Hic situs est
H. S. E. is an abbreviation that can be found on many Roman gravestones . It stands for Hic situs est ( lat. "Here lies") or Hic sepultus est (lat. "Here is buried").
The abbreviation was often expanded, for example to H. S. E. B. Q. - Hic situs est, bene quiescat (lat. "Here he lies, he rest well").
A famous example is Ovid's tomb for Phaethon ,
- Hic situs est Phaethon, currus auriga paterni,
- quem si non tenuit, magnis tamen excidit ausis. ( Met . II 327 f.)
In the translation by Johann Heinrich Voss :
- Phaethon rests here, who drives his father's chariot;
- Although not quite asserting it, he succumbed to great endeavors.
See also
- Rest in Peace (RIP)