C. Valerius Flaccus Setinus Balbus
Valerius Flaccus
The Flavian Argonautica
c. AD 45 – c. AD 90
Gaius Valerius Flaccus was a Roman poet who wrote an Argonautica in eight books (the eighth is incomplete), retelling the story of Jason and the Argonauts. He was active during the reign of Vespasian and probably died around 90 AD.
His poem reworks the material of Apollonius Rhodius through the lens of Virgilian epic, adding Roman colour, Stoic themes, and his own psychological insights. His Medea is a powerful creation, indebted to both Apollonius and Virgil's Dido but distinctly his own. The poem was largely forgotten until modern scholarship recognised its considerable merits.
Works
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Argonautica epic
An unfinished Latin retelling of the Argonaut myth in eight books. Valerius Flaccus follows Apollonius Rhodius but amplifies the drama and the darknes...