Ep. 2.17.1Mīrāris cūr mē Laurentīnum vel - sī ita māvīs -, Laurēns meum tantō opere dēlectet;You wonder why my Laurentine villa, or – if you prefer – my Laurens, delights me so much; Ep. 2.17.1dēsinēs mīrārī, cum cognōveris grātiam vīllae, opportūnitātem locī, lītoris spatium.you will stop wondering once you have learned the charm of the villa, the convenience of the site, the extent of the shore. Ep. 2.17.2Decem septem mīlibus passuum ab urbe sēcessit, ut perāctīs quae agenda fuerint salvō iam et compositō diē possīs ibi manēre.It lies seventeen miles from the city, so that, after finishing what has to be done, with your day's work safe and settled, you can stay there. Ep. 2.17.2Aditur nōn ūna via;It is reached by more than one road; Ep. 2.17.2nam et Laurentīna et Ōstiēnsis eōdem ferunt, sed Laurentīna ā quartō decimō lapide, Ōstiēnsis ab ūndecimō relinquenda est.for both the Laurentine and the Ostian roads lead to the same place, but the Laurentine must be left at the fourteenth milestone, the Ostian at the eleventh. Ep. 2.17.2Utrimque excipit iter aliquā ex parte harēnōsum, iūnctīs paulō gravius et longius, equō breve et molle.From either side the road that takes you on is partly sandy, rather heavy and slow for a carriage, short and soft for a horse.
Ep. 2.17.3Varia hinc atque inde faciēs;The scenery varies on this side and that; Ep. 2.17.3nam modo occurrentibus silvīs via coartātur, modo lātissimīs prātīs diffunditur et patēscit;for sometimes the road narrows as woods close in, sometimes it spreads out and opens across very wide meadows; Ep. 2.17.3multī gregēs ovium, multa ibi equōrum boum armenta, quae montibus hieme dēpulsa herbīs et tepōre vērnō nitēscunt.there are many flocks of sheep there, many herds of horses and cattle, which, driven down from the mountains in winter, grow sleek on the grass and in the warmth of spring. Ep. 2.17.3Vīlla ūsibus capāx, nōn sūmptuōsā tūtēlā.The villa is roomy enough for use, and not expensive to maintain. Ep. 2.17.4Cuius in prīmā parte ātrium frūgī, nec tamen sordidum;In its front part is an atrium, plain but not mean; Ep. 2.17.4deinde porticūs in D litterae similitūdinem circumāctae, quibus parvola sed fēstīva ārea inclūditur.then colonnades curving round in the shape of the letter D, which enclose a small but cheerful courtyard. Ep. 2.17.4Ēgregium hāc adversus tempestātēs receptāculum;This makes an excellent refuge against storms; Ep. 2.17.4nam speculāribus ac multō magis imminentibus tēctīs mūniuntur.for they are protected by panes of transparent stone and much more by the overhanging roofs.
Ep. 2.17.5Est contrā mediās cavaedium hilare, mox triclīnium satis pulchrum, quod in lītus excurrit ac sī quandō Āfricō mare impulsum est, frāctīs iam et novissimīs flūctibus leviter alluitur.Opposite their middle is a cheerful inner court, then a rather beautiful dining room, which runs out towards the shore and, whenever the sea is driven in by the south-west wind, is lightly washed by the last waves, already broken. Ep. 2.17.5Undique valvās aut fenestrās nōn minōrēs valvīs habet atque ita ā lateribus ā fronte quasi tria maria prōspectat;On all sides it has folding doors or windows no smaller than the doors, and so from the sides and the front it looks out, as it were, on three seas; Ep. 2.17.5ā tergō cavaedium porticum āream porticum rūrsus, mox ātrium silvās et longinquōs respicit montēs.behind, it looks back through the inner court, the colonnade, the courtyard, the colonnade again, then the atrium, to the woods and the distant mountains. Ep. 2.17.6Huius ā laevā retrāctius paulō cubiculum est amplum, deinde aliud minus quod alterā fenestrā admittit orientem, occidentem alterā retinet;To the left of this, set back a little, is a spacious bedroom, then another smaller one, which lets in the rising sun through one window and holds the setting sun with the other; Ep. 2.17.6hāc et subiacēns mare longius quidem sed sēcūrius intuētur.through this window it also views the sea lying below, at a greater distance indeed, but more securely.
