DiscussionLost base for statue of Cronius Eusebius, vicarius of Italy; commanded by the emperor. Rome. 399. INSCRIPTIONMain inscription (a) in 13 lines, followed by Greek elegiac distich in two lines and Latin dating inscription on the side, in four lines. (a) Cronio Eusebio, v(iro) c(larissimo), / consulari Aemiliae, addita / praedictae provinciae contuitu / vigilantiae et iustitiae eius, /(5) etiam Ravennatium civitate quae / antea Piceni caput provinciae / videbatur, vicario Italiae quae / potestas supra dicto viro ob testi/monium ante acti honoris est /(10) adtributa petitione senatus / contemplatione vitae atque / eloquentiae eius ab invictissimis / principibus est delata. (b) (below): Ἰταλίης ἄρχοντα σαό[π]τολιν ἐστήσαντο / βου[λὴ κ]αὶ βασι[λ]εὺς τὸν σοφὸν Εὐσέβιον (c) (on the right side): Dedicata / V Idus Novemb(res) / cons(ule) Fl(avio) Mallio / Theodoro, v(iro) c(larissimo). 'To Cronius Eusebius, of clarissimus rank, governor (consularis) of Aemilia, with surveying of the aforenamed province having been added to his vigilance and justice, including even the city of Ravenna which seemed formerly to be the head of the province of Picenum, vicar of Italy over which extra power was allotted to the named man because of the testimony of his previously gained honour, by petition of the Senate (this statue) was bestowed by our most unconquered princes in contemplation of his life and eloquence. (b: below, in Greek) The senate and the emperor (set this up to) the city-healing ruler of Italy, the wise Eusebius (c, on the right side) Dedicated on the fifth day before the Ides of November in the year of the consulship of Fl(avius) Mallius Theodorus, of clarissimus rank.' DESCRIPTION (CIL) Marble base. The base is known through a 15th/16th century drawing: re-used altar or funerary monument, with mouldings on top and bottom. The upper moulding is decorated. PROVENANCE AND CURRENT LOCATION There are different records of the provenance of this base, including the suburb of Rome. However, Ligorio reports it as from the Forum of Trajan, and this is the most likely possibility, due to the character of this dedication. The base is now lost. HONORAND, AWARDER AND DATE Cronius Eusebius was vicarius of Italy when the dedication was made (PLRE II,433 Eusebius 27). The text of the inscription praises him in unusually lavish (and vague) terms, possibly as a form of keeping up with the administrative reorganization that was being carried out at the time (see below). The dedication was awarded by the emperor, at the request of the Senate. The inscription is dated to 399. FURTHER DISCUSSION Cronius Eusebius is the only governor of the province of Aemilia known to us (Cecconi 1994, 211). Aemilia and Liguria were separated at an uncertain date at the end of the fourth century, and as our inscription tells us this reorganization also involved moving Ravenna from Flaminia et Picenum to the new founded province, before being returned to Flaminia soon afterwards (Chastagnol 1963, 356). The dating inscription only mentions one consul, Flavius Theodorus, because the Eastern consul Eutropius was never acknowledged in the West (PLRE II, 440-444 Eutropius). Main ReferenceCorpus Inscriptionum Latinarum; , VI, 1715 (+p. 4741-2)Micheli, M. E. 'Un taccuino di un ignoto umanista del XV secolo', Xenia 6, Rome 1983, 70 Discussion ReferencesChastagnol, A., "L'administration du Diocese Italien au Bas-Empire", Historia, 12, 1963, pp. 348-379 Martindale, J. R., The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire. Vol. II A.D. 395-527, Cambridge 1980, pp. 433 (Eusebius 27) and 440-444 (Eutropius 1) |
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