Palladas of Alexandria, Greek Anthology 9.171
“I am selling my books, those woeful instruments of the Muses, for I am set upon a new profession. Goodbye, Muses! Farewell, Learned Words! Syntax is the death of me.”
῎Οργανα Μουσάων, τὰ πολύστονα βιβλία πωλῶ
εἰς ἑτέρας τέχνης ἔργα μετερχόμενος.
Πιερίδες, σῴζοισθε· λόγοι, συντάσσομαι ὑμῖν·
σύνταξις γὰρ ἐμοὶ καὶ θάνατον παρέχει.
*Autobiographical Note: I once owned a t-shirt inscribed with the phrase, σύνταξις γὰρ ἐμοὶ καὶ θάνατον παρέχει, but until yesterday had no idea that it was a direct quotation from this poem!
