Which Roman poem by Catullus tells the story of Theseus and Ariadne?

Catullus 64 is the Roman poem by Catullus that tells the story of Theseus and Ariadne.

Also known as the “Marriage of Peleus and Thetis,” the poem is an epyllion, or miniature epic. Its central wedding narrative contains an extended description of Ariadne abandoned on the shore of Naxos after Theseus leaves her. Her lament recalls how she helped him defeat the Minotaur and escape the Labyrinth.

Catullus’s treatment is important because it gives the myth a powerful emotional focus. Rather than concentrating only on Theseus’s heroic victory, the poem emphasizes Ariadne’s betrayal, grief, and isolation.

The poem is often confused with Ovid’s treatments of Ariadne in the Metamorphoses and Heroides. Those are different Latin works by a different Roman poet. Catullus 64 is the specific classical poem associated with this extended version of Ariadne’s story.