DiscussionLower part of base for re-erected gilded bronze statue of Flavius Taurus, praetorian prefect; commanded by the emperors. Rome, Forum of Trajan. 364-367 INSCRIPTION:Only partially preserved, with 12 lines that are still legible. The epigraphic field is 64 x 59.5 cm, and letters are 3-2.2 cm. ------? / [.]ẹs++[---] / adque (!) constanṭịa aeq(ue) proba/to, v(iro) c(larissimo) Tauro, comiti ordinis primi, / quaestori sacri palati patricia dig/nitate, praef(ecto) praet(orio) per Italiam atq(ue)/ Africam, dd nn (ie, domini nostri) Valentinianus / et Valens victores ac triumfatores / semper Augusti, statuam sub auro, / quam adprobante amplissimo senatu / iamdudam meruerat, ad perpetuam / laudabilis viri memoriam reddi / iusserunt. '(...) and constancy equally tested, Taurus of clarissimus rank, count of the first order, quaestor in the holy palace, of patrician dignity, praetorian prefect for Italy and Africa. Our lords Valentinian and Valens victorious and triumphant, forever Augusti, commanded with the agreement of the most splendid Senate that the gilded statue that he earned some time ago be restored, for the perpetual memory of this man worthy of praise.' DESCRIPTION (based on personal inspection): White marble base. The top is missing, and the bottom is slightly damaged. It has moulding at bottom on three sides. The right and left sides are finished, moulding at the bottom is damaged. The back of the base cannot be inspected or photographed, but it is visibly broken. The front is framed by mouldings, damaged at the bottom. The surface of the epigraphic field is deep and rough, indicating erasure of an earlier inscription. PROVENANCE AND CURRENT LOCATION The base was discovered during the excavation of the Forum of Trajan in the 1930s (Paribeni 1933, 491-493). The area was an important place for the setting up of statues of emperors, officials, and Roman aristocrats in the late antique period (Bauer 2007). HONORAND: Flavius Taurus was a member of the court of Constantius II. He was praetorian prefect of Italy and Africa in 355-61, and consul in 361 (not mentioned in the inscription). He was sentenced to exile after Julian's victory over Constantius (Amm. Marc. 22.3.4), and it is possible that his statue was removed or damaged on this occasion. See also PLRE I, 879-880 Taurus 3. AWARDER: The statue was dedicated by order of the emperors Valentinian and Valens, with approval of the Senate. This was a re-dedication, as the inscription informs us, and the original honour was probably granted by Constantius II, in whose court Taurus performed important duties. DATE: The dedication is datable to the period between the accession of Valentinian I and Valens (364), and the appointment of Gratian as Augustus in 367 (who is not mentioned in the inscription). Main ReferenceL'Année épigraphique, , 1934, 159Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum; , VI, 41336 Discussion ReferencesBauer, F. A., "Virtuelle Statuensammlungen", Bauer, F. A. and Witschel, C., Statuen in der Spätantike, Wiesbaden 2007, pp. 79-109 Jones, A. H. M. et al., The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire. Vol. I 260-395, Cambridge et al. 1971 (1975), p. 879-880 (Taurus 3) Paribeni, R., "Iscrizioni dei Fori Imperiali", Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, 1933, p. 491-493 |
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