Table Of ContentPRUDENTIUS’ HYMNS FOR HOURS
AND SEASONS
Combining faithfulness to the Latin with sensitivity to Prudentius’
poetic qualities, Nicholas Richardson offers a precise yet creative verse
translation of a major work by one of the most important Christian
Latin poets of late antiquity. Prudentius’ Hymns for Hours and Seasons
also provides readers with a wealth of supporting material, which sets
the life and output of this poet in its historical, religious and literary
context, outlines manuscript and editorial details, discusses metrics
and Latinity, and also gives a sense of the individual hymns of the
Cathemerinon.
Richardson’s fresh translation allows readers unfamiliar with Latin
to understand and interpret the poems, as well as offering those who
know Latin a translation that keeps very close to the original text.
Detailed notes at the end of the book illuminate both the literary
and the religious aspects of each hymn. This commentary, along with
the introduction and translated text, provides students and scholars
alike with a comprehensive volume on one of the key works of later
Latin poetry.
Nicholas Richardson is an Emeritus Fellow of Merton College,
Oxford, where he was Tutor in Classics between 1968 and 2004.
From 2004 to 2007 he was Warden of Greyfriars Hall, Oxford. His
published work includes editions and commentaries on the four
major Homeric Hymns and the last four books of Homer’s Iliad, and
articles on ancient literary criticism, Greek religion and the relation-
ship of classical with modern Greek and English literature.
ROUTLEDGE LATER LATIN POETRY
Edited by Joseph Pucci
Brown University
The Routledge Later Latin Poetry series (RLLP) provides English
translations of the works of those poets writing in Latin between
the fourth and the eighth centuries inclusive. It responds to the
increasing interest in later Latin authors and especially the growth in
courses devoted to late antiquity. Books in the series are designed to
provide comprehensive coverage to support students studying later
Latin poetry and to introduce the material to those wishing to read
these important and often under-translated works in English.
The RLLP is devoted to publishing creative, accessible trans-
lations. Each volume is self-contained and provides introductory
material to contextualise the life and output of the poet in ques-
tion, including manuscript and editorial details. Some discussion
of metrics and Latinity is included and each volume provides
a sense of how the work being translated might be interpreted
(including, where possible, the scholarly history of the same). This
last section concludes, as appropriate, with maps and a list of any
editorial changes made by the translator to the established Latin
text. At the conclusion of each volume, in addition to endnotes
and a reference list, there is a general index that, beyond allowing
readers to negotiate content, also serves as a glossary of names,
dates, figures, places and events. Volumes adhere, as closely as pos-
sible, to line-for-line versions of the Latin original, so that those
who come to the translations with a knowledge of Latin can orient
their reading with the original.
By offering English translations of later Latin poetry with
comprehensive supporting material, the series enables a greater
understanding of late antiquity through one of its most important
literary outputs. The poems are significant sources for the culture,
religion and daily life of the period and clear and imaginative transla-
tions also offer readers the chance to appreciate their quality.
Forthcoming books in the series:
AUSONIUS: SELECTED TRANSLATIONS
Deborah Warren
THE POETRY OF ENNODIUS
Bret Mulligan
RUTLIUS NAMATIANUS: DE REDITU SUO
Martha Malamud
JUVENCUS: THE FOUR BOOKS OF THE GOSPELS
Scott McGill
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PRUDENTIUS’ HYMNS
FOR HOURS AND
SEASONS
LIBER CATHEMERINON
Nicholas Richardson
First published 2016
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2016 Nicholas Richardson
The right of Nicholas Richardson to be identified as author of this work has
been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered
trademarks and are used only for identification and explanation without
intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Prudentius, 348- author.
[Cathemerinon. English]
Prudentius’ Hymns for hours and seasons: the Liber Cathemerinon.
pages cm. — (Later Latin poetry)
Hymns for hours and seasons
Liber Cathemerinon
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Prudentius, 348—-Translations into English. 2. Hymns, Latin—
Translations into English. I. Richardson, N. J. (Nicholas James), translator,
editor. II. Title. III. Title: Hymns for hours and seasons. IV. Title: Liber
Cathemerinon.
PA6648.P6C313 2015
871'.01—dc23
2015023555
ISBN: 978-0-415-71664-2 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-71429-5 (ebk)
Typeset in Garamond 3 LT Std
by Book Now Ltd, London
A.M.D.G.
For Gerard O’Daly
and Father John Osman
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CONTENTS
Preface xi
Abbreviations xiii
Introduction 1
I. Life of Prudentius 1
II. Poetic works 3
III. Liber Cathemerinon 4
IV. Historical context 8
V. Literary context 12
VI. Were these hymns intended to be sung? 14
VII. Language and style 17
VIII. Metre and prosody 22
IX. Reception and influence 26
X. Manuscripts and text 28
XI. The translation and notes 30
The hymns 32
1. Hymn at cock-crow 32
2. Morning hymn 35
3. Hymn before a meal 38
4. Hymn after a meal 43
5. Hymn at the lighting of the lamp 46
6. Hymn before sleep 51
7. Hymn for those who fast 55
8. Hymn after fasting 61
9. Hymn for every hour 63
10. Hymn for the burial of the dead 68
11. Hymn for Christmas Day 73
12. Hymn for Epiphany 76
ix
