Gnaeus Pompeius Collega was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

who held a series of offices in the emperor's service. He was suffect consul in the ''

nundinium Nundinium was a Latin word derived from the word '' nundinum'', which referred to the cycle of days observed by the Romans. During the Roman Empire, ''nundinium'' came to mean the duration of a single consulship among several in a calendar year. S ...

'' of November to December 71 with Quintus Julius Cordus as his colleague. Collega's best known action was investigating the cause of a fire in

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

during his interim governorship of

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

. Collega's ''

cursus honorum The ''cursus honorum'' (; , or more colloquially 'ladder of offices') was the sequential order of public offices held by aspiring politicians in the Roman Republic and the early Roman Empire. It was designed for men of senatorial rank. The '' ...

'' is only partially known. He was ''

legatus legionis A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer ...

'' or commander of

Legio IV Scythica Legio was a Roman military camp south of Tel Megiddo in the Roman province of Galilee. History Following the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132-136CE), Legio VI Ferrata was stationed at Legio near Caparcotna. The approximate location of the camp of the Le ...

, stationed in Syria in the year 70. The newly appointed governor,

Lucius Junius Caesennius Paetus Lucius Junius Caesennius Paetus (c. 45 - after 94) was a Roman senator active during the Flavian dynasty. He was suffect consul for the ''nundinium'' of March-June 79 with Publius Calvisius Ruso as his colleague. Caesennius was the son and name ...

, had not yet arrived, and as senior military officer Collega was acting governor. During this time a fire erupted in Antioch, according to the historian

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...

, which burned down the market-place and the adjacent civic buildings and law courts. The local Jewish community was blamed for this conflagration, and the citizens of Antioch set upon attacking them. Only with much difficulty was Collega able to restrain the rioters, and set about determining who was guilty of starting the fire. He discovered that not only were the Jews innocent of this crime, but it was "the work of some scoundrels, who, under the pressure of debts, imagined that if they burnt the market-place and the public records they would be rid of all demands." It is likely that this successful action led to his appointment as consul the following year. Collega's other known office was governor of the imperial province of

Cappadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Revo ...

and

Galatia Galatia (; grc, Γαλατία, ''Galatía'', "Gaul") was an ancient area in the highlands of central Anatolia, roughly corresponding to the provinces of Ankara and Eskişehir, in modern Turkey. Galatia was named after the Gauls from Thrace (c ...

, where two different inscriptions attest to his administration. One is a milepost. The other is a dedication in

Antioch of Pisidia Antioch in Pisidia – alternatively Antiochia in Pisidia or Pisidian Antioch ( el, Ἀντιόχεια τῆς Πισιδίας) and in Roman Empire, Latin: ''Antiochia Caesareia'' or ''Antiochia Colonia Caesarea'' – was a city in th ...

celebrating his

patronage Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

of the city.

Werner Eck Werner Eck (born 17 December 1939) is Professor of Ancient History at Cologne University, Germany, and a noted expert on the history and epigraphy of imperial Rome.Eck, W. (2007) ''The Age of Augustus''. 2nd ed. Oxford: Blackwell, cover notes. His ...

dates his tenure in that province from the year 73 to 77.Eck, "Jahres- und Provinzialfasten", pp. 293-298 Gnaeus Pompeius Collega has been identified as the father of the ordinary consul of 93,

Sextus Pompeius Collega Sextus Pompeius Collega was a Roman senator and orator active during the last half of the first century AD. He was ordinary consul for 93 with Quintus Peducaeus Priscinus as his colleague. He was the son of Gnaeus Pompeius Collega, suffect consul ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pompeius Collega, Gnaeus 1st-century Romans Suffect consuls of Imperial Rome Roman governors of Cappadocia Roman governors of Syria Collega, Gnaeus Pompeius