NAPE VERTIT: A NOTE ON OVID, AMORES 1.12

Abstract

The hairdresser who carries Ovid's invitation to his puella in Amores 1.11 is almost immediately blamed for his rejection in 1.12, before that blame is transferred to the tablets carrying that invitation. Nape (the enslaved hairdresser of the puella) has been linked to the character Dipsas, appearing in 1.7, specifically through the descriptor sobria. By focussing on the use of the verb uerto, the reference to the mythical strix, and curses related to the old age of both Dipsas and the tablets in 1.7 and 1.12, this note demonstrates that the supernatural word choice further connects Nape with Dipsas.