SOURCE: Merrill, Elmer Truesdell. “The Tradition of Pliny's Letters.” Classical Philology 10 (January-October 1915): 8-25.

In the following essay, Merrill traces the manuscript history of and critical commentary on Pliny's Letters from Pliny's own day to the early twentieth century.

It is my purpose to attempt in these pages a mere outline sketch, therefore without much argument, of the tradition of Pliny's Letters i-ix from the time of their first appearance down to the era of the early printed editions. Where I could I have avoided the duplication of discussion by referring to articles already published.

Jean Masson in 1709 was apparently the first scholar to undertake seriously and in detail an investigation of the chronology of Pliny's life and writings. His conclusions, faulty as they were, held sway until Theodor Mommsen established more scientific ground by an examination of the dates of the individual books and letters. Mommsen's (not always...