo colore uel nigrore pulueris uel rubore aut quolibet medicamine linimenta natiua corrumpente. Dicit deus: faciamus hominem ad ymaginem et similitudinem nostram. Et audet quisquam mutare et conuertere quod deus fecit; manus deo inferunt, quando id quod ille formauit reformare et transfigurare contendunt, nescientes quia opus dei est omne quod nascitur, dyaboli, quodcunque mutatur. Si quis pingendi artifex uultum alicuius et speciem ac corporis qualitatem emulo colore signasset et signato iam consumpmato simulacro manus alius afferret, iamque formata iam picta quasi pericior reformaret, grauis prioris artificis iniuria et iusta indignacio uideretur. Et tu te existimas impune laturam tam improbe temeritatis audaciam, dei artificis offensam.’

Hec cyprianus. Item ambrosius in exameron libro vio : ‘Deles picturam dei, o mulier, si uultum tuum materiali candore oblinias, si acquisito rubore perfundas. Illa pictura uicij est, non decoris . . . fraudis, non simplicitatis . . .

temporalis est et aut pluuia aut sudore tergitur. Illa pictura fallit et decipit, ut nec illi placeas cui placere desideras, qui intelligit non tuum, sed alienum esse quo placeas; et tuo auctori displiceas, qui in te videt opus suum esse deletum . . . Nam si supra artificem aliquem inducas alterum, qui opus illius . . . nouis operibus obducat, nonne indignabitur ille, qui opus suum adulteratum esse cognouerit.

Noli ergo tollere picturam dei et picturam meretricis assumere, quod est opus dei adulterare. Graue igitur crimen est, ut putes, quod melius te homo quam deus pingat, graue est, ut ipse deus de te dicat: Non agnosco colores meos . . . ymaginem meam . . . uultum meum quem ipse formaui.

Reicio ergo, quod meum non est; illum quere, qui te pinxit.’ Hec ambrosius. Et reuera quia de consuetudine solent hoc facere meretrices, eo ipso debent ea propter deforme testimonium omnino refugere et execrari puelle nobiles ac sancte mulieres. unde ennodius hiis qui non uerentur talia facere sic loquitur, tanquam yronice et irrisorie:

Tingite candentes roseo de murice uultus Atque fidem morum pandite de facie.

Siquidem ex hiis omnibus doctorum sanctorum uerbis patet, quod per talia uiolatur in mulieribus christianis ac precipue uirginibus sinceritas castitatis. unde cyprianus, ubi supra: ‘Si tu te sumptuosius comas et per publicum notabiliter incedas, oculos in te iuuentutis illicias, suspiria adolescencium post te trahas, . . . peccandi fomenta succendas, ut et si ipsa non pereas, tamen alios perdas et uelut gladium te ac uenenum prebeas videntibus, excusari non potes, quasi mente casta sis et pudica. Redarguit te cultus improbus et impudicus ornatus.’ Hec cyprianus. Denique uirginibus deo consecratis omnino districtius talia prohibentur, nec illis mortale peccatum esse dubitatur.

unde ibidem a beato cypriano subiungitur: ‘Nec conputari iam potes inter puellas uirgines christi, que sic uiuis, ut possis adamari . . . Sericum et purpuram indute christum induere non possunt. Auro et margaritis et monilibus adornate ornomenta cordis et pectoris perdiderunt. Quis non id execretur et fugiat quod aliis fuerit exicio? quis id appetat et assumat quod ad necem alterius fuerit pro gladio? .

. . Certe uirgines . . . que se huiusmodi artibus compserint inter uirgines non puto debere numerari, sed tanquam oues contactas et morbidas, ne contagio suo ceteras polluant, a grege sancto et puro uirginitatis arceri.’ Hec cyprianus. Hinc et Jeronimus ad demetriadem uirginem: ‘Quando,’ inquit, ‘in seculo eras, que seculi erant diligebas, videl.

faciem polire . . . et depingere, ornare crinem et alienis capillis turritam struere uerticem . . . Nunc autem, quia seculum reliquisti, secundo post baptismum dyabolo et pompis eius renunciasti.’ Ecce innuitur ex uerbis Jeronimi, quod huiusmodi conposicio crinium et facies pertinet ad pompas dyaboli.