Ep. 2.17.7Huius cubiculī et triclīniī illīus obiectū inclūditur angulus, quī pūrissimum sōlem continet et accendit.By the projection of this bedroom and of that dining room a corner is enclosed, which holds and intensifies the purest sunshine. Ep. 2.17.7Hoc hībernāculum, hoc etiam gymnasium meōrum est;This is the winter quarters, this also the exercise ground of my household; Ep. 2.17.7ibi omnēs silent ventī, exceptīs quī nūbilum indūcunt, et serēnum ante quam ūsum locī ēripiunt.there all the winds are silent except those which bring in cloud, and they take away the clear sky before they take away the use of the place. Ep. 2.17.8Annectitur angulō cubiculum in hapsīda curvātum, quod ambitum sōlis fenestrīs omnibus sequitur.Joined to the corner is a bedroom curved into an apse, which follows the course of the sun with all its windows. Ep. 2.17.8Parietī eius in bibliothēcae speciem armārium īnsertum est, quod nōn legendōs librōs sed lēctitandōs capit.Into its wall a cupboard is fitted like a library, which holds books not to be read once but to be read again and again.
Ep. 2.17.9Adhaeret dormītōrium membrum trānsitū interiacente, quī suspēnsus et tubulātus conceptum vapōrem salūbrī temperāmentō hūc illūc dīgerit et ministrat.Adjoining it is a sleeping wing, with a passage between, which, raised on a hollow floor and fitted with pipes, distributes and supplies the heat it has received hither and thither at a healthy temperature. Ep. 2.17.9Reliqua pars lateris huius servōrum lībertōrumque ūsibus dētinētur, plērīsque tam mundīs, ut accipere hospitēs possint.The rest of this side is kept for the use of slaves and freedmen, most of the rooms being so neat that they could receive guests. Ep. 2.17.10Ex aliō latere cubiculum est polītissimum;On the other side is a most elegant bedroom; Ep. 2.17.10deinde vel cubiculum grande vel modica cēnātiō, quae plūrimō sōle, plūrimō marī lūcet;then either a large bedroom or a moderate dining room, which shines with abundant sun and abundant sea; Ep. 2.17.10post hanc cubiculum cum procoetōne, altitūdine aestīvum, mūnīmentīs hībernum;after this a bedroom with an antechamber, fit for summer by its height, for winter by its shelter; Ep. 2.17.10est enim subductum omnibus ventīs.for it is withdrawn from all the winds.
Ep. 2.17.10Huic cubiculō aliud et procoetōn commūnī pariete iunguntur.To this bedroom another, with its antechamber, is joined by a common wall. Ep. 2.17.11Inde balineī cella frīgidāria spatiōsa et effūsa, cuius in contrāriīs parietibus duo baptistēria velut ēiecta sinuantur, abundē capācia sī mare in proximō cōgitēs.Then comes the cold room of the baths, spacious and wide, in whose opposite walls two plunge-baths curve out as if thrown outwards, amply large if you consider that the sea is close by. Ep. 2.17.11Adiacet ūnctōrium, hypocauston, adiacet propnigēon balineī, mox duae cellae magis ēlegantēs quam sūmptuōsae;Next to it is the anointing room, the hypocaust, next to it the furnace room of the baths, then two small rooms more elegant than costly; Ep. 2.17.11cohaeret calida piscīna mīrifica, ex quā natantēs mare aspiciunt, nec procul sphaeristērium quod calidissimō sōlī inclīnātō iam diē occurrit.connected to these is a wonderful heated swimming pool, from which swimmers look out on the sea, and not far off is a ball court, which meets the hottest sun as the day declines. Ep. 2.17.12Hīc turris ērigitur, sub quā diaetae duae, totidem in ipsā, praetereā cēnātiō quae lātissimum mare longissimum lītus vīllās amoenissimās possidet.Here a tower rises, beneath which are two suites, and as many in the tower itself, as well as a dining room which commands a very wide sea, a very long shore and the most delightful villas.
