TheIlias Latina is a shortLatinhexameter version of theIliad ofHomer that gained popularity in Antiquity and remained popular through theMiddle Ages. It was very widely studied and read inMedieval schools as part of the standard Latin educationalcurriculum. According toErnest Robert Curtius, it is a "crudecondensation", into 1070 lines.[1] It is attributed toPublius Baebius Italicus, said to be aRoman Senator, and to the decade 60 CE – 70 CE.[2] It includes at least twoacrostic elements: the first lines (after emendation) spell out ITALICUS, while the last lines spell SCRIPSIT, taken together translating "Italicus wrote (it)."[3]
