Letters from exile. Ovid writes to his wife, friends, and enemies from Tomis on the Black Sea, where Augustus banished him in AD 8. The wit is still there, but the desperation is real. Five books of increasingly desperate pleas that were never answered.
Start ReadingThe first collection of letters from exile at Tomis on the Black Sea, addressed to various friends and patrons in Rome. Ovid describes the harsh conditions of his banishment and pleads for intercession with Augustus.
Further letters from exile, addressed to friends including Messalinus, Cotta Maximus, and Atticus. Ovid continues to describe his misery on the frontier and beg for relief or relocation.
The third group of exile letters, now naming their recipients openly (unlike the Tristia). Ovid writes of his deteriorating health, his study of the local Getic language, and his undiminished love of poetry.
The final collection of exile letters, including a poem celebrating the triumph of Tiberius and an appeal to Sextus Pompeius. Ovid's last published work — he died at Tomis without seeing Rome again.