John Owen’s Epigrammata

I shall keep this post short, like the work of the author it describes. 

Self-deprecating, often-funny, notably short, and generally quite simple to read, the Latin epigrams of Welsh poet John Owen (born c. 1564) are suited indeed to the needs of students interested in dipping their toes in the vast sea of Neo-Latin poetry. In his lifetime his poems were not unpopular. Indeed, they were translated into multiple languages. He worked for sometime as a schoolteacher before being able to fully support himself by writing poetry. His patrons, to whom he dedicated various poems, included such figures as the Prince of Wales. 

His model is clearly Martial. Some of them veer so close to the writings of this much earlier poet that they seem more derivative than anything. Still, this is not exactly a vice in Latin composition. I would suggest reading these after or as a companion to Martial so that you might note the parallels. Don’t expect great literature from either of them, dear reader, and be wary of the cruelty inherent in the genre. These two certainly aren’t Virgil.  

Owen’s epigrams can be found online here. 

Works Cited

Jones, J. Henry. “John Owen, the Epigrammatist.” Greece & Rome, vol. 10, no. 29, 1941, pp. 65–73. 

Martyn, John R. C. “John Owen and Tudor Patronage: A Prosopographical Analysis of Owen’s Epigrams.” Humanistica Lovaniensia, vol. 28, 1979, pp. 250–57.