Paradox

Nil tibi legavit Fabius, Bithynice, cui tu annua, si memini, milia sena dabas. Plus nullit dedit ille: queri, Bithynice, noli: annua legavit milia sena tibi. You gave Bithynicus thousands yearly; still He left you not a penny in his will. But don’t be sad; you really score— You needn’t send him money anymore. O Bitinico, nulla t’ha lasciato quel Fabio, a cui tu davi, mi pare, all’anno ben seimila sesterzi. Non ti lagnare, o Bitinico; a niuno più diede che a te; ché seimila sesterzi all’anno ti lasciò.

Martial, Epigrams, Book 9, VIII
English translation by John Patrick Sullivan
Italian translation by Giuseppe Lipparini

Pablo Picasso, The Old Guitarist, 1903–04. Credit: Art Institute of Chicago.