Text, Letter of Octavius to his brother Candidus

Letter of Octavius to his brother Candidus. Letter to Candidus This, the most impressive and extensive letter found so far, consists of two complete diptychs with notches and tie-holes. It is a rapidly-written business letter by Octavius, an entrepreneur supplying goods on a considerable scale to the Roman army. The style is colloquial, with a variety of financial idioms and a few technical terms. The well-preserved text is slightly obscured by 'offsets', which were caused when the leaves were folded before the ink had dried. The use of the abbreviation Vindol on the back in place of the normal address implies that the letter was brought to Candidus at Vindolanda by an acquaintance. The writer may have been left-handed since the normal letter format has been reversed: page 1, top right; page 2, top left; page 3, bottom right; page 4, bottom left. The closing, greeting and main letter are in the same hand suggesting that the writing is that of Octavius himself. He evidently wrote the le