The « Vita Sancti Martini » is unusual in Fortunatus 's corpus in its use of hexameter and its narrative content.
Analysis both of its narrative structure and of the function and distinctive features of the scenes in heaven with which Books 2, 3, and the Martin portion of Book 4 conclude demonstrates that the particular qualities of the poem, far from being extrinsic rhetorical flourishes, contribute to its efficacy as a meditation on St. Martin.
The emphasis on gesture at 1, 487-500 probably owes something to the visual arts and may be compared with the Andrews diptych (London, Victoria and Albert Museum, inv. no. A.47-1926 and A.47A-1926).
An apse mosaic in the church of SS. Cosmas and Damian in Rome, together with its inscription (ILCV 1784), illuminate a number of other aspects.
