Lucius Varius Ambibulus

Lucius Varius Ambibulus, full name Quintus Planius Sardus Varius Ambibulus was a Roman senator of the 2nd century AD who occupied a number of offices in the imperial service, as well as serving as suffect consul in either 132 or 133.

Based on the evidence that his father's name was also L. Varius Ambibulus, his sister's name is Varia, and his freedmen were Varii, Olli Salomies concludes his original name was Lucius Varius Ambibulus, and the terms of a testamentary adoption directed Ambibulus to add the name of a Quintus Planius Sardus Ambibulus to his in return for a share of the latter's estate.[1] His cognomen "Ambibulus" was described by Ronald Syme as "peculiar and uncommon"; he could only count five examples of its use in inscriptions found at Rome, and one more in North Africa.[2]

Career

The career of Ambibulus up to his consulate can be reconstructed from a damaged inscription erected in Cuicul in Numidia; it was erected by order of the civic government to honor him as their patron.[3] In this inscription, all of his posts are listed in chronological order, except oddly for the first in the list, a hitch as military tribune in a legion whose name is mostly missing. In the order Ambibulus held these offices, he began his career in his teenage years as one of the decemviri stlitibus iudicandis, which was one of the four boards comprising the vigintiviri. The traditional Republican magistracies followed: quaestor, plebeian tribune, and praetor.

After stepping down as praetor, Ambibulus served as praefectus frumentus dandi ex senatus, then was selected by the sortition to be proconsular governor of Macedonia in 124/125.[4] This was followed by two commissions as legate or commander of legions: Legio I Italica in Moesia, and Legio III Augusta in Numidia; we know from other sources he commanded a Legio III in 132.[5] Subsequently, Ambibulus was suffect consul; his career after his consulship is unknown.

References
  1. Salomies, Adoptive and polyonymous nomenclature in the Roman Empire, (Helsinski: Societas Scientiarum Fenica, 1992), pp. 35f
  2. Syme, "Three Ambivii", Classical Quarterly, 36 (1986) p. 275
  3. AE 1911, 111 = ILS 9486
  4. Werner Eck, "Jahres- und Provinzialfasten der senatorischen Statthalter von 69/70 bis 138/139", Chiron, 13 (1983), pp. 160f
  5. Paul Leunissen, "Direct Promotions from Proconsul to Consul under the Principate", Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik, 89 (1991), p. 220
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