Recent from talks
Epistulae (Pliny)
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Epistulae (Pliny)
The Epistulae ([ɛˈpɪs.t̪ʊ.ɫ̪ae̯], "letters") are a series of personal missives by Pliny the Younger directed to his friends and associates. These Latin letters are a unique testimony of Roman administrative history and everyday life in the 1st century. The style is very different from that in the Panegyricus, and some commentators maintain that Pliny initiated a new genre: the letter written for publication. The genre of the letter collection offers a different type of record than the more usual history; one that dispenses with objectivity but is no less valuable for it. Especially noteworthy among the letters are two in which he describes the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 during which his uncle Pliny the Elder died (Epistulae VI.16, VI.20), and one in which he asks the Emperor for instructions regarding official policy concerning Christians (Epistulae X.96).
The Epistulae are usually treated as two halves: those in Books 1 to 9, which Pliny prepared for publication; and those in Book 10, which were written to or from the Emperor Trajan, and which were copied from the imperial archives. Pliny is not thought to have any influence in the selection of the letters in this book. The greater share of the letters in book 10 concern Pliny's governorship of Bithynia-Pontus.
Other major literary figures of the late 1st century AD appear in the collection as friends or acquaintances of Pliny's, e. g. the poet Martial, the historian Tacitus and the biographer Suetonius. However, arguably the most famous literary figure to appear in Pliny's letters is his uncle. His nephew provides details of how his uncle worked tirelessly to finish his magnum opus, the Historia Naturalis (Natural History). As heir to his uncle's estate, Pliny the Younger inherited the Elder's large library, benefiting from the acquisition.
Like most other surviving ancient texts, Pliny's letters survive only through copies made hundreds of years later, which differ slightly in their readings from each other. These manuscript copies are the result of a process that has been described as "as complicated as it is fascinating." The letters have been categorized into two families: the nine-book tradition (which contain the letters Pliny had prepared for publication), and the ten-book tradition (which includes the book containing the letters between Pliny and Trajan collected from the imperial archives).
The ten-book tradition depends on a manuscript transcribed towards the end of the fifth century; it survived almost complete down to the 16th century when it suffered great losses; its surviving six leaves are now at the Morgan Library & Museum in New York City (manuscript M.462). One 11th century copy, which contains the first 100 letters of the Epistulae, was widely copied through central France and Normandy during the next centuries, successfully "establishing its 100 letters as the vulgate text of Pliny." Scholars proceeded to supplement this text from manuscripts of the nine-book tradition.
The nine-book tradition is primarily reconstructed from these borrowings; few manuscripts have survived into modern times that present pure examples of this tradition. One is a lost manuscript, missing book 8 of Epistulae, that had been preserved from ancient times in the Chapter Library of Verona and survived down to the 15th century; while no complete copy exists of this manuscript, a selection of 167 letters from the 218 in this manuscript survives as Holkham Hall 396. Two more manuscripts, one written at Corbie Abbey, the other at the Princely Abbey of Fulda, represent a second branch of the nine-book tradition; the Fulda manuscript (known as Florence, Laur. 47.36 = M) is the most complete representative of the nine-book tradition. A third branch is known only from borrowings used to fill lacunae the other two branches, primarily for 8.1-8.8.2 (it lacks the balance of book 8) and 9.16.
As already mentioned above, highlights of these books include Pliny's description of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the death of his uncle and mentor, Pliny the Elder. The first letter (1.1), addressed to Gaius Septicius Clarus, is also notable for giving Pliny's reasons for collecting his letters. Those that give details of Pliny's life at his country villas are important documents in the history of garden design. They are the world's oldest sources of the information on how gardens were used in the ancient world and the considerations that went into their design.
The content of this section of the letters evolves over time. Pliny's career as a young man is very fully described in the earlier letters, which include tributes to notable figures such as the epigrammatist Martial, Pliny's protégé (3.21). Advice is offered to friends, references are given, political support is discussed and Pliny comments on many other aspects of Roman life, using established literary style. However, by the last two books the subject matter is more contemplative.
