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🦋 Examples of memorie

The piece of Pliny's Natural History which Funes is reciting the third time Borges sees him is from the beginning of Book VII*, chapter 26; in Philemon Holland's translation:

AS TOUCHING MEMORIE, the greateÅ¿t gift of Nature, and moÅ¿t neceÅ¿Å¿arie of all others for this life; hard it is to judge and Å¿ay who of all others deÅ¿erved the cheefe honour therein: conÅ¿idering how many men have excelled, and woon much glorie in that behalfe. King Cyrus was able to call every Å¿ouldior that he had through his whole armie, by his owne name. L. Scipio could doe the like by all the citizens of Rome. Semblably, Cineas, EmbaÅ¿Å¿ador of king Pyrrhus, the very next day that he came to Rome, both knew and alÅ¿o Å¿aluted by name all the Senate, and the whole degrees of Gentlemen and Cavallerie in the cittie. Mithridates the king, reigned over two and twentie nations of diverÅ¿e languages, and in Å¿o many tongues gave lawes and miniÅ¿tred juÅ¿tice unto them, without truchman: and when hee was to make Å¿peech unto them in publicke aÅ¿Å¿emblie reÅ¿pectively to every nation, he did performe it in their owne tongue, without interpretor. One Charmidas or Carmadas, a Grecian,^{††â€}  was of Å¿o Å¿ingular a memorie, that he was able to deliver by heart the contents word for word of all the bookes that a man would call for out of any librarie, as if he read the Å¿ame preÅ¿ently within a booke. At length the practiÅ¿e hereof was reduced into an art of Memorie: deviÅ¿ed and invented firÅ¿t by Simonides Melicus, and afterwards brought to perfection and conÅ¿ummate by Metrodorus ScepÅ¿ius: by which a man might learne to rehearÅ¿e againe the Å¿ame words of any diÅ¿courÅ¿e whatÅ¿oever, after once hearing.

---

††† Carneades, according to Cicero and Quintilian.

* (The same volume to which John of Pannonia will refer in "The Theologians".)

posted evening of Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
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