Propter hoc etiam scribit atlethe de institucione filie: ‘Caue,’ inquit, ‘ne cerussa et purpurisso ora christo consecrata depingas, nec collum auro et margaritis premas, nec caput gemmis honeres, nec capillum . . . ceruses. Pretaxata nobilissima quondam femina iubente uiro hemecio qui patruus eustachie uirginis fuit, habitum eius cultumque mutauit et neglectum crinem mundano more texuit uincere cupiens et uirginis propositum et matris desiderium . . . Eadem nocte uidit angelum dei in sompnis terribili facie sibi minitantem et dicentem: “Tu ausa es imperium uiri christo preferre et uirginis dei caput tuis sacrilegis manibus attrectare.

Que iam nunc arrescent, ut sencias excruciata quid feceris et finito mense quinto ad inferna ducaris. Sin autem in scelere perseueraueris, et marito simul orbaberis et filiis.” Omnia per ordinem expleta sunt et seram misere penitenciam uelox signauit interitus. Sic ulciscitur christus in uiolatoribus templi sui, sic gemmas et preciossissima ornamenta defendit.’ Hec Jeronimus. Denique, sicut iam ostensum est in tercio operis huius libro capitulo de honestate cultus, non solum uitanda est honestis personis faciei depictio uel crinium conposicio, sed nec etiam appetenda est naturalis faciei uel corporis pulcritudo, videl. quia vana est et caduca et eciam, ut in pluribus, nociua. Suggerit enim habenti superbiam et uanam gloriam et impudiciciam et etiam stulticiam, iuxta illud petronij: ‘Raram facit mixturam cum sapiencia forma.’

unde et recte fatuitas pulcritudini adiungitur prouerb. xii, ubi dicitur: ‘Circulus aureus in naribus suis mulier pulcra et fatua.’ Ibique dicit glosa: ‘Sicut si naribus suis circulum aureum infixeris, luto se nichilominus immergit, sic meretrix pulcritudinem uultus et habitus ceno uoluptatis inquinat et polluit.’ Nec solum nocet, ut dictum est, ipsi habenti sed etiam inspicienti, dum eum ad impudiciciam allicit, iuxta illud secundi philosophi: ‘Pulcritudo est . . . carnalis felicitas . .

. humana concupiscencia.’ Hac de causa se ostendunt meretrices ad lucrum, iuxta illud tibullij:

Sit procul a nobis forma cui uendere cura est Et precium plena grande referre manu.

Alie uero eciam que sibi uidentur caste hoc faciunt propter inanem gloriam, secundum illud ouidij superius positum:

Delectant eciam castas preconia forme.

verum eciam in hoc sibi plus quam aliis nocent, quia mortaliter peccant, eciam si alios non alliciant. unde super illo uerbo mathei vi, ‘qui uiderit mulierem ad concupiscendam eam, iam mechatus est in corde suo,’ dicit crisostomus: ‘Mulier, si se decorauerit et oculos hominum ad se uocauerit, eciam si plagam non intulerit, extremam vindictam dabit. venenum enim intulit, etsi nullus qui bibat inuentus sit.’ Hec crisostomus. Hinc et augustinus in regula sua: ‘Non solum appetere, sed eciam appeti uelle criminosum est.’ Ceterum etiam, si nec appetat uel appeti cupiat, sed indiscrete tantum et inordinate pulcritudinem ostendat, laqueum aliis iniciendo mortaliter peccat, secundum illud ecclesiastici xxvii: ‘Qui laqueum alij ponit, in illo peribit, et qui fodit foueam, incidet in eam.’ unde et dicitur in exodo xxvi: ‘Siquis aperuerit cisternam et foderit et non operuerit eam, cecideritque bos uel asinus in eam, dominus cysterne reddet precium iumentorum. Quod autem mortuum est, ipsius erit.’

