Letter 3056: I have exchanged the leisure of home for a pleasant journey abroad, traveling at the command of our lord Valentinian.
Quintus Aurelius Symmachus→Ricomerem|c. 391 AD|Quintus Aurelius Symmachus
imperial politics
From: Quintus Aurelius Symmachus
To: [Unnamed correspondent]
Date: ~391 AD
Context: Symmachus writes during a journey undertaken at the emperor Valentinian's command, describing the pleasures of changing his homeland for a delightful trip.
I have exchanged the leisure of home for a pleasant journey abroad, traveling at the command of our lord Valentinian. The experience of new places always refreshes the mind, and this journey has been no exception. The countryside is beautiful, the company agreeable, and the purpose of the mission honorable. I write to you from along the road, taking advantage of a brief rest to maintain our correspondence. When I return, I will have stories to tell and perhaps some useful observations on the state of the provinces through which I have passed.
Otium patriae laeta peregrinatione mutavi. nam iussu d. n. Valentiniani cum 10
multis amplissimae curiae proceribus accitus ad vicem quietis domesticae fruor publi-
cis gaudiis. quod cum ad te posset fama perferre, dignius visum est me indice nun-
tiari. ipse ad respondendum benignitatem tuam moremque servabis; siquidem litteras
tuas non minus quam meorum conspectus et verba desidero.
LXIIII ante a. 394. n
AD RICOMEREM.
Quid mihi litterae tuae iucunditatis attulerint, tibi aestimandum relinquo, cui, si
bene arbitror, vicissim meus sermo tribuit voluptatem. perge igitur, ut iam facere
dignatus es, et amicitiam munerare adfectu religionis et adsiduitate conloquii. ego in
referenda vicissitudine par €sse curabo. nam qui ab alio poscit ofGcia , sui quoqne 20
studii frequentem operam pollicetur.
LXV ante a. 394.
AD RICOMEREM.
Scio praestantem animum tuum salutis meae et reversionis indicia cupide, ut ami-
citia postulat, opperiri, et ideo expectationi tuae revectus in patriam satisfeci, meque 25
agere ex sententia atque esse memorem tuae circa nos humanitatis insinuo; simulque
deprecor, ut adfectionem, quam mihi et praesenti dependere et absenti dignatus es
polliceri, litterarum munere, quotien^ usus tulerit, non graveris augere.
LXVI a. 382.
AD RICOMEREM. 3«
Nosse dignaris, quanta sit in d^ m. Flaviano pectoris mei portio. amicitiam ad-
ventantis amplectere, ut duos obliges. ambo idem sumus ; nam hoc dici a me patitnr
dice deflcit in F indicem P
16 om. F
LIBER m. 91
ille, qui melior est. plura 8criberem, si aut tu diu velles rogari, ant tanti viri merita PF
commemlationem desiderarent. ergo sat est, qnod aecepisti voti mei indicia. ambitu
et labore non opus est, cum ex natura veniat, ut a te moribus tuis proximus diligatnr.
LXVII ante a. 394.
◆
From:Quintus Aurelius Symmachus
To:[Unnamed correspondent]
Date:~391 AD
Context:Symmachus writes during a journey undertaken at the emperor Valentinian's command, describing the pleasures of changing his homeland for a delightful trip.
I have exchanged the leisure of home for a pleasant journey abroad, traveling at the command of our lord Valentinian. The experience of new places always refreshes the mind, and this journey has been no exception. The countryside is beautiful, the company agreeable, and the purpose of the mission honorable. I write to you from along the road, taking advantage of a brief rest to maintain our correspondence. When I return, I will have stories to tell and perhaps some useful observations on the state of the provinces through which I have passed.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.