Some thoughts stay with us for centuries. This printable Italian cryptogram hides a famous quote by Giulio Cesare behind a simple letter-and-number code. In Italian, a memorable quote like this is often called an aforisma.
At first, the puzzle may look like a random collection of numbers, but each letter you uncover brings the whole thought into focus. Try to work out not only the missing letters, but also what the quote is trying to say before checking the solution.
You can use the optional hints if you need a little help, or challenge yourself to solve the entire puzzle unaided.
Divertiti! 😊
You've just decoded a famous quote by Giulio Cesare (100–44 BC). Better known in English as Julius Caesar, he was a Roman general, statesman and writer whose influence helped shape the history of ancient Rome.
Here are five things you might not know about the man behind the quote.
Pirates
He was captured by pirates as a young man and joked with his captors that he'd have them all crucified once he was free. He reportedly kept his word.
The month of July
The month of July is named after him. Originally called Quintilis in the Roman calendar, it was renamed Julius in his honour after his death.
“Et tu, Brute?”
The famous words “Et tu, Brute?” (“You too, Brutus?”) probably weren't spoken by Giulio Cesare. They come from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, not from any surviving Roman account.
Writer and historian
He wrote accounts of his own military campaigns, and they're still read today for their clear, direct prose, more like reportage than a general's memoir.
The Ides of March
He was assassinated on the Ides of March in 44 BC by a group that included men he'd trusted and promoted.
A single word can carry far more than its dictionary definition.
One word worth pausing on in this quote is pazienza (patience). It's a word Italians use all the time, and its meaning shifts depending on the moment.
Abbi pazienza means "have patience", or more loosely, "bear with me".
Said on its own, Pazienza! is almost a shrug, a gentle acceptance that something didn't go your way.
And when someone is facing something genuinely difficult or painful, you might hear Porta pazienza, meaning "hang in there".
It's a word that captures something quite Italian: not gritted-teeth endurance, but a gentle acceptance of life's small disappointments, and quiet support through the harder ones.
A little more patience?
Fitting, really, that this quote is about pazienza. Solving a cryptogram rewards exactly that kind of quiet persistence, as the hidden message slowly comes into focus.
If you'd like to keep going, the next challenge is an interactive online cryptogram featuring a famous quote by Michelangelo.
