b. between 94 and 98 BC; d. 15 Oct. 55 BC; eminent Roman Epicurean poet and philosopher. Works The only extant work transmitted under the name of Lucretius is the didactic poem De rerum natura. Duplicate copies of the text raise doubts as to whether the poem had been finished by the author himself or whether later interpolations are present. Manuscripts Even though the manuscript transmission dates back to the Carolingian Age, Lucretius’ work was not known in the Middle Ages. Christianity – as Antiquity had done earlier – regarded Atomism (which did not r…