The paper deals with two fragments from the work “Atonement” by the 5th century poet Dracontius, which contain metaphors using animal images and, in particular, the lion. The interpretation of the work as a whole and its political subtext depends on how one understands the meaning of these comparisons: the predator serves as a model of mercy for the Vandal king Guntamund, the poem's main addressee. The origins of the metaphor of Dracontius are found in Ovid, whose “Tristia” can be considered the genre prototype of “Atonement|”. It has been suggested that the late antique author was much more influenced ideologically and substantively by Ovid's other work, the “Metamorphoses”, with all its Pythagorean rhetoric, including criticism of any "carnivorous" behavior.