adj.
Latin Marcus Valerius Martialis
born 0441; AD 38/41, Bilbilis, Hispania
died 0441; 103
Roman poet.
Born in a Roman colony in what is now Spain, Martial went to Rome as a young man. There he associated with such figures as Seneca , Lucan, and Juvenal and enjoyed the patronage of the emperors Titus and Domitian . His early poetry, some marred by gross adulation of Titus, was undistinguished. He is renowned for his 12 books of epigram s (86102?), a form he virtually created. Pointed and often obscene, they provide a picture of Roman society during the early empire that is remarkable both for its completeness and for its accurate portrayal of human foibles.