D. Marthae

S. Marii coniugi, & Matri SS. Audifacis & Abachii¹

Sponte subit flammas, ensesque invicta Virago,²       Nec timor est raptam cernere utramque manum; Ne iactet dextra contemptos Mutius³ ignes:       Plus potuit pro te fœmina,⁴ Christe, pati.

¹ Saint Martha died in 270 C.E. along with her whole family because she buried Christians. ² Virago is a word that means a warlike woman, a heroic woman. Because of its visual similarity to the word for vir (man), we’ve translated it as ‘hero’ rather than ‘heroine’ to emphasize the male appearance of the word. ³ Mucius Scaevola famously burned off his right hand to show his determination in defeating the Etruscan Porsenna. His story appears in greater detail in Livy’s Ab Urbe Condita (2.12-13). ⁴ Fœmina with the œ ligature is a typical post-classical spelling of femina.