Auson. epigr. 57 Green: un esempio di intermediazione ovidiana del mito di Niobe nella poesia tardoantica

Auson. epigr. 57 Green is an ecphrastic mythological poem which, though focussed on the tale of Niobe and composed of only two couplets, constitutes an illuminating case-study of the afterlife of Ovid and an innovative translation of a Greek epigram (Anth. Plan. 129). The aim of my paper is twofold: to highlight the links which the Latin text maintains with its Greek model in its subsequent process of ‘Romanization’, and to demonstrate how Ausonius’ new interpretation of the tale of Niobe, the Ovidian paradigms and the overall intertextual construction of the epigram allow the poet to display his literary sophistication and to create different layers of appreciation amongst his potential readers.