Servilius Nonianus

Servilius Nonianus
Consul of the Roman Empire
In office January 35 – June 35 Serving with Gaius Cestius Gallus
Preceded by	Quintus Marcius Barea Soranus with Titus Rustius Nummius Gallus
Succeeded by	Decimus Valerius Asiaticus with Aulus Gabinius Secundus
Personal details
Born	Unknown
Died	59 Rome
Spouse(s)	Considia
Children	Servilia Considia
Military service
Allegiance	Roman Empire
Commands	Governor of Africa

Marcus Servilius Nonianus (died in 59 AD) was a Roman senator, best known as a historian. He was ordinary consul in 35 as the colleague of Gaius Cestius Gallus.^[1] Tacitus described Servilius Nonianus as a man of great eloquence and good-nature.^[2] He wrote a history of Rome which is considered the major contribution on the topic between the works of Livy and Tacitus, and which was much referred to by later historians; this history has since been lost.^[3] A number of anecdotes regarding him survive and help to give an understanding of Roman life in the first century.

Life

Nonianus was descended from Gaius Servilius Geminus the praetor, who had renounced his Patrician status.^[4] His father was Marcus Servilius, consul in AD 3 and his mother the daughter of the Nonius, whom Mark Antony proscribed over the possession of a gem.^[5] He was proconsular governor of Africa in 46–47.^[6]

Pliny the Elder recounts several anecdotes concerning Nonianus. One was that he was terribly worried about losing his sight and to prevent this, Nonianus wore a lucky charm around his neck consisting of the two Greek letters alpha and rho. Pliny reports that the charm worked. Another anecdote was that his daughter was cured of an illness with goats' milk, as advised by the family doctor Servilius Democrates.^[7] The poet Persius revered Nonianus like a father, according to the historian Ronald Syme.^[8]

Nonianus married Considia; their daughter Servilia Considia married the senator Quintus Marcius Barea Soranus. This marriage and the admiration Persius had for him, led Syme to suspect Nonianus was part of the Stoic circle of the Principate.^[9] Tacitus dates the death of Servilius Nonianus to 59, contrasting his elegant life to another senator who died that year, Domitius Afer, who possessed the same genius yet was a provincial.^[2]

Historical work

Servilius Nonianus wrote a book on the history of Rome but the work is not extant. Even its title is unknown. According to Tacitus and Quintilian this work was considered a very important reference book on Roman history, especially for those historians who belonged to the senatorial party. It is considered to be the leading Roman history between the works of Livy and Tacitus.^[10]

Quintilian writes that Servilius Nonianus used publicly to read his own work, recitationes.^[11] Several scholars have suggested Tacitus drew on Servilius Nonianus for his history of the first Imperial period, along with the historian Aufidius Bassus.^[12] The period covered by Nonianus' history is unknown. It is considered probable that Nonianus also covered the reign of the emperor Tiberius.^[13]

Pliny the Younger records the anecdote that during one of the public recitationes of Nonianus, the emperor Claudius, who was strolling nearby, was so attracted by the applause that he asked who was reading, and joined the audience.^[14]

Sources

• Olivier Devillers: Tacite et les sources des Annales. Leuven 2003.
• Michael M. Sage: "Tacitus’ Historical Works: A Survey and Appraisal," Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt, Vol. II.33.2. Berlin-New York 1990, pp. 851–1030.
• Ronald Syme, Tacitus. 2 volumes. Oxford 1958.
• Ronald Syme, "The Historian Servilius Nonianus" Hermes, 92 (1964), pp. 408ff.

References