Hub AI
Epistulae (Pliny) AI simulator
(@Epistulae (Pliny)_simulator)
Epistulae (Pliny)
The Epistulae ([ɛˈpɪs.t̪ʊ.ɫ̪ae̯], "letters") are a series of personal missives by Pliny the Younger directed to his friends and associates. These Latin letters are a unique testimony of Roman administrative history and everyday life in the 1st century. The style is very different from that in the Panegyricus, and some commentators maintain that Pliny initiated a new genre: the letter written for publication. The genre of the letter collection offers a different type of record than the more usual history; one that dispenses with objectivity but is no less valuable for it. Especially noteworthy among the letters are two in which he describes the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 during which his uncle Pliny the Elder died (Epistulae VI.16, VI.20), and one in which he asks the Emperor for instructions regarding official policy concerning Christians (Epistulae X.96).
The Epistulae are usually treated as two halves: those in Books 1 to 9, which Pliny prepared for publication; and those in Book 10, which were written to or from the Emperor Trajan, and which were copied from the imperial archives. Pliny is not thought to have any influence in the selection of the letters in this book. The greater share of the letters in book 10 concern Pliny's governorship of Bithynia-Pontus.
Other major literary figures of the late 1st century AD appear in the collection as friends or acquaintances of Pliny's, e. g. the poet Martial, the historian Tacitus and the biographer Suetonius. However, arguably the most famous literary figure to appear in Pliny's letters is his uncle. His nephew provides details of how his uncle worked tirelessly to finish his magnum opus, the Historia Naturalis (Natural History). As heir to his uncle's estate, Pliny the Younger inherited the Elder's large library, benefiting from the acquisition.
Like most other surviving ancient texts, Pliny's letters survive only through copies made hundreds of years later, which differ slightly in their readings from each other. These manuscript copies are the result of a process that has been described as "as complicated as it is fascinating." The letters have been categorized into two families: the nine-book tradition (which contain the letters Pliny had prepared for publication), and the ten-book tradition (which includes the book containing the letters between Pliny and Trajan collected from the imperial archives).
The ten-book tradition depends on a manuscript transcribed towards the end of the fifth century; it survived almost complete down to the 16th century when it suffered great losses; its surviving six leaves are now at the Morgan Library & Museum in New York City (manuscript M.462). One 11th century copy, which contains the first 100 letters of the Epistulae, was widely copied through central France and Normandy during the next centuries, successfully "establishing its 100 letters as the vulgate text of Pliny." Scholars proceeded to supplement this text from manuscripts of the nine-book tradition.
The nine-book tradition is primarily reconstructed from these borrowings; few manuscripts have survived into modern times that present pure examples of this tradition. One is a lost manuscript, missing book 8 of Epistulae, that had been preserved from ancient times in the Chapter Library of Verona and survived down to the 15th century; while no complete copy exists of this manuscript, a selection of 167 letters from the 218 in this manuscript survives as Holkham Hall 396. Two more manuscripts, one written at Corbie Abbey, the other at the Princely Abbey of Fulda, represent a second branch of the nine-book tradition; the Fulda manuscript (known as Florence, Laur. 47.36 = M) is the most complete representative of the nine-book tradition. A third branch is known only from borrowings used to fill lacunae the other two branches, primarily for 8.1-8.8.2 (it lacks the balance of book 8) and 9.16.
As already mentioned above, highlights of these books include Pliny's description of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the death of his uncle and mentor, Pliny the Elder. The first letter (1.1), addressed to Gaius Septicius Clarus, is also notable for giving Pliny's reasons for collecting his letters. Those that give details of Pliny's life at his country villas are important documents in the history of garden design. They are the world's oldest sources of the information on how gardens were used in the ancient world and the considerations that went into their design.
The content of this section of the letters evolves over time. Pliny's career as a young man is very fully described in the earlier letters, which include tributes to notable figures such as the epigrammatist Martial, Pliny's protégé (3.21). Advice is offered to friends, references are given, political support is discussed and Pliny comments on many other aspects of Roman life, using established literary style. However, by the last two books the subject matter is more contemplative.
Recent media