A letter from Fortunatus (after 567)

Translated letter:

[Again for the chestnuts] This little basket was woven by my hands with twigs: believe me, dears, mother and kind sister; and what the country bears, I offer here as rustic gifts, sweet chestnuts, which the tree gave to the fields.

Original letter:

[Item aliud pro castaneis] Ista meis manibus fiscella est vimine texta: credite mi, carae, mater et alma soror; et quae rura ferunt, hic rustica dona ministro, castaneas molles, quas dedit arbor agris.

Historical context:

Bishop Venantius Fortunatus met Agnes and her patron, Radegund, when he visited Poitiers. They became good friends and exchanged epistolary poems and small gifts until the women died. After her death, Fortunatus wrote a life of Radegund emphasizing her ascetic qualities.

Printed source:

Venanti Fortunati Opera Poetica, ed. Fridericus Leo (Berlin: Weidmann, 1881), 258, Librum XI, xiii

Date:

after 567