A Roman seaside villa on a sunnier day (fresco from the Villa San Marco, Stabiae)

6.16.11-12: Fortune Favors the Brave

This post belongs to a serialized translation and commentary of Pliny the Younger’s letters (6.16 and 6.20) to the historian Tacitus about the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. This is the fourth installment for letter 6.16.

At this point in the story, the Elder Pliny has set off to rescue citizens trapped in their villas below Vesuvius on the east edge of the Bay of Naples. He is commanding several warships, and noting down his observations of the eruption as it develops. It is likely late afternoon as the ships approach shore.

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