In an unconventional but moving ode in which the speaker is a drowned sailor, pleas for burial are combined with reflections on the inevitability of death. Hear Horace’s Latin and follow in English here; see the illustrated blog post here.

At a time when it seems equally possible that Rome may find peace or slide back into disastrous civil war, Horace addresses a heartfelt prayer to Fortuna, a Goddess who can be both kindly and remorselessly cruel. Hear Horace’s Latin and follow in English here; see the illustrated blog post here.

As well as the messenger of the Gods, Mercury was an incorrigible, but irresistibly playful, thief. Hear Horace’s Latin and follow in English here; see the illustrated blog post here.

Horace complains to a promising young soldier – via his girlfriend, Lydia – that his preoccupation with her is ruining him. Hear Horace’s Latin and follow in English here; see the illustrated blog post here.