De balneis Puteolanis

De balneis Puteolanis ("On the baths of Pozzuoli") is a didactic poem in Latin attributed to Peter of Eboli, a medieval Italian poet. The poem has the alternative title De balneis terrae laboris, which translates to “The baths of the land of labor.” It was written in the last decade of the twelfth century, probably in 1197. The poem is dedicated to the emperor, probably Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor at the time of creation, with the inscription “Cesaris ad laudem.”  Generally, the poem is referred to as having thirty-five epigrams (sections), but one study by D’Amato explores the feasibility that the original next could consist of thirty-nine epigrams.  The text itself details the numerous thermal baths of Pozzuoli in the Campi Flegrei region of Campania. It speaks to the therapeutic effect of the waters and celebrates them for their benefits.  The oldest manuscript containing the poem is in the Angelica Library in Rome, approximately dated to the last half of the thirteenth to the early fourteenth century.