Pliny the Elder (lived c. AD 23–79)
Gaius Plinius Secundus wrote the “Natural History” in 37 books and dedicated it to Titus. In AD 79 he commanded the fleet at Misenum.
When a pine-shaped cloud appeared over the bay, he wanted to investigate it, but at Rectina’s plea he put out with the galleys to rescue people. When the helmsman advised turning back, he answered: “Fortune favors the brave.” He spent the night at Stabiae with Pomponianus and died the next day on the shore.
Everything we know about his last hours comes from a letter to Tacitus by his nephew, Pliny the Younger (Letters 6.16).
