Bronze and Iron

Bronze and Iron: Old Latin Poetry from Its Beginnings to 100 B.C. offers an in-depth exploration of the fragments and traditions of early Roman poetry, tracing its evolution from archaic ritual chants to more developed literary forms. This volume situates Old Latin poetry within its historical and cultural context, posing profound questions about the nature of art, the role of poetry in society, and the symbolic shifts it underwent during Rome’s formative years. Through engaging with the surviving fragments—ranging from the mystical Salian hymns to the sophisticated works of Naevius and Ennius—this study illuminates the poetic transition from collective survival and state celebration to the exploration of individual possibilities.

Divided into three sections—Historia, Mythos, and Plasmata—the book examines the factual preservation of Old Latin texts, proposes imaginative insights into their cultural and artistic significance, and offers a methodological approach to their translation. Through this framework, it investigates the maturation of poetic expression, the influence of early Roman deities like the Camenae, and the evolving purposes of poetry in the state and personal realms. Whether addressing questions about Ennius as a mathematical poet or the cinematic qualities of archaic epic, this work provides fresh perspectives on the foundations of Western poetic tradition, making it indispensable for classicists, literary historians, and anyone intrigued by the early origins of Roman art and thought.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1973.