Modern historians write about ordinary lives as well as the events of battlefield and palace. The historians of the ancient world did not. We have to build our picture of Roman daily life from other sources like archaeology, plays, graffiti and inscriptions.
Funeral inscriptions are particularly valuable. The urge to record something vivid about the dead was as strong with the Romans as it is with us.
Today’s texts are epitaphs. Most are ancient. One is relatively modern, and you can visit it in Dublin. Even in this short selection, you’ll see quite a range of emotion.
Download the vocabulary, if you like, and we’ll start with an old geezer’s cheeky farewell.