Cysterna enim aperta et non operta est uiri uel mulieris species ornatu meretricio ad capiendas animas preparata, sc. extento collo, crinibus spersis uel conpositis, facie non velata. unde dicitur in prouerb. xxii: ‘Fouea profunda os aliene, cui iratus est dominus, incidet in eam.’ et in eodem libro xxiii: ‘Fouea profunda est meretrix et puteus angustus aliena.’ In hanc bos uel asinus cadit, cum quilibet iustus uel iniustus siue sapiens uel stultus eius specie capitur, sicut holofernes statim captus est in oculis iudith, ut legitur in iudith x. Tunc dominus cysterne tenetur precium reddere et mortuum sibi retinere, quia mors anime illius ei imputatur et anima sua pro illius dampno pene eterne obligatur. De hoc eciam ambrosius in libro de helya et ieiunio: ‘Apostolus,’ inquit, ‘iubet mulieres in ecclesia quoque tacere et domi uiros suos interrogare.

Ille uero in plateis inverecundos etiam sine uiris sub conspectu adolescentulorum intemperancium choros ducunt, iactantes chomas, trahentes thunicas, plaudentes manibus, saltantes pedibus, uocibus personantes, irritantes in se iuuenum libidines, motu hystrionico, petulanti oculo, dedecoroso ludibrio. Spectat corona adolescencium et fit miserabile theatrum inter saltancium ruinas et lapsus spectancium. Celum inpuro aspectu contaminatur et terra turpi saltatione polluitur, que pro obscenis saltatibus uerberatur.’ Hec ambrosius. Ideo de talibus dicitur prouerb. v: ‘Longe fac ab ea uiam tuam.’ Est enim, ut dictum est, declinanda tanquam fouea profunda. unde hanc etiam apostolus operiri iubet Ia ad cor.

xiii: ‘Si non uelatur,’ inquit, ‘mulier tondeatur.’ Et post: ‘mulier debet habere super caput suum uelamen propter angelos,’ id est clericos uel spirituales uiros, ne cadant per eam. Sic enim pulcritudinem suam in animarum stragem ostentare, hoc est proximos scandalizare, id est obicem eis ad ruinam ponere. unde dicitur in ecclesiastico ix: ‘virginem ne conspicias, ne forte scandalizeris in decore illius.’ Hiis eciam consonat illud superius positum iuxta cyprianum ad illam que adolescentibus peccandi fomenta succendit ac uelut gladium et uenenum se uidentibus exponit. ‘Quis,’ inquit, ‘non id execretur ac fugiat quod aliis fuit exicio, quis id appetat et assumat quod ad necem alterius fuerit pro gladio?’ Denique, sicut dicit augustinus in speculo uel regula clericorum, ‘non solum appetere, sed eciam uelle appeti criminosum est.’

Scripture echoes

  1. ↩1Pet.3.3-1Pet.3.4 — Let it not be the outward adorning of braiding of hair, and wearing of gold, or putting on of clothing, 1Pet.3.4 — but the hidden person of the heart, in the imperishable garment of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.
  2. ↩1Cor.5.8 — So let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
  3. ↩Matt.5.36 — Neither swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
  4. ↩Gen.1.26 — Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
  5. ↩Gen.1.26-Gen.1.27 — Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." Gen.1.27 — So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
  6. ↩Gen.2.7;Isa.45.9-Isa.45.12;Jer.18.1-Jer.18.6 — Then the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Isa.45.9 — Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker—a piece of clay among the clay pots of the earth! Shall the clay say to its maker, "What are you making?" Or your work say to him, "He has no hands"? Isa.45.10 — Woe to the one who says to a father, 'What are you begetting?' and to a woman, 'What are you giving birth to?' Isa.45.11 — Thus says the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker: 'Ask me about the signs concerning my children, and concerning the work of my hands, command me.' Isa.45.12 — I made the earth, and I created humankind upon it; my hands stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host. Jer.18.1 — The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Jer.18.2 — Get up and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear my words. Jer.18.3 — And I went down to the potter's house, and there he was, working at the wheel. Jer.18.4 — But the vessel he was making of clay in the hand of the potter was marred, so he made it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make it. Jer.18.5 — Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Jer.18.6 — 'Am I not able to do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter does?' declares the LORD. 'Behold, like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.'
  7. ↩Prov.11.22 — A gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.
  8. ↩Prov.11.22 — A gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.
  9. ↩Prov.11.22 — A gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.
  10. ↩Matt.5.28 — But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
  11. ↩Exod.21.33-Exod.21.34 — When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls in, Exod.21.34 — The owner of the pit shall make restitution; he shall pay money back to its owner, and the dead animal shall be his.
  12. ↩Exod.21.34 — The owner of the pit shall make restitution; he shall pay money back to its owner, and the dead animal shall be his.
  13. ↩Prov.22.24-Prov.22.25 — Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, and do not associate with one easily angered, Prov.22.25 — lest you learn his ways and take a snare into your soul.
  14. ↩Prov.23.27 — For a prostitute is a deep pit, and a foreign woman is a narrow well.
  15. ↩1Cor.14.34-1Cor.14.35;1Tim.2.11-1Tim.2.12 — Let the women be silent in the assemblies, for they are not permitted to speak, but let them be in submission, as the law also says. 1Cor.14.35 — If they want to learn something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for a woman to speak in the assembly. 1Tim.2.11 — A woman should learn in quietness and with full submission. 1Tim.2.12 — I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet.
  16. ↩1Cor.11.6 — For if a woman does not cover herself, let her also cut her hair; but if it is shameful for a woman to cut her hair or to shave it, let her cover herself.
  17. ↩1Cor.11.10 — For this reason the woman ought to have authority on her head, because of the angels.