Ep. 2.17.13Est et alia turris;There is also another tower; Ep. 2.17.13in hāc cubiculum, in quō sōl nāscitur conditurque;in this is a bedroom in which the sun rises and sets; Ep. 2.17.13lāta post apothēca et horreum, sub hōc triclīnium, quod turbātī maris nōn nisi fragōrem et sonum patitur, eumque iam languidum ac dēsinentem;behind it a broad storeroom and granary, beneath this a dining room, which of the troubled sea receives only the roar and the noise, and that already faint and dying away; Ep. 2.17.13hortum et gestātiōnem videt, quā hortus inclūditur.it looks on the garden and the drive by which the garden is enclosed. Ep. 2.17.14Gestātiō buxō aut rōre marīnō, ubi dēficit buxus, ambītur;The drive is bordered with box, or with rosemary where the box fails; Ep. 2.17.14nam buxus, quā parte dēfenditur tēctīs, abundē viret;for box, where it is sheltered by buildings, flourishes richly; Ep. 2.17.14apertō caelō apertōque ventō et quamquam longinquā aspergine maris inārēscit.under the open sky and exposed to the wind, and to the spray of the sea, though from far off, it withers. Ep. 2.17.15Adiacet gestātiōnī interiōre circumitū vīnea tenera et umbrōsa, nūdīsque etiam pedibus mollis et cēdēns.Next to the drive, on the inner circuit, is a young and shady vine-walk, soft and yielding even to bare feet.
Ep. 2.17.15Hortum mōrus et fīcus frequēns vestit, quārum arborum illa vel maximē ferāx terra est, malignior cēterīs.The garden is clothed with many mulberries and figs, trees for which the soil is especially fertile, though less kind to others. Ep. 2.17.15Hāc nōn dēteriōre quam maris faciē cēnātiō remōta ā marī fruitur, cingitur diaetīs duābus ā tergō, quārum fenestrīs subiacet vestibulum vīllae et hortus alius pinguis et rūsticus.This view, no worse than that of the sea, is enjoyed by a dining room set back from the sea, which is flanked behind by two suites, beneath whose windows lie the entrance of the villa and another garden, rich and rustic. Ep. 2.17.16Hinc cryptoporticus prope pūblicī operis extenditur.From here a covered colonnade stretches out, almost on the scale of a public building. Ep. 2.17.16Utrimque fenestrae, ā marī plūrēs, ab hortō singulae sed alternīs pauciōrēs.It has windows on both sides, more facing the sea, facing the garden single ones, fewer because they come only in every other bay. Ep. 2.17.16Hae cum serēnus diēs et immōtus, omnēs, cum hinc vel inde ventīs inquiētus, quā ventī quiēscunt sine iniūriā patent.When the day is calm and still, these are all opened; when it is disturbed by winds from this side or that, those on the side where the winds are quiet open without harm.
