Propertius 1.21 Click to return home. Read by Professor Kathleen Coleman Professor of Classics, Harvard University (July 14, 1997. Boylston Recording Studios. Jeff Martini, audio engineer.) Propertius 1.21 Some notes by Kathleen Coleman Line 1 'Tu': The speaker, the deceased 'Gallus' referred to in line 7, is addressing a fellow-soldier who escaped from the siege of Perusia (modern Perugia) during the battle between Octavian (later Augustus) and L. Antonius (Mark Antony's brother) in 41 BC. The address to a passer-by is a typical format for a tomb-inscription, exploiting the pathos (as at the end of this poem) whereby the deceased reveals his (or her) own identity to posterity. Line 6 'soror': The text here is corrupt, but it appears that 'Gallus' is asking his companion to take a message home to his sister to tell her of his death. Line 6 'Caesaris': As Julius Caesar's adopted son, Octavian took his adoptive parent's name and was formally known as 'C. Iulius Caesar Octauianus'. He avoided the 'Octauianus' that betrayed his origins; hence, significantly, Propertius here refers to him by his preferred name of 'Caesar'.