Sidonius: Letters Book 5, Part 1: Text, Translation and Commentary

• Provides the first commentary on Book 5 of Apollinaris’ Letters
• Includes a newly edited Latin text and a new English translation
• Contributes to an overall understanding of Sidonius’ literary output as a whole
• Offers a comprehensive and innovative study of key historical data, especially prosopography and dating of the letters

Sidonius Apollinaris stands at a crossroads between the last days of the Roman Empire in the Auvergne and Provence and the emergence of Burgundian and Visigoths as territorial powers. As an aristocrat, politician, author and bishop who was involved in and bore witness to this takeover, he and his writings have often been taken as representative of the late Roman response to the new dominance of Christianity and to the dissolution of the Empire in the West. Like most late Latin art prose, though, his letters are notorious for their mannerist style, which at times makes passages of his letters ambiguous and ostentatiously obscure. This volume provides the reader with a tool to understand this convoluted prose, enabling them to see the troubled political waters of the 5th century through the eyes of Sidonius.

This critical edition comprises a newly edited Latin text of Letters 1–10 of book 5 of Sidonius Apollinaris’ Epistulae, an accessible English translation and a philological and historical commentary on the ten letters. It provides a general introduction on the book as a whole and a detailed exploration of the letters that covers literary themes, models, prosopography, dating problems and prose rhythm. Looking at the letters from an interdisciplinary perspective, it addresses historical questions relevant to these specific letters and to Sidonius’ position at the centre of the Romano-Gallic aristocracy.