Letter 2026: I was thoroughly displeased by the solitude of Baiae [a famous resort on the Bay of Naples, now largely abandoned]...
Strongly displeased by the desolation of Baiae, I have preferred to stay at Puteoli; for the healthful dwelling of this place pleases us. Next, if with God's help our wishes go forward, we are preparing to make an excursion to Capua, and we are assigning this whole month of November to various places and cities of Campania. This is the sum of our plan. But so that our spirit may more eagerly advance what we have determined, it must be raised up by your addresses; since we judge nothing more important than an indication of your health and good fortune. Yet this you will do of your own accord, in keeping with your remarkable devotion, and therefore there is no need to apply the goads of exhortation to voluntary services. Meanwhile, that you promise you will be present, my brother, I warmly embrace; and would that your whole household might accompany you! so that the arrival of all may grant us fuller joy, and that you may have no reason to hasten back to your homeland the sooner out of longing and love for those left behind.
AI-assisted translation - This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
Baiarum solitudine vehementer offensus Puteolis malui commorari. iuvat enim
nos istius loci salubris habitatio. dehinc, si adiutu dei optata processerint, Capuam
paramus excurrere totumque hunc mensem Novembrem diversis Campaniae locis atque 20
2 urbibus deputamus. haec est nostri summa propositi. sed ut animus alacrior desti-
nata promoveat, vestris adloquiis erigendus est; quandoquidem sanitatis vestrae et
felicitatis indicio nihil antiquius aestimamus. verum hoc pro insigni religione sponte
facietis, atque ideo non est necesse voluntariis officiis aculeos exhortationis adhibere.
3 interea quod te, mi frater, adfore polliceris, vehementer amplector. atque utinam te 25
domus tota comitetur! ut et nobis laetitiam pleniorem tribuat adventus omnium, et tibi
causa non sit citius in patriam recurrendi desiderio et amore remanentium.
XXVn a. 365—366 ?
Revision history
- 2026-05-27v2.2.34-import
Initial corpus import from modern symmachus retranslated v1.
Fields: letter text, metadata, source links. Source: https://archive.org/details/qaureliisymmach00seecgoog
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