ironsleep

ferrĕus, a, um, adj. [ferrum], made of iron, iron.

Lit.:

Britanni utuntur aut aere aut taleis ferreis... pro nummo,

Caes. B. G. 5, 12, 4:

vomer,

Lucr. 1, 314:

ensis,

id. 5, 1293:

furcae,

Varr. R. R. 1, 22, 3; for which absol.:

ferreae,

Cato, R. R. 10, 3:

clavi,

Caes. B. G. 3, 13, 4:

hami,

id. ib. 7, 73 fin.:

manus,

id. B. C. 1, 57, 2; 1, 58, 4; 2, 6, 2:

clathri,

Plin. 8, 7, 7, § 21:

fibula,

Quint. 6, 3, 58:

anulus,

id. 7, 6, 8; cf. Plin. 33, 1, 4, § 9; Suet. Aug. 100:

litterae imagunculae,

id. ib. 7:

Hercules,

an iron statue of Hercules, Plin. 34, 14, 40, § 141.— Poet.: hastati spargunt hastas, fit ferreus imber, Enn. ap. Macr. S. 6, 1 (Ann. v. 287 ed. Vahl.);

imitated: imber,

Verg. A. 12, 284; cf.:

seges telorum,

id. ib. 3, 45:

ager,

i. e. glistening with weapons, id. ib. 11, 601.—

Transf., like or pertaining to iron:

color,

iron-color, Plin. 37, 10, 61, § 170:

fabrica,

the art of working iron, id. 7, 56, 57, § 198.—

Trop.

Hard, unfeeling, hard-hearted, cruel:

qui virtutem duram et quasi ferream esse quandam volunt (opp. tenera atque tractabilis),

Cic. Lael. 13, 48; cf.:

quis tam fuit durus et ferreus, quis tam inhumanus, qui? etc.,

id. Verr. 2, 5, 46, § 121; and:

ferreus essem, si te non amarem,

id. Fam. 15, 21, 4:

ferus et ferreus,

id. Q. Fr. 1, 3, 3:

ferus et vere ferreus,

Tib. 1, 10, 2:

quis tam esset ferreus, qui, etc.,

Cic. Lael. 23, 87:

o te ferreum, qui illius periculis non moveris!

id. Att. 13, 30, 2:

illa (carmina) tamen numquam ferrea dixit Amo,

Prop. 2, 8, 12; Tib. 2, 3, 2; 3, 2, 2:

praecordia,

Ov. H. 12, 183:

bella,

id. ib. 13, 64:

sors vitae (with difficilis),

id. Tr. 5, 3, 28:

os ferreum,

shameless, impudent, Cic. Pis. 26, 63: ferrea tum vero proles exorta repente est, i. e. the iron age, Cic. poët. N. D. 2, 63, 159; cf.

saecula,

Tib. 2, 3, 35.—

With the idea of firmness, fixedness predominating, firm, fixed, rigid, unyielding, immovable:

(Cato) in parsimonia, in patientia laboris periculique, ferrei prope corporis animique,

Liv. 39, 40, 11:

vox,

Verg. G. 2, 44; id. A. 6, 626; cf.: scriptor (Atilius), Licin. poët. ap. Cic. Fin. 1, 2, 5:

jura,

Verg. G. 2, 501: olli dura quies oculos et ferreus urget Somnus, ironsleep, i. e. death (a transl. of the Homeric chalkeos hupnos), Verg. A. 10, 745; 12, 309:

decreta Sororum,

Ov. M. 15, 781.