Cracks all to pieces ... till that hour
My golden work shall stand.’
Tennyson, Lucretius.
MARCUS MANILIUS, fl. 12 A.D.
1. Life.
MANILIUS.
Nothing is known of his life. That he was not of Roman birth (perhaps a native of N. Africa) is probable from the foreign colouring of his language at the outset, which in the later books becomes more smooth and fluent from increased practice.
2. Works.
The Astronomica in five Books of hexameter verse. The poem should rather be called Astrology, as Astronomy is treated only in Book I. He is proud of being the first writer on this subject in Latin literature. A close study of Lucretius is obvious from several passages: he often imitates Vergil, and in the legends (e.g. of Perseus and Andromeda) Ovid.