Gaius Julius Solinus was a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

grammarian, geographer, and compiler who probably flourished in the early 3rd century AD. Historical scholar

Theodor Mommsen Christian Matthias Theodor Mommsen (; 30 November 1817 – 1 November 1903) was a German classical scholar, historian, jurist, journalist, politician and archaeologist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest classicists of the 19th cent ...

dates him to the middle of the 3rd century. Solinus was the author of ''De mirabilibus mundi'' ("The wonders of the world") which circulated both under the title ''Collectanea rerum memorabilium'' ("Collection of Curiosities"), and ''Polyhistor'', though the latter title was favoured by the author himself. The work is indeed a description of curiosities in a chorographic framework. Adventus, to whom it is dedicated, is identified with Oclatinius Adventus, Roman consul in AD 218. It contains a short description of the ancient world, with remarks on historical, social, religious, and natural history questions. The greater part is taken from

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

's ''Natural History'' and the geography of

Pomponius Mela Pomponius Mela, who wrote around AD 43, was the earliest Roman geographer. He was born in Tingentera (now Algeciras) and died AD 45. His short work (''De situ orbis libri III.'') remained in use nearly to the year 1500. It occupies less ...

. According to Mommsen, Solinus also relied upon a chronicle (possibly by Cornelius Bocchus) and a ''Chorographia pliniana'', an epitome of Pliny's work with additions made about the time of

Hadrian Hadrian (; la, Caesar Trâiānus Hadriānus ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman ''municipium'' founded by Italic settlers in Hispania B ...

. Schanz, however, suggests the ''Roma'' and ''Prata'' of

Suetonius Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire. His most important surviving work is a set of biographies ...

. A greatly revised version of his original text was made, perhaps by Solinus himself. This version contains a letter that Solinus wrote as an introduction to the work, which gives the work the title ''Polyhistor'' ("multi-descriptive"). Both versions of the work circulated widely and eventually ''Polyhistor'' was taken for the author's name. It was popular in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

hexameter Hexameter is a metrical line of verses consisting of six feet (a "foot" here is the pulse, or major accent, of words in an English line of poetry; in Greek and Latin a "foot" is not an accent, but describes various combinations of syllables). It w ...

abridgments being current under the names of Theodericus and Petrus Diaconus. The commentary by

Saumaise Claude Saumaise (15 April 1588 – 3 September 1653), also known by the Latin name Claudius Salmasius, was a French classical scholar. Life Salmasius was born at Semur-en-Auxois in Burgundy (region), Burgundy. His father, a counsellor of the parl ...

in his ''Plinianae exercitationes'' (1689) was considered indispensable; the 1895 edition by Mommsen includes a valuable introduction on the manuscripts, the authorities used by Solinus, and subsequent compilers. See also

Teuffel Wilhelm Siegmund Teuffel (; September 27, 1820March 8, 1878), German classical scholar, was born at Ludwigsburg in the Kingdom of Württemberg. In 1849 he was appointed extraordinary, in 1857 ordinary professor in the university of Tübingen, whic ...

, ''Hist. of Roman Literature'' (Eng. trans., 1900), 389; and Schanz, ''Geschichte der römischen Litteratur'' (1904), iv. I. There is an early modern English translation by

Arthur Golding Arthur Golding (May 1606) was an English translator of more than 30 works from Latin into English. While primarily remembered today for his translation of Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' because of its influence on William Shakespeare's works, in his ...

(1587) and a modern one with commentary by Dr. Arwen Apps of Macquarie University.

References

Text and Translation

Kai Brodersen Kai Brodersen (born 6 June 1958) is a contemporary ancient historian and classicist on the faculty of the University of Erfurt. He has edited, and translated, both ancient works and modern classical studies. His research focuses on "Applied Scie ...

, Solinus: Wunder der Welt. Collectanea rerum mirabilium. Lateinisch und Deutsch. Edition Antike. Darmstadt: Wiss. Buchgesellschaft 2014. *Arwen Elizabeth Apps, Gaius Iulius Solinus and His Polyhistor, Macquarie University, 2011 (PhD Dissertation)

Sources and Studies

*Hermann Walter, Die ‘Collectanea rerum memorabilium’ des C. Julius Solinus. Ihre Entstehung und die Echtheit ihrer Zweitfassung, Wiesbaden, 1969 (Hermes. Einzelschriften, 22). *

(ed.), Solinus. New Studies. Heidelberg: Verlag Antike 2014. *

External links

Gaius Julius Solinus, the Polyhistor
English translation by Arwen Apps (in ToposText.org, from her PhD diss., Macquarie University, 2011)

Editio princeps, Venice 1473, at the

Bavarian State Library The Bavarian State Library (german: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, abbreviated BSB, called ''Bibliotheca Regia Monacensis'' before 1919) in Munich is the central " Landesbibliothek", i. e. the state library of the Free State of Bavaria, the big ...

* ttp://www.thelatinlibrary.com/solinus.html Gaii Iulii Solini de Mirabilibus Mundiat

The Latin Library The Latin Library is a website that collects public domain Latin texts. It is run by William L. Carey, adjunct professor of Latin and Roman Law at George Mason University. The texts have been drawn from different sources, are not intended for rese ...

, Latin texts of both the C.L.F. Panckoucke edition (Paris 1847) and the Mommsen edition (1864).
Online Galleries, History of Science Collections, University of Oklahoma Libraries
High resolution images of works by Solinus in .jpg and .tiff format.
The excellent and pleasant worke of Iulius Solinus Polyhistor Contayning the noble actions of humaine creatures, the secretes & prouidence of nature, the description of countries, the maners of the people: with many meruailous things and strange antiquities, seruing for the benefitt and recreation of all sorts of persons. Translated out of Latin into English, by Arthur Golding. Gent.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Julius Solinus, Gaius 3rd-century Romans 3rd-century Latin writers solinus Geographers Solinus, Gaius Post–Silver Age Latin writers Roman-era geographers 3rd-century geographers