Poetry Codex

Ancient Greek & Roman

Phaedrus

c. 15 BC - c. AD 50

Phaedrus was a Roman fabulist of the first century AD. By his own account he was born in Macedonia or Thrace and became a freedman of the emperor Augustus. He is the first author known to have turned the Greek fables attributed to Aesop into Latin verse, writing them in iambic senarii.

His five books of fables, composed in the reigns of Tiberius and after, mingle animal tales with anecdotes and with pointed remarks on his own critics and on life under the emperors. These English verse renderings are by Christopher Smart, as printed in Bohn's Classical Library (1887).

Poems (93)

  1. Book I: Prologue
  2. I.1 The Wolf and the Lamb
  3. I.2 The Frogs Desiring a King
  4. I.3 The Vain Jackdaw
  5. I.4 The Dog in the River
  6. I.5 The Heifer, Goat, Sheep, and Lion
  7. I.6 The Frogs and Sun
  8. I.7 The Fox and the Tragic Mask
  9. I.8 The Wolf and Crane
  10. I.9 The Hare and the Sparrow
  11. I.10 The Wolf and Fox, with the Ape for Judge
  12. I.11 The Ass and the Lion Hunting
  13. I.12 The Stag at the Fountain
  14. I.13 The Fox and the Crow
  15. I.14 The Cobbler Turned Doctor
  16. I.15 The Sapient Ass
  17. I.16 The Sheep, the Stag, and the Wolf
  18. I.17 The Sheep, the Dog, and the Wolf
  19. I.19 The Bitch and Her Puppies
  20. I.20 The Hungry Dogs
  21. I.21 The Old Lion
  22. I.22 The Man and the Weasel
  23. I.23 The Faithful House-Dog
  24. I.24 The Proud Frog
  25. I.25 The Dog and the Crocodile
  26. I.26 The Fox and the Stork
  27. I.27 The Dog, Treasure, and Vulture
  28. I.28 The Fox and Eagle
  29. I.29 The Frogs and Bulls
  30. I.30 The Kite and the Doves
  31. Book II: Prologue
  32. II.1 The Judicious Lion
  33. II.2 The Bald-Pate Dupe
  34. II.3 The Man and the Dog
  35. II.4 The Eagle, the Cat, and the Sow
  36. II.5 Cæsar and His Slave
  37. II.6 The Eagle, Carrion Crow, and Tortoise
  38. II.7 The Mules and Robbers
  39. II.8 The Stag and the Oxen
  40. Book II: Epilogue
  41. Book III: Prologue, to Eutychus
  42. III.1 The Old Woman and Empty Cask
  43. III.2 The Panther and Shepherds
  44. III.3 The Ape's Head
  45. III.4 Esop and the Insolent Fellow
  46. III.5 The Fly and the Mule
  47. III.6 The Dog and the Wolf
  48. III.7 The Brother and Sister
  49. III.8 A Saying of Socrates
  50. III.9 Of Doubt and Credulity
  51. III.11 The Cock and the Pearl
  52. III.12 The Bees and the Drones
  53. III.13 Esop Playing
  54. III.14 The Dog and the Lamb
  55. III.15 The Owl and the Grasshopper
  56. III.16 The Trees Protected
  57. III.17 Juno and the Peacock
  58. III.18 Esop and the Importunate Fellow
  59. III.19 The Ass and Priests of Cybele
  60. Book IV: Prologue
  61. IV.1 The Weazel and Mice
  62. IV.2 The Fox and the Grapes
  63. IV.3 The Horse and Boar
  64. IV.4 Esop and the Will
  65. IV.5 The Battle of the Mice and Weasels
  66. IV.6 Phædrus to the Cavillers
  67. IV.7 The Viper and the File
  68. IV.8 The Fox and the Goat
  69. IV.9 The Two Bags
  70. IV.10 The Sacrilegious Thief
  71. IV.11 Hercules and Plutus
  72. IV.12 The He-Goats and She-Goats
  73. IV.13 The Pilot and Sailors
  74. IV.14 The Man and the Adder
  75. IV.15 The Fox and the Dragon
  76. IV.16 Phædrus, on His Fables
  77. IV.17 The Shipwreck of Simonides
  78. IV.18 The Mountain in Labor
  79. IV.19 The Ant and the Fly
  80. IV.20 The Escape of Simonides
  81. Book IV: Epilogue to Eutychus
  82. Book V: Prologue, to Particulo
  83. V.1 Demetrius and Menander
  84. V.2 The Thief and the Travellers
  85. V.3 The Bald Man and the Fly
  86. V.4 The Man and the Ass
  87. V.5 The Buffoon and Country-Fellow
  88. Book V: To Particulo
  89. V.6 The Two Bald Men
  90. V.7 Prince the Piper
  91. V.8 Opportunity
  92. V.9 The Bull and the Calf
  93. V.10 The Old Dog and the Huntsman

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