An interesting query came through to Study Group members by way of website’s comment form. Keith Lowndes, a member of the South Oxfordshire Archaeological Group (SOAG), asked:
“I was wondering if you could advise me as to a contact relating to a translation of a motto on a Trier motto beaker. It has the letters ‘A M A N T I D A’. We cannot match it to any motto. Various suggestions for a translation have been put forward – ‘I/they love to give’, ‘Give to your lover’. Any help would be appreciated.”
The vessel in question had been found on a site excavated by SOAG in Oxfordshire, and the query was circulated to Study Group members. Responses soon came in thick and fast.
“…it is to do with drinking to a girlfriend. ‘Here’s looking at you baby’ for older readers. I suppose ‘Give to the loving’ literally.”
“‘Da’ is the singular of the command form meaning ‘give’, which can be placed either first or last. The word ‘amanti’ does not signify gender of the person ‘loving’, but it is in the dative case, meaning therefore to the person loving = ‘to the lover’. The word ‘your’ may be presumed, and therefore it may be translated, ‘Give to your lover’ – whatever his/her gender.”
“AMANTI (dative of amans, lover) DA (imperative of dato/dare, to give), so ‘Give to the lover!’, as already suggested.”
“I read the inscription DA AMANTI and agree with [the] translation: ‘Give to your lover’.”
“’DA’ can to be understood in an erotic or in an ambiguous sense. The imperative ‘DA’ has more often this context on the Trierer Spruchbecher, for example ‘DA MI(hi)’.”
“This is definitely the two words ‘amanti da’: ‘give to a lover’ (or ‘give to your lover’).”
“The question is, who is being addressed, a giver or a receiver? It doesn’t say ‘give me’ or ‘give this’, though that seems to be the meaning. But there could also be innuendo here, since the phrase can mean ‘grant it to your lover’”
Thank you to everyone who responded, and thank you, too, to Keith Lowndes for getting in touch. Keith has also drawn our attention to another Rhenish ware beaker found by SOAG. This second vessel is on the SOAG website and can be viewed in 3D.