Mysteries of vernacular: Sarcophagus - Jessica Oreck and Rachael Teel

Misterije svakodnevnog: sarkofag - Džesika Orek (Jessica Oreck) i Rejčel Til (Rachael Teel)

Transcriber: Andrea McDonough Reviewer: Jessica Ruby

Prevodilac: Mile Živković Lektor: Anja Saric

Mysteries of vernacular:

Misterije svakodnevnog:

Sarcophagus,

sarkofag,

a stone coffin typically adorned

kameni kovčeg obično ukrašen

with decorative carvings or inscriptions.

dekorativnim rezbarenjem ili natpisima.

The history of the word sarcophagus

Istorija reči "sarkofag"

is so skin-crawlingly grotesque,

toliko je jezivo groteskna

it seems to come right out

da se čini kao da je poreklom

of a low-budget horror film.

iz niskobudžetnog horor filma.

Rather than having a B-movie origin, however,

Ipak, umesto porekla iz filmova B-produkcije,

its roots can be traced back to the early Roman Empire

koren ove reči može da se prati sve do ranog Rimskog carstva,

where the Greek word sarkophagus

gde je grčka reč "sarkofag"

was used to describe the limestone

korišćena da se opiše krečnjak

that a coffin was made of,

od kojeg se pravi kovčeg,

not the coffin itself.

a ne sam kovčeg.

According to the Roman scholar Pliny the Elder,

Po navodima rimskog pisca Plinija Starijeg,

citizens of the Empire believed

građani carstva verovali su

that limestone from a quarry near Troy

da krečnjak iz kamenoloma u blizini Troje

would dissolve flesh.

može da rastvori meso.

For this reason, it was quite desireable

Iz ovog razloga, bio je veoma poželjan

in the construction of coffins.

kao materijal za kovčege.

Though it's unclear if the belief was widespread

Iako je nejasno da li je Pilinije ovo verovanje proširio

or even accurately reported by Pliny,

ili čak verno preneo,

what is certain is that sarkophagus

izvesno je da sarkofag potiče

came from the Greek words sark,

od grčke reči "sark",

meaning flesh,

što znači "meso",

and phagein,

i "fagein",

a verb meaning to eat.

što je glagol koji znači "jesti".

From flesh-eating stone

Od kamena koji izjeda meso

to stone coffin,

do kamenog kovčega,

it's a fitting etymology

ovo je prikladna etimologija

for the final resting place of the deceased.

za poslednje mesto počivanja za preminule.