The Written Word: Libri et Libelli

A single sheet of brown papyrus with faded writing on a yellow background Before we move on to our next poet, Martha Marchina, let's take a look at how ancient poems were written down. We will focus mostly on Martial and the more ancient customs - Marchina's book of poetry was published and then had a printed edition, not too different from our own modern books!

Image note: the picture to the right is an example of a libellus from 250 CE. Unlike a typical Roman liber (book), which was written on a papyrus scroll, libelli could be written on loose papyrus sheets. This particular example was one of the common uses of libelli, namely to provide a certificate, in this case, proof of having offered a pagan sacrifice. Download and read this handout to learn more about libelli.

Liber vs. Libellus

Both Martial and Martha Marchina use the word libelli. Since we've already read a few of his poems, let's focus specifically on Martial - you can make your own conclusions about Marchina's meaning when we read her poems.

While the example of a libellus above demonstrates one possible meaning (a loose sheet of paper, compared to a larger ornamented scroll), Martial doesn't appear to use the term in this manner. Instead, Martial appears to use libellus in two different ways:

Libellus is sometimes used as a synonym for carmen - in other words, if he says libelli, it's the same as him saying carmina: "my poems"
Libellus is also used to refer to unpublished poems, probably written on loose sheets of papyrus, whereas liber would refer to a collection of published poems, contained in a scroll.

With this in mind, take a moment to return to poems I.38 and V.73. Re-consider exactly what he meant by libellus/libelli in those two poems. Does shifting between the two meanings of this one word change the overall point of the poem?

The Role of Literacy in the Ancient World

Take a look at the following image:

A woman wearing red holds a pen on the right while a man in white holds a scroll on the left

In it, we can see a man named Terentius Neo and his wife depicted in a mural which was found in their house in Pompeii. Consider this image carefully: what information do we learn about Terentius, based on what he is holding? What information do we learn about his wife based on what she is holding? Does the combined image of the couple send a message to anyone who would see this portrait?

Hopefully, a few things stood out to you as you looked at this picture:

Literacy was extremely important in this family. The fact that both the husband and wife are holding implements of literacy (books and pens) indicates that they took it as a sign of their status - not everyone was literate (especially true for women), but this couple shared their love of reading and writing in a portrait meant to outlive them.
The book Terentius Neo holds is a simple scroll with no ornament and lacking the central spindle (called a scapus). This could mean a few things: it might have been a libellus (in the sense that it was unpublished), maybe even something written by Terentius himself. It also could have just been artistic license - showing a plain, unadorned liber showed off not just Terentius' literacy, but also his modesty (he didn't need a fancy liber to enjoy it).
Meanwhile, Terentius' wife is holding a stylus with her wax tablet at the ready. Much like the Sapphic image from the Sulpicia lesson (in which a woman is pictured with a stylus), she holds the pen in a thoughtful pose, clearly ready to share her thoughts in writing. We get the clear idea that this woman was educated and that put her in a higher station. Even so, as with Terentius, the wax tablet is simple, almost humble, so again, a display of both superiority and modesty.

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