Ep. 2.17.17Ante cryptoporticum xystus violīs odōrātus.In front of the colonnade is a terrace fragrant with violets. Ep. 2.17.17Tepōrem sōlis īnfūsī repercussū cryptoporticus auget, quae ut tenet sōlem sīc aquilōnem inhibet summovetque, quantumque calōris ante tantum retrō frīgoris;The colonnade increases the warmth of the sun falling on it by reflecting it, and just as it holds the sun, so it checks and keeps off the north wind, and as much heat as there is in front, so much cold is there behind; Ep. 2.17.17similiter āfricum sistit, atque ita dīversissimōs ventōs alium aliō latere frangit et fīnit.likewise it stops the south-west wind, and so it breaks and ends the most opposite winds, one on one side, another on the other. Ep. 2.17.17Haec iūcunditās eius hieme, maior aestāte.This is its pleasantness in winter; greater in summer. Ep. 2.17.18Nam ante merīdiem xystum, post merīdiem gestātiōnis hortīque proximam partem umbrā suā temperat, quae, ut diēs crēvit dēcrēvitve, modo brevior modo longior hāc vel illā cadit.For before noon it tempers the terrace with its shade, after noon the nearest part of the drive and the garden, its shade falling shorter or longer on this side or that as the day has lengthened or shortened.
Ep. 2.17.19Ipsa vērō cryptoporticus tum maximē caret sōle, cum ārdentissimus culminī eius īnsistit.The colonnade itself, indeed, is most free from sun just when the sun stands most blazing on its roof. Ep. 2.17.19Ad hoc patentibus fenestrīs favōniōs accipit trānsmittitque nec umquam āere pigrō et manente ingravēscit.Besides, through its open windows it receives the west winds and lets them through, and never grows heavy with stale and stagnant air. Ep. 2.17.20In capite xystī, deinceps cryptoporticūs hortī, diaeta est amōrēs meī, rē vērā amōrēs: ipse posuī.At the head of the terrace, and then of the colonnade and the garden, is a suite which is my darling, truly my darling: I built it myself. Ep. 2.17.20In hāc hēliocamīnus quidem aliā xystum, aliā mare, utrāque sōlem, cubiculum autem valvīs cryptoporticum, fenestrā prōspicit mare.In it is a sun-room, which looks out on the terrace from one side, on the sea from the other, and on the sun from both, and a bedroom which looks on the colonnade through folding doors and on the sea through a window.
Ep. 2.17.21Contrā parietem medium zōthēca perquam ēleganter recēdit, quae speculāribus et vēlīs obductīs reductīsve modo adicitur cubiculō modo aufertur.Opposite the middle of the wall an alcove recedes very elegantly, which, by drawing or drawing back its glazed panels and curtains, is now added to the bedroom, now separated from it. Ep. 2.17.21Lectum et duās cathedrās capit;It holds a couch and two chairs; Ep. 2.17.21ā pedibus mare, ā tergō vīllae, ā capite silvae: tot faciēs locōrum totidem fenestrīs et distinguit et miscet.at its feet the sea, at its back villas, at its head woods: so many views of places it both separates and mingles with as many windows. Ep. 2.17.22Iūnctum est cubiculum noctis et somnī.Adjoining is a bedroom for night and sleep. Ep. 2.17.22Nōn illud vōcēs servolōrum, nōn maris murmur, nōn tempestātum mōtūs nōn fulgurum lūmen, ac nē diem quidem sentit, nisi fenestrīs apertīs.It is not aware of the voices of the young slaves, nor the murmur of the sea, nor the movement of storms, nor the flash of lightning, nor even of daylight, unless the windows are opened.
Ep. 2.17.22Tam altī abditīque sēcrētī illa ratiō, quod interiacēns andrōn parietem cubiculī hortīque distinguit atque ita omnem sonum mediā inānitāte cōnsūmit.The reason for such deep and hidden seclusion is that an intervening passage separates the wall of the bedroom from that of the garden, and so swallows up all sound in the empty space between. Ep. 2.17.23Applicitum est cubiculō hypocauston perexiguum, quod angustā fenestrā suppositum calōrem, ut ratiō exigit, aut effundit aut retinet.Attached to the bedroom is a very small hypocaust, which through a narrow window either lets out or retains the heat below, as need requires. Ep. 2.17.23Procoetōn inde et cubiculum porrigitur in sōlem, quem orientem statim exceptum ultrā merīdiem oblīcum quidem sed tamen servat.From there an antechamber and bedroom stretch out into the sun, which they catch at once as it rises and keep beyond noon, slanting indeed, but keep it still. Ep. 2.17.24In hanc ego diaetam cum mē recēpī, abesse mihi etiam ā vīllā meā videor, magnamque eius voluptātem praecipuē Sāturnālibus capiō, cum reliqua pars tēctī licentiā diērum fēstīsque clamōribus personat;When I have withdrawn into this suite, I seem to be away even from my villa, and I take great pleasure in it especially at the Saturnalia, when the rest of the house rings with the licence of the holidays and festive shouts; Ep. 2.17.24nam nec ipse meōrum lūsibus nec illī studiīs meīs obstrepunt.for neither do I disturb the games of my household nor they my studies.
