Letters of Pliny

Few practices have given us a more tantalizing insight into history than letter writing. The medium is more personal, more intimate, and less edited and censored than an authored book designed for mass publication, and it helps us get closer to the humanity of the historical figures we analyze. One of the most prolific letter writers of his day was Pliny the Younger — a Roman author, lawyer, and politician working in the first and second centuries — and his letters have left scholars with an incredible resource for the study of classical law, politics, civics, and life.

This collection, translated by William Melmoth from the original Latin, represents a vast body of correspondence separated into 10 books. The 10th and final book is devoted to correspondence with Emperor Trajan himself, delivering almost unparalleled insight into the realities of life in the Roman imperial court. Other letters in the collection deal with some of the well-known events of the day, including the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the persecution of the early Christians in the first century.