| The Sea Coast | |
|---|---|
| byAvienius | |
 | |
| Original title | Ora maritima |
| Genre(s) | Geography andtravel |
| Publication date | 4th century AD |
Ora maritima ('The Sea Coast') is a poem written byAvienius. It has been claimed to contain borrowings from theMassaliote Periplus (perhaps dating to the 6th century BC).[1][2] This poeticisedperiplus resulted in ananachronistic, non-factual account of the coastal regions of the known world. His editorAndré Berthelot demonstrated that Avienius' land-measurements were derived fromRoman itineraries but inverted some sequences. Berthelot remarked of some names on theHispanic coast: "The omission ofEmporium, contrasting strangely with the names ofTarragon andBarcelona, may characterize the method of Avienius, who searches archaic documents and mingles his searches of them with his impressions as an official of the fourth century A.D."[3]Ora maritima was a work for the reader rather than the traveller, where the fourth century present intrudes largely in the mention of cities at the time abandoned, like the legendaryOphiussa.[4] More recent scholars have emended the too credulous reliance on Avienius' accuracy of his editor, the historian-archaeologistAdolf Schulten.[5] Another ancient chief text cited by Avienius is thePeriplus ofHimilco, the description of aPunic expedition through the Atlantic coasts of Europe which took place at the same time of thecircumnavigation of Africa by Hanno (c. 500 BC).[6]
Ora maritima includes reference to the islands ofIerne andAlbion,Ireland andBritain,[7] whose inhabitants reputedly traded with theOestrymnides ofBrittany.[2] The work was dedicated toSextus Claudius Petronius Probus. It also mentions the presumably mythical city ofCypsela in theCatalonian coast.[Verse 521]
The whole text derives from a single manuscript source, used for theeditio princeps published atVenicein 1488.[8]
Berthelot (1934) gives the following outline of the poem:[8]
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