PPRET Les Préfets du Prétoire de l’Empire Tardif

54. Inscription in honour of the praet. prefect Sallustius from Rome by the provincials of Hispaniae

EpiDoc XML | PDF

54. Inscription in honour of the praet. prefect Sallustius from Rome by the provincials of Hispaniae

Andrea Bernier

In the PLRE I (pp. 797-798)

Editions

CIL 06, 01729 (cf. pp. 4745-4746)
ILS 1254
Cantarelli 1903, pp. 78-79, nr. 5
Lugli 1965, p. 66, nr. 387
Rinaldi 1978, p. 120
De Bonfils 1981, pp. 178-180
Scharf 1994, p. 21, nt. 56
Gregori, Almagno 2019, p. 141, nr. 18

Links

EDCS 18100538
EDR 134902
LSA 323
TM 570214

Praetorian prefects

Flavius Sallustius

Date of the inscription

May 28th, 364 AD

Provenance and location

Ancient city: Roma
Modern city: Rome (Italy)
Province: Urbs
Diocese: Italiciana
Regional prefecture: Italia Illyricum Africa
Provenance: found in 1849 during excavations in the western part of Trajan’s Forum
Current location: Rome, Trajan’s Forum, reserve of the Basilica Ulpia, inv. 3435 (F.T. 77; then 14452)
Ancient location: public space: Trajan’s Forum

Type and material of the support and text layout

Type of support: statue base, with top and bottom mouldings on three sides

Material: white marble

Reuse:

  • Reuse of the inscribed field: yes; the text on the front face is inscribed over an older inscription; also the right side is roughly chiselled.
  • Reuse of the monument: no
  • Opistographic: no

Dimensions of support: Height: 138.5 cm. Width: 67 cm. Breadth: 64 cm.

Dimensions of letters: 3.5 / 5.5 cm.

Inscribed field

Two inscribed fields (frons and latus sin.).
The inscribed field on the left side of the base is slightly damaged.


Writing technique: chiselled

Language: Latin

Rhythm: prose

Palaeography: late Roman monumental capitals

Text category

Honorary inscription for the praetorian prefect Sallustius

Latin text

frons
Fl(avio) Sallustio, v(iro) c(larissimo),
cons(uli) ordinario,
praef(ecto) praet(orio), comiti
consistorii, vicario
5urbi Romae, vicario
Hispaniarum, vicario
Quinq(ue) Provinciarum,
pleno aequitatis
ac fidei ob virtutis
10meritorumq(ue) gloriam,
missis legat(is), ius(sione) sac(ra),
Hispaniae dicaverunt.
latus sin.
Dedicata V kal(endas) Iun(ias)
Divo Ioviano Aug(usto) et Varronian[o]
co(n)ss(ulibus) ((hedera))

Critical edition

Edition based on CIL and photos C. Machado (LSA 323).

frons.5: urbi(s), EDR, Gregori, Almagno 2019
frons.9: fide, De Bonfils 1981
frons.11: missis legt. ius sac., De Bonfils 1981
latus.sin.2: Augusto, EDR, Gregori, Almagno 2019

Translations

English

“To Flavius Sallustius, of clarissimus rank, ordinary consul, praetorian prefect, count of the consistory, vicar of the city of Rome, vicar of the Spains, vicar of the Five Provinces, rich in justice and trustworthiness, for the glory of his virtue and merits, the Spains dedicated (this monument), having been sent the legates and thanks to a sacred order.

Dedicated on the fifth day before the kalends of June (May 28th) in the consulship of Divus Jovian Augustus and Varronianus (364 AD).”

French

“À Flavius Sallustius, clarissime consul ordinaire, préfet du prétoire, comte du consistoire, vicaire de la ville de Rome, vicaire des Espagnes, vicaire des Cinq Provinces, plein d’équité et de fiabilité, pour la gloire de sa vertu et de ses mérites, les Espagnes ont consacré, en ayant envoyé les légats et pour un commandement sacré.

Dédié le cinquième jour avant les kalendes de Juin (28 mai) sous le consulat du Divus Jovien Auguste et de Varronien (364 ap. J.-C.).”

Italian

“A Flavius Sallustius, chiarissimo console ordinario, prefetto del pretorio, conte del concistoro, vicario della città di Roma, vicario delle Spagne, vicario delle Cinque Province, pieno di equità e di affidabilità, per la gloria della sua virtù e dei suoi meriti, le Spagne hanno dedicato, inviati i legati e grazie a un sacro ordine.

Dedicata il quinto giorno prima delle calende di giugno (28 maggio) durante il consolato del Divo Gioviano Augusto e di Varroniano (364 d.C.).”

