La poesia epigrammatica di Prospero di Aquitania

This paper examines the epigrammatic poetry of Prosper of Aquitaine, a genre that he wrote in from the beginning of his career. It explores the various functions of his epigrams, such as serving as a preface, a polemical invective, an epitaph, a didactic and moral epigram or as a monumental inscription. The substantial interweaving of theological and doctrinal themes, classical poetry references (Lucretius and Virgil foremost, but also Ovid and the Flavian epics), and Christian and late-antique poetry allusions (e.g. Paulinus of Nola, Prudentius, and Claudian), as well as the precise and skilful use of metre, reveal Prosper to be a deeply religious man of vast culture, capable of lending challenging content an elegant poetic form.