Image: J. M. W. Turner, The Bay of Baiae, with Apollo and the Sibyl (exhibited 1823). Tate, Turner Bequest 1856 (N00505). Public-domain painting; the image used on the old Vates blog.
Welcome to VATES
What is VATES?
VATES is an occasional (and free!) publication that aims to bring contemporary Latin poetry to the attention of an English-speaking audience. The purpose of the journal is to promote both the reading and the writing of new Latin verse in an attempt to reverse the decline of Latin poetry composition in the English-speaking world.
Published electronically in pdf format, the journal is sent free of charge to any individual or organisation who wishes to see it. They in turn are encouraged to circulate it – either electronically or by printing copies – to an even wider audience. The hope is that the very existence of such a forum for the dissemination of Latin verse will encourage readers to contribute.
The journal is not ‘academic’ in tone: it is intended for anyone with an interest in the subject. In order to make the publication as accessible as possible, featured Latin poems are accompanied by English translations and all editorial articles are in English.
The journal also features articles on the history of the genre and hints and tips about writing Latin poetry.
From the pages of Vates
A poem to begin with
Plato Mi
Plato is my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. When he was just a puppy he inspired the first Latin poem I ever wrote.
tu carissimus es caniculorum,
Plato mi, mihi callidissimusque:
tu stertens quoque semper impudenter
stratis, me gelido, cubare raptis
furtiue potes immemorque dormis.
si fortasse ruas uiam iocose
pellens papilionem in aere agentem,
tu tutus mihi, machinis uitatis,
reddas semper, et immemorque mortis.
felicissimus es caniculorum.
Metre: Hendecasyllables
Translation: Dear Plato
You are to me, my dear Plato, the dearest of little dogs1, and the most cunning: stealthily having stolen the sheets you lie down, shamelessly always snoring, too, and while I am shivering, heedless you sleep. If perhaps playfully you should rush headlong into the road putting to flight a butterfly fluttering on the breeze, may you always come back safe to me, having avoided the cars2, and heedless of death. You are the luckiest of little dogs.
The second issue of the new series, edited by Dr. David Money, is available to read and download here (Issue 16, PDF).
Vates Rediviva 2025
The brand-new 2025 edition of VATES, now under the aegis of Dr. David Money, is available here (Issue 15, PDF). You can still read back issues in the archive.
The new VATES
Issue #15, now under the editorship of Dr. David Money, is available to read and download here.
Also free to download
The Vates Anthology
The Vates Anthology of New Latin Poetry, edited by Mark Walker: a miscellaneous collection of new Latin poems, with English translations, drawn predominantly from the pages of Vates.
