Horace · motto of the Royal Society, 1662
“Nullius in Verba — “Take nobody’s word for it.”
Epistles I.1, line 14 · c. 20 BC
Documented source
Attribution
Horace · motto of the Royal Society, 1662
Source
Epistles I.1, line 14 · c. 20 BC
In full
“Nullius in Verba — “Take nobody’s word for it.”
Status
Public domain in the United States
Every quote here is traced to a documented source. How we verify →
About this line
Horace wrote it refusing to swear loyalty to any school of philosophy — take no one’s word for it. Seventeen centuries later the Royal Society made it their motto and meant the same thing: evidence before authority, always.
Why we carry this line
I had a couple years of Latin in high school. I don’t remember a lot. But when I read this quote with the Latin and English, it was the perfect addition to our Quoteiac library.
More from this authorHorace · motto of the Royal Society, 1662 →