The Metamorphoses is a seminal Latin narrative poem written by the Roman poet Ovid and completed around 8 CE. It is widely regarded as his magnum opus and remains one of the most influential works in Western literature. The poem is structured into 15 books and contains nearly 12,000 lines of verse.
Within this expansive work, Ovid chronicles the history of the world from its initial creation through to the deification of Julius Caesar. The text weaves together over 250 individual myths into a cohesive, mythico-historical framework. By focusing on the theme of transformation, the poem provides a comprehensive survey of classical mythology that has shaped artistic and literary traditions for centuries.