Author Description

The Roman poet Martial (40-104 A.D.) was the author of 12 books of epigrams. Book XI takes as its theme the Saturnalia, and the freedom the festival bestows on the poet. N. M. Kay's introduction discusses the form and structure of the epigram, charts the history of the genre before Martial,and examines his influence on later literature. The text includes a full commentary on each epigram, Latin text, and English translation.