The inscription and its prefects: critical commentary, updating, overviews

The inscription celebrates the dedication of a monument to Flavius Sallustius in the Forum of Trajan on May 28th 364 AD. The text on the marble base is inscribed over an old inscriptions that was chiselled away; the holes in the upper surface of the base were probably cut to hold a bronze statue (see Niquet 2000, p. 65; cf. G. Alföldy and F. Mitthof in CIL 06, p. 4745). The monument was decreed by the Council of the diocese of the Spains who sent their legates to the imperial court and obtained imperial permission: missis legat(is) ius(sione) sac(ra) Hispaniae dedicaverunt (ll. 11-12). In late antique Rome the emperors usually put up monuments to their praetorian prefects in Trajan’s Forum (see PPRET 46, 48, 51, 62, 93, 98) but private individuals and communities could only put up metal statues to officials in public spaces with imperial permission (see Feissel 1984, pp. 548-550; Ward-Perkins 2016, p. 307; Machado 2019, pp. 143-145; cf. PPRET 24, 58, 75). The imperial grant probably came in the form of an authorization, adressed to the urban prefect, allowing him to erect a statue in the most prestigious public space in the capital, in honour of a senator who was no longer serving in the bureaucracy (on Trajan’s Forum in Late Antiquity, see Bauer 1996, pp. 93-97, 409-412; Niquet 2000, pp. 18-20; Chenault 2012, pp. 118-124, 130-131). The same procedure is recalled in the inscription of the legates of Africa who celebrated the erection of two gilded statues (one in Rome, also Trajan’s Forum, the other in Carthage) of Hymetius, proconsul in 366-368 AD, after obtaining imperial permission in 376 or 378 AD (CIL 06, 01736 = ILS 1256, ll. 16-17: provincia Africa decretis ad divinos principes / dominos nostros missis).

Flavius Sallustius was a supporter of Julian and his praetorian prefect of Gaul (361-363 AD). The inscription records his cursus honorum in descending order. The oldest offices listed are three vicariates that were held by Sallustius in the following order: vicariate of the Five Provinces, vicariate of the Spains and vicariate of the city of Rome. The sequence of three vicariates indicates that Sallustius was probably a new man, someone who had made his way through the ranks of the bureaucracy, after holding minor positions (possibly provincial governorships) that the inscription does not record (see PLRE I, Sallustius 5, pp. 797-798). We can only hasard a guess at the dates of his Roman appointment: the title vicarius urbis Romae is related to the reform of Constantius II in 357 AD (cf. Chastagnol 1960, pp. 36-42, 464), while the following position of praetorian prefect was held from 361 AD.

After the last vicariate Sallustius became part of the consistory of Julian (comes consistorii). He established relations of friendship and trust with the young emperor who promoted Sallustius praefectus praetorio of Gaul in the Spring of 361 AD, before leaving the West for the expected clash with Constantius II (Amm. 21, 08, 01; see Caltabiano 2009, p. 140). He was, therefore, the first prefect appointed by Julian. In 363 AD Sallustius was granted the exceptional honour of holding the consulate together with the emperor himself (consul ordinarius: CLRE, pp. 260-261, for the sources). As is pointed out by Ammianus (Amm. 23, 01, 01), it was from the time of Diocletian (in the years 285 and 288 AD) that private citizens were no longer appointed colleagues of an emperor in the consulate.

Ammianus also recalls (Amm. 23, 05, 04) that at the beginning of the Persian expedition, Julian received a letter from Sallustius, imploring him to desist from his undertaking “without having yet secured the favour of the gods”. Evidence that Sallustius too was pagan. Some scholars have identified Fl. Sallustius as the author of the short treatise “On the Gods and the World” (Étienne 1963; Chastagnol 1965 = 1994, p. 19; PLRE I, Sallustius 1, p. 796; Petit 1994, pp. 227-228), but the most recent critics prefer the prefect of the East Saturninius Secundus Salutius (Rinaldi 1978; Desnier 1983; Clarke 1998, pp. 347-350; Marcone 2019, pp. 118-123; see also PPRET 52).

Flavius Sallustius left the prefecture shortly after Julian’s death: a law of the Theodosian Code may attest to his successor, Decimius Germanianus, in office in December 363 AD (CTh 11, 30, 30 but the dating of the text is problematic: cf. PLRE I, Germanianus 4, p. 392). If the death of Julian brought about the end of his prefecture through the loss of imperial favour, there is no evidence to suggest it. On May 28th 364 AD, the monument in Trajan’s Forum was dedicated and permission for it came from one of Julian’s successors, perhaps Jovian (who died in Dadastana, in Bithynia, on February 17th 364 AD) less likely Valentinian (Augustus from February 25th) and Valens (from March 28th), considering that the imperial court was then in the East (but cf. Niquet 2001, p. 136). Moreover, Mamertinus and Salutius, Julian’s prefects, remained in office until 365 AD (see PPRET 49 and 51), while Decimius Germanianus himself had been among the supporters of the Apostate in Gaul (Caltabiano 2009, p. 140). It was probably Sallustius himself who chose to retire, perhaps because of his old age, or perhaps because he was honorably discharged by Jovian. In view of the end of the career of the prefect who also administered the Spains, the diocesan Council’s embassy wanted to ask the emperor for permission to make an honorary monument in the most prestigious forum in Rome. Possibly Fl. Sallustius, who governed that diocese as vicar, was a Spaniard (Chastagnol 1965 = 1994, p. 19). The Sallustius who was Prefect of Rome in 386 AD and who owned horse farms in Spain, could be his son (Symm., Ep. 05, 56: Chastagnol 1962, pp. 216-218; cf. Vera 1978; Rivolta Tiberga 1992, pp. 166-170).

