What’s Your Type, Sextilianus?
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Name: Martial Date: c. 40 – 100 CE Region: Bilbilis, Hispania [modern Spain] Citation: Epigrams 6.54 |
Aulus, if you forbid Sextilianus to talk about “so
many men and women,”
The poor man won't be able to string three words
together.
You ask, “What's his type?”
Well, I'll tell you what I suspect:
That Sextilianus likes “so many men and women.”
Latin Text:
Tantos et tantas si dicere
Sextilianum,
Aule, vetes, iunget vix tria
verba miser.
“Quid sibi vult?” inquis.
Dicam quid suspicer esse:
tantos et tantas Sextilianus
amat.
Martial [Marcus Valerius Martialis; 38 BCE – 102 CE, modern
Spain] Originally from Bilbilis, Hispania, the poet Martial moved to Rome in
the 60s CE to advance his career. His two extant works include de
Spectaculis, a collection of poems written to commemorate the opening of
the Colosseum, and a fifteen volume collection of epigrams. These poems provide
valuable insight into the private lives of Romans from all of the city’s social
classes.
