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Claudia Severa (born 11 September in first century, fl. 97–105) was a literate
iii Idus Septembres soror ad diem
sollemnem natalem meum rogó
libenter faciás ut venias
ad nos iucundiorem mihi'' :'' ieminterventú tuo facturá si
aderis
Cerial m tum salutá Aelius meus ..br />et filiolus salutant'' :''sperabo te soror
vale soror anima
mea ita valeam
karissima et have'' The Vindolanda Tablets also contain a fragment from another letter in Claudia's hand. These two letters are thought to be the oldest extant writing by a woman in Latin found in Britain, or perhaps anywhere. The letters show that correspondence between the two women was frequent and routine, and that they were in the habit of visiting one another, although it is not known at which fort Severa lived.
There are several aspects of Severa's letters that should be regarded as literary, even though they were not written for a wide readership. In particular, they share several thematic and stylistic features with other surviving writings in Latin by women from Greek and Roman antiquity. Although Severa's name reveals that she is unlikely to be related to Sulpicia Lepidina, she refers frequently to Lepidina as her sister, and uses the word ''iucundus'' to evoke a strong and sensual sense of the pleasure Lepidina's presence would bring, creating a sense of affection through her choice of language. In the post-script written in her own hand, she appears to draw on another Latin, literary model, from the fourth book of the Aeneid, in which at 4.8 Vergil characterises Anna as Dido's ''unanimam sororem'', "sister sharing a soul", and at 4.31, she is "cherished more than life" (''luce magis dilecta sorori''). Although this is not proof that Severa and Lepidina were familiar with Virgil's writing, another letter in the archive, written between two men, directly quotes a line from the ''Aeneid'', suggesting that the sentiments and language Sulpicia used do indeed draw on a Virgilian influence.
The Latin word that was chosen to describe the birthday festivities, ''sollemnis'', is also noteworthy, as it means "ceremonial, solemn, performed in accordance with the forms of religion", and suggests that Severa has invited Lepidina to what was an important annual religious occasion.
Vindolanda Tablets Online: Correspondence of Lepidina: tablets 291–294
{{DEFAULTSORT:Severa, Claudia 1st-century births 1st-century Roman women 2nd-century Roman women 1st-century women writers 1st-century writers 2nd-century women writers 2nd-century writers Ancient Romans in Britain Hadrian's Wall Latin letter writers Ancient Roman women writers Date of death unknown Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Claudii Silver Age Latin writers
Claudia Severa (born 11 September in first century, fl. 97–105) was a literate Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
woman, the wife of Aelius Brocchus, commander of an unidentified fort near Vindolanda
Vindolanda was a Roman auxiliary fort ('' castrum'') just south of Hadrian's Wall in northern England, which it originally pre-dated.British windo- 'fair, white, blessed', landa 'enclosure/meadow/prairie/grassy plain' (the modern Welsh word ...
fort in northern England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. She is known for a birthday invitation she sent around 100 AD to Sulpicia Lepidina
Sulpicia Lepidina was the wife of Flavius Cerialis, prefect of the Ninth Cohort of Batavians, stationed at Vindolanda in Roman Britain in the early 2nd century AD. She is known from her correspondence, including a birthday invitation she receive ...
, wife of Flavius Cerialis, commander at Vindolanda. This invitation, written in ink on a thin wooden tablet, was discovered in the 1970s and is probably the best-known item of the Vindolanda Tablets
The Vindolanda tablets were, at the time of their discovery, the oldest surviving handwritten documents in Britain (they have since been antedated by the Bloomberg tablets). They are a rich source of information about life on the northern fro ...
.
The first part of the letter was written in formal style in a professional hand evidently by a scribe; the last four lines are added in a different handwriting, thought to be Claudia's own.
The translation is as follows:
:''Claudia Severa to her Lepidina greetings.''
:''On 11 September, sister, for the day of the celebration of my birthday, I give you a warm invitation to make sure that you come to us, to make the day more enjoyable for me by your arrival, if you are present. Give my greetings to your Cerialis. My Aelius and my little son send him their greetings.''
:(2nd hand) ''I shall expect you, sister. Farewell, sister, my dearest soul, as I hope to prosper, and hail.''
:(Back, 1st hand) ''To Sulpicia Lepidina, (wife) of Cerialis, from Cl. Severa."''
The Latin reads as follows:
:''Cl. Severá Lepidinae uae
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
a emiii Idus Septembres soror ad diem
sollemnem natalem meum rogó
libenter faciás ut venias
ad nos iucundiorem mihi'' :'' ieminterventú tuo facturá si
aderis
Cerial m tum salutá Aelius meus ..br />et filiolus salutant'' :''sperabo te soror
vale soror anima
mea ita valeam
karissima et have'' The Vindolanda Tablets also contain a fragment from another letter in Claudia's hand. These two letters are thought to be the oldest extant writing by a woman in Latin found in Britain, or perhaps anywhere. The letters show that correspondence between the two women was frequent and routine, and that they were in the habit of visiting one another, although it is not known at which fort Severa lived.
There are several aspects of Severa's letters that should be regarded as literary, even though they were not written for a wide readership. In particular, they share several thematic and stylistic features with other surviving writings in Latin by women from Greek and Roman antiquity. Although Severa's name reveals that she is unlikely to be related to Sulpicia Lepidina, she refers frequently to Lepidina as her sister, and uses the word ''iucundus'' to evoke a strong and sensual sense of the pleasure Lepidina's presence would bring, creating a sense of affection through her choice of language. In the post-script written in her own hand, she appears to draw on another Latin, literary model, from the fourth book of the Aeneid, in which at 4.8 Vergil characterises Anna as Dido's ''unanimam sororem'', "sister sharing a soul", and at 4.31, she is "cherished more than life" (''luce magis dilecta sorori''). Although this is not proof that Severa and Lepidina were familiar with Virgil's writing, another letter in the archive, written between two men, directly quotes a line from the ''Aeneid'', suggesting that the sentiments and language Sulpicia used do indeed draw on a Virgilian influence.
The Latin word that was chosen to describe the birthday festivities, ''sollemnis'', is also noteworthy, as it means "ceremonial, solemn, performed in accordance with the forms of religion", and suggests that Severa has invited Lepidina to what was an important annual religious occasion.
Display of letter
The invitation was acquired in 1986 by theBritish Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
, where it holds registration number 1986,1001.64. The museum has a selection of the Vindolanda Tablets on display, and loans some to the museum at Vindolanda.
References
External links
Vindolanda Tablets Online: Correspondence of Lepidina: tablets 291–294
{{DEFAULTSORT:Severa, Claudia 1st-century births 1st-century Roman women 2nd-century Roman women 1st-century women writers 1st-century writers 2nd-century women writers 2nd-century writers Ancient Romans in Britain Hadrian's Wall Latin letter writers Ancient Roman women writers Date of death unknown Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Claudii Silver Age Latin writers