Silvae (Harvard University Press)

Statius s "Silvae," thirty-two occasional poems, were written probably between 89 and 96 CE. Here the poet congratulates friends, consoles mourners, offers thanks, admires a monument or artistic object, and describes a memorable scene.

The verse is light in touch, with a distinct pictorial quality. Statius gives us in these impromptu poems clear images of Domitian s Rome. Statius was raised in the Greek cultural milieu of the Bay of Naples, and his Greek literary education lends a sophisticated veneer to his ornamental verse.

The role of the emperor and the imperial circle in determining taste is also readily apparent: the figure of the emperor Domitian permeates these poems. D. R. Shackleton Bailey s edition of the "Silvae," which replaced the earlier Loeb Classical Library edition with translation by J.

H. Mozley, is now reissued with corrections żeby Christopher A. Parrott."