Ep. 2.17.25Haec ūtilitās haec amoenitās dēficitur aquā salientī, sed puteōs ac potius fontēs habet;These conveniences, these charms lack running water, but there are wells, or rather springs; Ep. 2.17.25sunt enim in summō.for they are near the surface. Ep. 2.17.25Et omnīnō lītoris illīus mīra nātūra: quācumque locō mōveris humum, obvius et parātus ūmor occurrit, isque sincērus ac nē leviter quidem tantā maris vīcīnitāte corruptus.And altogether the nature of that shore is wonderful: wherever you dig the ground, moisture meets you ready to hand, and it is pure, not in the least spoiled by the nearness of so great a sea. Ep. 2.17.26Suggerunt affatim ligna proximae silvae;The nearby woods supply firewood in plenty; Ep. 2.17.26cēterās cōpiās ōstiēnsis colōnia ministrat.other provisions the colony of Ostia supplies. Ep. 2.17.26Frūgī quidem hominī sufficit etiam vīcus, quem ūna vīlla discernit.For a frugal man even the village is enough, which is separated from us by a single villa. Ep. 2.17.26In hōc balinea meritōria tria, magna commoditās, sī forte balineum domī vel subitus adventus vel brevior mora calfacere dissuādeat.In it there are three public baths for hire, a great convenience, if perhaps a sudden arrival or too short a stay makes heating the bath at home inadvisable.
Ep. 2.17.27Lītus ōrnant varietāte grātissimā nunc continua nunc intermissa tēcta vīllārum, quae praestant multārum urbium faciem, sīve marī sīve ipsō lītore ūtāre;The shore is adorned, with most pleasing variety, by the roofs of villas, now continuous, now with gaps, which present the appearance of many cities, whether you are on the sea or on the shore itself; Ep. 2.17.27quod nōn numquam longa tranquillitās mollit, saepius frequēns et contrārius flūctus indūrat.this shore a long calm sometimes softens, but more often frequent and contrary waves harden it. Ep. 2.17.28Mare nōn sānē pretiōsīs piscibus abundat, soleās tamen et squillās optimās ēgerit.The sea is not really rich in costly fish, yet it yields soles and excellent prawns. Ep. 2.17.28Vīlla vērō nostra etiam mediterrāneās cōpiās praestat, lāc in prīmīs;Our villa, however, provides inland produce too, milk above all; Ep. 2.17.28nam illūc ē pāscuīs pecora conveniunt, sī quandō aquam umbramve sectantur.for the flocks gather there from the pastures whenever they seek water or shade. Ep. 2.17.29Iūstīsne dē causīs iam tibi videor incolere inhabitāre dīligere sēcessum?Do I now seem to you to have just reasons for living in, dwelling in, and loving this retreat?
Ep. 2.17.29quem tū nimis urbānus es nisi concupīscis.and you are too much a man of the city if you do not long for it. Ep. 2.17.29Atque utinam concupīscās!And how I wish you would long for it! Ep. 2.17.29ut tot tantīsque dōtibus vīllulae nostrae maxima commendātiō ex tuō contuberniō accēdat.so that to the many great endowments of our little villa the greatest commendation might be added from your company. Ep. 2.17.29Valē.Farewell.