Did Latin have lower-case letters and a full stop at the end of sentences in the 1st century AD? Googling doesn't seem to yield a definitive answer.
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I LOVE this question, but it's off topic because it concerns only punctuation in only one language. This question would be better addressed in a Latin forum. Is there a Latin stack exchange?– James GrossmannCommented Feb 15, 2016 at 1:46
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1Edmonson 2014 argues that "Square capitals remained the basic form of lettering used for public inscriptions throughout the first and second centuries" (emphasis mine - Alex B.).Why not take a look at the Oxford Handbook of Roman Epigraphy? Highly recommend.– Alex B.Commented Feb 15, 2016 at 23:19
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See also this question on Latin Language: latin.stackexchange.com/questions/332/…– Sir CornflakesCommented Dec 29, 2016 at 22:31
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1 Answer
Bicameral script, the mixing of upper and lower case, was not used in Latin in the 1st century CE. Rather, Latin was written in two styles: majuscule (also called Latin square capitals) and miniscule (also called Latin cursive).
Majuscule script was used primarily on inscriptions, but also occasionally in handwriting. A good contemporary example of this would be the inscription on Trajan's Column. On monuments, often dots were used on inscriptions to separate words from one another, bu this was not entirely consistent. We also see titulus, bars over Roman numerals to indicate that these are supposed to be read as numbers.
Miniscule script was what was primarily used in handwriting. A good contemporary example of this is the 291st Vindalonda tablet, a birthday invitation from Claudia Severa to Sulpicia Lepidina. We can see from this particular example that full stops were occasionally used, but not consistently even in the same text, and appear to have been typically omitted.