Sacred Song from the Byzantine Pulpit: Romanos the Melodist Book

The Silvae is a collection of occasional poetry, i.e., a series of poems composed to commemorate specific occasions. The traditional career path for a Roman poet (as exemplified by Virgil and Ovid) was to start one's career with this sort of lighter fare. Then, after making a name for yourself, you could graduate to epic and compose your magnum opus. Statius went the opposite way, releasing the Silvae after he completed The Thebaid: Seven against Thebes.

The collection is divided into five books, containing a total of 32 poems. They cover a wide range of topics: the unveiling of statues, weddings, funerals, and even the death of a parrot. Overall I thought they were mostly good, but not great. Highlights include a look at the Saturnalia celebration, a poem commemorating the anniversary of Lucan's birth, and moving lamentations for Statius' late father and adopted son:

"Whatever man has plunged in ash a youngster
bearing the traces still of tender bloom,
and who has seen flames cruelly snake around
the dead man's down beard, let him be here
and grow exhausted, trading cries with me:
his tears will be outdone by mine and, Nature,
you will be put to shame, so fierce, so crazed
is this, my grief for my adopted son."
- Silvae 5.5.

Some of the other poems are less aesthetically pleasing, and mostly interesting as an inside look at the Flavian dynasty. Many of the poems are marred by incessant fawning over the Emperor Domitian, one of the "bad" emperors who would be murdered shortly after these poems were completed. This butt-kissing can get tedious, and has hurt the reputation of Statius over the years. However, scholarly interest in Statius is on the rise, and these passages can be understood and accepted (if not loved) as a sign of the times Statius was living in.

Statius was not a first-tier Roman poet, but he definitely has his moments, and I would recommend this collection to readers interested in Silver Age Roman literature. It's a relatively light & easy read, and a couple of the poems are very strong. The Betty Rose Nagle translation provides the first complete English translation into verse, and contains a great introduction to Statius and his time. 3 stars.