Publius Papinius Statius

Neil Bernstein (Ohio University)

Ed. by Cristina Sandru, The Literary Encyclopedia, Sophia Papaioannou, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.1.2: Ancient Roman Writing and Culture (Republic and Empire), -750-476.
Vol. editors: William John Dominik (University of Otago), Giacomo Fedeli (University of Exeter), Thomas Habinek (University of Southern California), Emily Kneebone (University of Nottingham), Elodie Paillard (University of Sydney), Sophia Papaioannou (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens), Jula Wildberger (American University of Paris)

Dates

Born 45
Died 96
Activity 65-96

Places

Born in Ancient Rome (Republic & Empire)
Active in Ancient Rome (Republic & Empire)

Activities

Primary

Poet

Resources

Statius' Works

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Publius Papinius Statius (c. 45-96 CE) was the foremost Latin poet of the Flavian era (69-96 CE) of ancient Rome. His extant works include the

Silvae,

a collection of five books of occasional poems; the

Thebaid,

an epic in twelve books on the war at Thebes; and the

Achilleid,

an unfinished epic on the life of Achilles. The

Thebaid

is one of only two completed Latin epics (Ovid’s

Metamorphoses

is the other) to survive from the early Roman empire. Works by Statius no longer extant include the pantomime libretto

Agave,

composed for the actor Paris, known to us from a comment in Juvenal

Satires

7.87. As far as can be judged from a surviving four-line fragment, an epic

De Bello Germanico

apparently related the campaign in 82-83 CE of the emperor Domitian (ruled 81-96 CE) against the Chatti,…

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2888 words

Citation: Bernstein, Neil. "Publius Papinius Statius". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 05 February 2013; last revised 29 June 2020. [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=4196, accessed 18 April 2024.]

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