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The Latin term hortus (singular, basic garden/vegetable plot) and its plural horti (large, luxurious suburban estates) refer to distinct physical locations in the specific classical citations from Cicero: 

1. De Finibus 5.1.3 — The Academy in Athens

• The Location: Just outside the Dipylon Gate in Athens, Greece.
• Context: Cicero sets this philosophical dialogue at the famous Academy of Plato. In this specific passage, the characters walk out to the Academy in the quiet afternoon. As they look at the empty spaces, they explicitly mention how looking at these horti (the surrounding groves and landscaped grounds) brings back intense memories of Plato and the great philosophers who walked there. 

2. De Natura Deorum 1.33.93 — The Garden of Epicurus in Athens

• The Location: Inside the city walls of Athens, Greece (near the Dipylon Gate, between the Agora and the Academy).
• Context: Cicero uses horti to refer directly to the "Garden of Epicurus" (instituit Athenis Epicurus... in ipsa urbe, as Pliny later notes). In this passage, Cotta mocks the famous "license that prevailed in the Garden of Epicurus" (licentia quam in hortis celebrabat), where even the courtesan Leontium was emboldened to write philosophical refutations against Theophrastus. 

3. Ad Atticum 12.23.2 — Rome's Trans-Tiberin Suburban Properties

• The Location: The right bank of the Tiber River (Trastevere/Janiculum hill area, Rome).
• Context: Writing in 45 BCE following the devastating death of his daughter Tullia, Cicero writes to Atticus about his desperate search to buy a specific plot of horti (suburban pleasure gardens). He wants this property specifically to build a permanent shrine (fanum) in her memory. In this exact line, he asks Atticus: "I should like you to write and tell me for what day the gardens (horti) are advertised for sale". 

Would you like the exact Latin text passages alongside these English translations, or are you looking for details on Cicero's negotiation for those Transtiberine properties?

L'AI può commettere errori, quindi verifica le risposte 

The famous Garden of Epicurus—known in Greek as Ho Kepos (ὁ κῆπος)—was originally owned by Epicurushimself, who purchased it around 307/306 BCE for 80 minae. He later left it to his school’s successors in his will. 

Centuries later, during the Roman era, prominent Romans did legally own it. By Cicero's time, the property had fallen into the hands of a Roman aristocrat named Caius Memmius (the very man Lucretius dedicated De Rerum Natura to). Memmius wanted to tear down Epicurus' old house to build a mansion, prompting a frantic letter from Cicero to prevent the destruction of the historical site. Later, the Roman Emperor Hadrian and his wife Plotina granted special legal permissions to the Epicurean succession regarding the ownership and inheritance of this specific property. 

Location in Athens

The property was located just outside the Northwest city walls of Athens, along the Dromos (the main road running from the Dipylon Gate to Plato's Academy). It sat near the canalized Eridanus River, which supplied the lush water needed for irrigation. Today, this corresponds roughly to the modern Metaxourgeio neighborhood (specifically near Marathonos 61, where ancient seated statues of Epicurus were unearthed).

Pliny the Elder: Textual Account

Pliny the Elder discusses the exact origin of this urban garden style in his Naturalis Historia (Book 19, Chapter 19, Section 50-51). He famously labels Epicurus the "Master of Leisure" (otii magister), crediting him with introducing country-style gardens directly into city living. 

Latin Text

"...iam quidem hortorum nomine in ipsa urbe delicias agros villasque possident. primus hoc instituit Athenis Epicurus otii magister; usque ad eum moris non fuerat in oppidis habitari rura." 

English Translation (Loeb Classical Library)

"...Nowadays indeed under the name of gardens people possess the luxury of regular farms and country houses actually within the city. This practice was first introduced at Athens by that connoisseur of luxurious ease [master of leisure], Epicurus; down to his day the custom had not existed of having country dwellings in towns." 

Would you like to explore the letters between Cicero and Memmius regarding the near-destruction of Epicurus' house, or see more on how Hadrian's lawsaltered the ownership of the Garden?