I.perf. consevisti, Fronto, Ep. ad Ver. 8), v. a., to connect, entwine, tie, join, fit, bind into a whole (syn.: conecto, conjungo, contexo, etc.; class. in prose and poetry; most freq. in the signif. II. B., and in the histt.).
I. In gen.
A. Lit.
(α).
With acc. with or without abl.: “lorica conserta hamis auroque,” Verg. A. 3, 467; cf.: “tegumen spinis,” id. ib. 3, 594 (illigatum spinis, Serv.); cf. Tac. G. 17: monile margaritis gemmisque, * Suet. Galb. 18: “vincula, quīs conserta erant vehicula,” Curt. 9, 1, 17; cf.: “conserta navigia,” entangled, id. 4, 3, 18: “scutis super capita consertis,” overlapping, id. 5, 3, 23: “rudis arbor conseritur (for navigating),” Luc. 3, 512; cf. id. 4, 136.—
B. Trop.: “quid juvat nocti conseruisse diem?” Ov. Am. 3, 6, 10: “exodia conserta fabellis Atellanis,” Liv. 7, 2, 11; “v. exodium: virtutes consertae et inter se cohaerentes,” Sen. Ep. 90, 3: ita ordo rerum tribus momentis consertus est, * Quint. 5, 10, 71: “sermonem,” to interchange words, converse, Curt. 8, 12, 5; Fronto l. l.—
II. In partic.
A. To join, connect, unite together: “teneros sinus,” Tib. 1, 8, 36: “femur femori,” id. 1, 8, 26; cf.: “latus lateri,” Ov. H. 2, 58.—
B. Esp., to unite in hostility, for contest, to bring together; so most freq. manum or manus, to engage in close combat, to join hand to hand, to join battle: “signa contulit, manum conseruit, magnas copias hostium fudit,” Cic. Mur. 9, 20; so Plaut. Mil. 1, 1, 3; Sall. J. 50, 4; Nep. Dat. 8, 4; id. Ages. 3, 6; Liv. 21, 41, 4 al.: “manum cum hoste,” Varr. L. L. 6, § 64 Müll.; Cic. Att. 7, 20, 1; Nep. Hann. 4, 2: “manus inter se,” Sall. H. 1, 41, 19 Dietsch; Liv. 7, 40, 14; Ov. H. 12, 100: “manus cum imparibus,” Liv. 6, 12, 8: “cum hoste manus,” id. 21, 39, 3: “consertis deinde manibus,” id. 1, 25, 5: “dextras,” Stat. S. 1, 6, 60: “pugnam,” Liv. 21, 50, 1; cf. id. 21, 8, 7; Tac. A. 2, 10: “pugnam inter se,” Liv. 32, 10, 8: “pugnam seni,” Plaut. Bacch. 4, 9, 43: “proelia,” Verg. A. 2, 398; Liv. 5, 36, 5; Curt. 8, 13, 12: “certamen,” Liv. 35, 4, 2: “bella,” Val. Fl. 3, 31: “bella bellis,” Luc. 2, 442: “acies,” Sil. 1, 339; cf.: “conserta acies,” hand-to-hand fighting, Tac. A. 6, 35.—Mid.: “navis conseritur,” enters the fight, Liv. 21, 50, 3: “duo acerrimā pugnā conserti exercitus,” Val. Max. 3, 2, 1.—Rarely absol.: “levis armatura ab lateribus cum levi armaturā,” Liv. 44, 4, 6.—
2. Trop.: “haud ignotas belli artes inter se conserebant,” Liv. 21, 1, 2.—
3. Transf., of judicial controversy: manum in jure or ex jure conserere, to make a joint seizure (this was done by the litigant parties laying hands at the same time upon the thing in dispute, each one claiming it as his own): si qui in jure manum conserunt, XII. Tab. ap. Gell. 20, 10, 7: non ex jure manum consertum sed mage ferro rem repetunt, Enn. ib. § 4 (Ann. v. 276 Vahl.); cf. also Varr. L. L. 6, § 64 Müll., and Cic. Fam. 7, 13, 2: ibi ego te ex jure manum consertum voco, etc., I summon you in an action for possession, etc., a judic. formula in Cic. Mur. 12, 26; id. de Or. 1, 10, 41.—Hence, * con-sertē , adv., from consertus, a, um (acc. to I. A.), not used as P. a., as if bound or fastened together, in connection: “omnia necesse est conligatione naturali conserte contexteque fieri,” Cic. Fat. 14, 32.