Welcome to the Aesopica website!

In addition to this website, you can find a daily Latin fable with English translation and grammar help at LatinViaFables.com... Enjoy!

You will find the following materials at this website:

Renaissance illustrations of Aesop: I've now got three different versions of Steinhowel's Aesop illustrated! The University of Mannheim has made available images from a 1501 edition of Steinhowel's Aesop, and at the Library of Congress I found a 1479 edition of Steinhowel's Aesop (German text), along with a 1521 edition of Steinhowel's Aesop (Spanish text). It's delightful to compare the obvious similarities, but also marked differences, between these three versions. In addition, I've posted images from a 1574 edition by Bernard Salomon, along with the text and images from the 1574 edition by Hieronymus Osius.

Early modern and modern illustrations. In addition to the Renaissance illustrations, I found a lovely 1687 edition of Aesop with illustrations by the famous artist and engraver Francis Barlow. From the early 19th century, I found the Thomas Bewick illustrated edition of Aesop online. The most commonly reprinted English text of Aesop online is the Townsend translation, which I have found online with the Weir illustrations at Google Books. Another commonly reprinted English edition is by Joseph Jacobs, which I have found online with the Heighway illustrations, again at Google Books. Thanks to Project Gutenberg, there are three public domain English translations of Aesop available with illustrations: Aesop's fables illustrated by John Tenniel among others in 1884, a translation by Vernon Jones illustratrated by Arthur Rackham in 1912, and a version of Aesop for children with illustrations by Milo Winters in 1919. Meanwhile, at Google Books, there page scans of Jacobs's Aesop, with illustrations by Richard Heighway. Finally, the most exquisite is Walter Crane's Baby's Own Aesop, with the fables told in limericks!

English versions of Aesop: In addition to the illustrated editions mentioned above, there are some text-only English editions at this website. The oldest printed English version of Aesop dates back to William Caxton in 1484. The first English version of Aesop specifically intended for children was published by Sir Roger L'Estrange in 1692. The most recent and most complete English translation was published by Laura Gibbs (that's me!) for Oxford World's Classics in 2002.

Latin Verse: The oldest surviving collection of Aesop's fables is the verse collection by the first-century Roman poet Phaedrus, who wrote in iambic verse. The late antique poet Avianus wrote a collection of Aesop's fables in elegiac couplets. There are many collections of Aesop's fables in verse dating to the Middle Ages, such as the Romulus: Fabulae Metricae in dacylic hexameters and the fables of Walter of England (also known as the "Anonymous Nevelet") which are written in elegiac coupets, along with the Romulus: Fabulae Rhythmicae, which is written in Goliardic stanzas. From the Renaissance, you can read the Aesopic poetry of Hieronymus Osius or Caspar Barth.

Latin Prose: The prose fables of Ademar constitute one of the oldest collections in the medieval Romulus tradition. The Romulus Anglicus is a later, much more elaborate version. The fables of Odo of Cheriton provide a wonderful example of how the fables were used by medieval preachers. Finally, the Latin Aesop of Steinhowel because the basis for the modern printed editions of Aesop throughout Europe. I've also found some modern Latin prose versions intended for use by school boys, such as Clarke's Reader of 1787, the J&D Reader of 1857, and the Via Latina Reader of 1897.

Greek: To read the Greek fables at this site, you will need a Unicode polytonic Greek font, such as Gentium, which is freely available for both Windows and Macintosh computers. You will find the verse fables of Babrius at this website, along with the prose versions of Aphthonius and Syntipas, and a wide selection of fables from the original two-volume modern edition by Chambry.

Other Languages: There are index pages at this site that can direct you to the French fables of La Fontaine and also to a modern translation of Aesop's fables into Spanish, Fábulas Clásicas.