This article on the Carmina Figurata of Publilius Optatianus Porphyrius began as a research paper for a seminar on Late Antiquity during my graduate studies at San Francisco State University. After several revisions, it was presented at the Sixth Annual Student Forum on the Ancient World hosted by the Classics Department at SFSU in October 2001. Following further revisions, it was published as a chapter in “Studies in Latin Literature and Roman History,” Volume XII (edited by Carl Deroux, published in Brusselles by Collection Latomus, 2005), pages 447 – 466.