Anicius Acilius Aginantius (or Aginatius) Faustus ( 483–508), also known as Faustus ''albus'' ("white"), was a Roman politician under
Odoacer
Odoacer ( ; – 15 March 493 AD), also spelled Odovacer or Odovacar, was a soldier and statesman of barbarian background, who deposed the child emperor Romulus Augustulus and became Rex/Dux (476–493). Odoacer's overthrow of Romulus Augustul ...
's rule. His brothers included
Rufius Achilius Maecius Placidus, and
Rufius Achilius Sividius
Rufius Achilius Sividius ( 483–488) was a Roman senator under Odoacer's rule. His brothers included Rufius Achilius Maecius Placidus, and Anicius Acilius Aginantius Faustus.
Biography
He is defined as " quaestor" (perhaps ''quaestor sacri ...
.
Life
Faustus' career is attested by two inscriptions on seats of the
Colosseum
The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world to ...
.
He is attested as ''
praefectus urbi
The ''praefectus urbanus'', also called ''praefectus urbi'' or urban prefect in English, was prefect of the city of Rome, and later also of Constantinople. The office originated under the Roman kings, continued during the Republic and Empire, and ...
'' of Rome in an inscription celebrating his work in restoring an image of
Minerva
Minerva (; ett, Menrva) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. Minerva is not a patron of violence such as Mars, but of strategic war. From the second century BC onward, the Roma ...
damaged by a falling roof during a riot. The riot can be identified with the civil war that led to the deposition and death of Emperor
Anthemius
Procopius Anthemius (died 11 July 472) was western Roman emperor from 467 to 472.
Perhaps the last capable Western Roman Emperor, Anthemius attempted to solve the two primary military challenges facing the remains of the Western Roman Empire: ...
in 472, while the restoration could have been performed under
Odoacer
Odoacer ( ; – 15 March 493 AD), also spelled Odovacer or Odovacar, was a soldier and statesman of barbarian background, who deposed the child emperor Romulus Augustulus and became Rex/Dux (476–493). Odoacer's overthrow of Romulus Augustul ...
, but before 483.
In 483 he was appointed
consul
Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throug ...
, without colleague. It is probable that he was not recognised by the
Eastern court.
In 502-503 he could have been appointed ''praefectus urbi'' for the second time. In those years he was contacted by
Magnus Felix Ennodius
Magnus Felix Ennodius (473 or 47417 July 521 AD) was Bishop of Pavia in 514, and a Latin rhetorician and poet.
He was one of four Gallo-Roman aristocrats of the fifth to sixth-century whose letters survive in quantity: the others are Sidonius Ap ...
to be appointed ''advocatus fisci'' in
Liguria
Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
. Ennodius wrote him also in 506 and 508. He might also be the recipient of a letter by
Avitus of Vienne
Alcimus Ecdicius Avitus (c. 450 – February 5, 517/518 or 519) was a Latin poet and bishop of Vienne in Gaul. His fame rests in part on his poetry, but also on the role he played as secretary for the Burgundian kings.
Avitus was born of a promi ...
, and also of a letter from
Theoderic the Great
Theodoric (or Theoderic) the Great (454 – 30 August 526), also called Theodoric the Amal ( got, , *Þiudareiks; Greek: , romanized: ; Latin: ), was king of the Ostrogoths (471–526), and ruler of the independent Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy b ...
to Faustus,
praepositus
A provost is a senior official in a number of Christian Churches.
Historical development
The word ''praepositus'' (Latin: "set over", from ''praeponere'', "to place in front") was originally applied to any ecclesiastical ruler or dignitary. I ...
.
Notes
Bibliography
*
Jones, Arnold Hugh Martin,
John Robert Martindale
John Robert Martindale (born 1935) is a British academic historian, specializing in the later Roman and Byzantine empires.
Martindale's major publications are his magnum opus, the three volumes of ''Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire'', begu ...
,
John Morris, "Anicius Acilius Aginantius Faustus iunior (albus) 4", ''
The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire
''Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire'' (abbreviated as ''PLRE'') is a work of Roman prosopography published in a set of three volumes collectively describing many of the people attested to have lived in the Roman Empire from AD 260, the date ...
'', Cambridge University Press, 1992, , p. 451–452.
{{end
5th-century Italo-Roman people
6th-century Italo-Roman people
5th-century Roman consuls
6th-century Latin writers
Faustus, Anicius Acilius Aginantius
Acilii
Correspondents of Ecdicius Avitus
Correspondents of Ennodius
Imperial Roman consuls
Urban prefects of Rome