The Selected Letters of Cassiodorus

One of the great Christian scholars of antiquity and a high-ranking public official under Theoderic, King of the Ostrogoths, Cassiodorus compiled edicts, diplomatic letters, and legal documents while in office. The collection of his writings, the Variae, remains among the most important sources for the sixth century, the period during which late antiquity transitioned to the early middle ages.
 
Translated and selected by scholar M. Shane Bjornlie, The Selected Letters gathers the most interesting evidence from the Veriae for understanding the political culture, legal structure, intellectual and religious worldviews, and social evolution during the twilight of the late-Roman state. Bjornlie’s invaluable introduction discusses Cassiodorus’s work in civil, legal, and financial administration, revealing his interactions with emperors, kings, bishops, military commanders, private citizens, and even criminals. Section notes introduce each letter to contextualize its themes and connection with other letters, opening a window to Cassiodorus’s world.

 

M. Shane Bjornlie is Associate Professor of Roman and Late Antique History in the Department of History at Claremont McKenna College.

Maps

Introduction 
Cassiodorus, the Variae, and Their World
The Variae as a Letter Collection
A Note on the Present Translation
Chronology of Key Events
Indictional Years Relative to Cassiodorus's Tenure in Public Offices

Section I. Sixth-Century Italy in a Wider World: Diplomatic Letters from the Ostrogothic Court to the Eastern Imperial and Western "Barbarian" Courts

Section II. The Senate in Public Life and Public Office: Letters to the Senate, Letters to Individual Senators, and Letters Announcing the Appointment of Senators to Office

Section III. Civil Bureaucracy and Administration in Italy: Letters Describing Activities of the Court Bureaucracy and Letters of Appointment to Bureaucratic Posts

Section IV. Taxes and Finances: Letters Describing Fiscal Organization and the Collection and Distribution of State Resources

Section V. Administration of the Provinces: Letters Concerned with Ostrogothic Affairs in Regions outside Italy

Section VI. Goths and the Military: Letters concerning Gothic Settlement and the Organization of the Military

Section VII. Urban Life: Letters Describing Attention to the Urban Environment

Section VIII. Rural Life: Letters concerning People in the Countryside and Their Obligations to the State

Section IX. Religion: Letters to Bishops and Letters Touching upon the Court's Spiritual Sentiments and Involvement in Religious Matters

Section X. Family and Gender: Letters concerning Households and Relations between Family Members and Letters to Women

Section XI. Law, Order, and Conflict: Letters Describing the Court's Approach to Criminal Charges against Individuals

Section XII. Intellectual Culture: Letters Pertaining to Aspects of Late-Antique Intellectual Culture

Section XIII. Nature: Letters That Provide Literary Perspectives on the Natural World

Glossary
Concordance of Letters Cited in This Volume
Selected Bibliography of Related Reading
Index of Individuals
Index of Concepts, Peoples, and Terms
Index of Places