Bibliography

Bauer F.A., Stadt, Platz und Denkmal in der Spätantike. Untersuchungen zur Ausstattung des öffentlichen Raums in den spätantiken Städten Rom, Konstantinopel und Ephesos, Mainz am Rhein 1996.

Caltabiano M., La comunità degli Elleni: cultura e potere alla corte dell’imperatore Giuliano, AntTard, 17, 2009, 137-149 .

Cantarelli L., La diocesi italiciana da Diocleziano alla fine dell’impero occidentale, Roma 1964 (rist. anastatica ed. 1903), 79-80.

Chastagnol A., La préfecture urbaine à Rome sous le Bas-empire, Paris 1960.

Chastagnol A., Les fastes de la préfecture de Rome au Bas-empire, Paris 1962, 216-218.

Chastagnol A., Les espagnols dans l’aristocratie gouvernementale à l’époque de Théodose, in Les empereurs romains d’Espagne, Paris 1965, 269-292 (= Id., Aspects de l’antiquité tardive, Roma 1994, 11-42).

Chenault R., Statues of Senators in the Forum of Trajan and the Roman Forum in Late Antiquity, JRS, 102, 2012, 103-132.

Clarke E.C., Communication, Human and Divine: Saloustious Reconsidered, Phronesis, 43, 1998, 326-350 .

De Bonfils G., Il comes et quaestor nell’età della dinastia costantiniana, Napoli 1981.

Desnier J.-L., Salutius – Salustius, REA, 85, 1983, 53-65.

Étienne R., Flavius Sallustius et Secundus Salutius, REA, 65, 1963, 104-113.

Feissel D., Notes d’épigraphie chrétienne (VII), BCH, 108, 1984, 545-579 .

Gregori G.L., Almagno G., Roman Calendars: Imperial Birthdays Victories and Triumphs, Beau Bassin 2019.

Lugli G. (ed.), Fontes ad topographiam veteris Urbis Romae pertinentes, VI,1: Liber XVI: Fora imperatorum (Regio VIII), Roma 1965 .

Machado C., Urban Space and Aristocratic Power in Late Antique Rome, AD 270-535, Oxford 2019 .

Marcone A., Giuliano, Roma 2019.

Niquet H., Monumenta virtutum titulique. Senatorische Selbstdarstellung im spätantiken Rom im Spiegel der epigraphischen Denkmäler, Stuttgart 2000.

Niquet H., Die valentinianische Dynastie und Rom: das Selbstverständnis der Kaiser und ihre Haltung zur Senatsaristokratie im Licht von Bau- und Ehreninschriften, in Alföldy G., Panciera S. (hrsg.), Inschriftliche Denkmäler als Medien der Selbstdarstellung in der römischen Welt, Stuttgart 2001, 125-147.

Petit P., Les fonctionnaires dans l’œuvre de Libanius. Analyse prosopographique, Paris 1994.

Rinaldi G., Sull’identificazione dell’autore del Περι θεῶν και κόσμου, Koinonia, 2, 1978, 117-152.

Rivolta Tiberga P., Commento storico al libro V dell’epistolario di Q. Aurelio Simmaco, Pisa 1992.

Scharf R., Comites und comitiva primi ordinis, Stuttgart 1994.

Vera D., Lo scandalo edilizio di Cyriades e Auxentius e i titolari della ‘praefectura urbis’ dal 383 al 387. Opere pubbliche e corruzione in Roma alla fine del IV secolo d.C., SDHI, 44, 1978, 45-94.

Ward-Perkins B., The End of the Statue Habit, AD 284-620, in Smith R.R.R., Ward-Perkins B. (eds.), The Last Statues of Antiquity, Oxford 2016, 295-308.

Praetorian prefects and epigraphic habit

Number of praetorian prefects in this inscription

Only one praetorian prefect

Inscriptions in honour of praetorian prefects

Inscriptions in honour of a praetorian prefect made after the end of the praetorian prefecture

Imperial permission for the statue over the base: missis legat(is) ius(sione) sac(ra)

Discourse justifying the honour: pleno aequitatis ac fidei ob virtutis meritorumq(ue) gloriam

Panegyric and celebrative formulas: pleno aequitatis ac fidei ob virtutis meritorumq(ue) gloriam

Awarder of monuments to praetorian prefects

  • province/-es (concilia / κοινά)

The praetorian prefecture in inscriptions: titulature, duration and extension of the appointment

The rank of the praetorian prefects: v(ir) c(larissimus)

Latin / Greek titulature of the office: praef(ecto) praet(orio)

Inscription posesses a full cursus honorum of the prefect

Inscription only records the prefecture just completed

Inscription does not record the regional area of the prefecture