Publius Vigellius Saturninus
Publius Vigellius Saturninus was a
His complete name is attested in inscriptions as Publius Vigellius Raius Plarius Saturninus Atilius Braduanus Caucidius Tertullus. His origins are not known for certain, although Géza Alföldy believed he came from the Greek-speaking part of the empire.[1] Bernard Rémy claims that based on the elements in his name Saturninus is related to Herodes Atticus.[2]
Only portions of the
The latest office Saturninus is recorded as holding was one of the apices of a successful consular career, proconsular governor of Africa, which was in 180/181; since a senator was eligible for this office about fifteen years after his consulate, his consulate can be estimated to have been around the year 165.[6] It was during his tenure in Africa that he presided over the trial of the six African Christians known as the Scillitan Martyrs in Carthage.[7]
His life after he stepped down from the governorship is unknown. According to Tertullian's writings, he lost his eyesight in his later years.[8]
References
- ^ Alföldy, Konsulat und Senatorenstand unter der Antoninen (Bonn: Rudolf Habelt Verlag, 1977), p. 320
- ^ a b c Rémy, Les carrières sénatoriales dans les provinces romaines d'Anatolie au Haut-Empire (31 av. J.-C. - 284 ap. J.-C.) (Pont-Bithynie, Galatie, Cappadoce, Lycie-Pamphylie et Cilicie) (Istanbul: Institut Français d'Études Anatoliennes-Georges Dumézil, 1989), p. 311
- ^ CIL III, 775 = ILS 1116
- ^ Alföldy, Konsulat und Senatorenstand, pp. 365-367
- ^ Alföldy, Konsulat und Senatorenstand, p. 299
- ^ Alföldy, Konsulat und Senatorenstand, p. 180
- ^ An account of the trial is preserved in the Passio Sanctorum Scillitanorum, translated by J. Stevenson and W.H. C. Frend, A New Eusebius: Documents illustrating the history of the Church to AD 337 (London: SPCK, 1987), pp. 44f
- ^ Tertullian, To Scapula