Notes

  1. 1 ↩The Latin 'sui' (genitive of the reflexive pronoun) is ambiguous: it can mean 'of herself' (i.e., her own person) or 'of her own [identity],' suggesting that the girl's true self is the least visible element amid all the adornment. The translation renders the most natural reading — that she herself is the smallest part — while preserving the irony that external display overwhelms the person within.
  2. 2 ↩auctor rendered 'Creator' in light of the surrounding context (opus suum, pictura dei in neighboring sections) identifying God as the maker of the human person.
  3. 3 ↩The Latin sentence is incomplete (qui opus illius with no finite verb). The translation reflects the broken syntax with a trailing dash, preserving the fragmentary state. The sense is: one who [works over / adulterates] that original work.
  4. 4 ↩ille rendered 'that one' and understood as God the Creator, consistent with the auctor/opus suum theology of the surrounding context.
  5. 5 ↩Attribution to St. Ambrose of Milan, whose words presumably appeared in the preceding section (Erud.1.44.9).
  6. 6 ↩The Latin eo ipso ('by that very thing itself') is rendered 'for that very reason' to capture the ablative of cause naturally in English.
  7. 7 ↩Ennodius: Ennodius of Pavia (c. 473–521), bishop and Latin writer. The adverbs yronice and irrisorie are Greek and Latin loanwords respectively, indicating the tone of the following quotation.
  8. 8 ↩The ut clause is rendered as purpose ('so that') rather than result; the subjunctives succendas, pereas, perdas, prebeas, sis all depend on the implied protasis introduced by si in the preceding sentence (s2).
  9. 9 ↩forma rendered as 'beauty' (attractive appearance used as commodity) rather than 'form/shape' to capture the sense of outward appearance treated as something to be sold; precium plena grande referre manu rendered idiomatically as 'the full price one is eager to carry away in hand' to convey the eagerness to pocket payment.
  10. 10 ↩The Ovid reference is carried over from the preceding section; the specific line is not identified here.
  11. 11 ↩The embedded quotation is from Matthew 5:28 (Vulgate). The chapter reference in the source text ('vi') corresponds to Matthew 6, but the quotation itself is from Matthew 5:28. The Chrysostom attribution is a patristic gloss, not a direct citation.
  12. 12 ↩The embedded quotation is from Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 27:26 (Vulgate numbering). Ecclesiasticus is deuterocanonical.
  13. 13 ↩The embedded quotation is from Exodus 21:33–34 (Vulgate). The source text cites 'exodo xxvi' but the content corresponds to Exodus 21:33–34 in standard Vulgate numbering. The chapter reference may reflect a different manuscript tradition or scribal error.

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