Gaius Vitrasius Pollio was a Roman eques who flourished during the reign of the emperor

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusu ...

. He was appointed to the important office of ''

praefectus ''Praefectus'', often with a further qualification, was the formal title of many, fairly low to high-ranking, military or civil officials in the Roman Empire, whose authority was not embodied in their person (as it was with elected Magistrates) but ...

'' or governor of

Roman Egypt , conventional_long_name = Roman Egypt , common_name = Egypt , subdivision = Province , nation = the Roman Empire , era = Late antiquity , capital = Alexandria , title_leader = Praefectus Augustalis , image_map = Roman E ...

from AD 38 to 41. The Vitrasii came from

Cales Cales was an ancient city of Campania, in today's ''comune'' of Calvi Risorta in southern Italy, belonging originally to the Aurunci/Ausoni, on the Via Latina. The Romans captured it in 335 BC and established a colony with Latin rights of 2,500 ...

. Pollio is considered the son of

Vitrasius Pollio Vitrasius Pollio (died AD 32) was a member of the equestrian class who was prefect or governor of the imperial province of Egypt. He died in office, and was replaced by an imperial freedman Hiberus until another eques, Aulus Avilius Flaccus, could ...

, who was ''praefectus'' of Roman Egypt around the year 32. Upon arriving in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

, Vitrasius Pollio had to deal with the aftermath of the Alexandrian riots of 38, which had been suppressed by his predecessor,

Aulus Avilius Flaccus Aulus Avilius Flaccus was a Roman eques who was appointed ''praefectus'' or governor of Roman Egypt from 33 CE to 38. His rule coincided with the riots against Alexandria's Jewish population in 38. According to some accounts, including Philo's, F ...

. Both sides in the riots, the Greeks and the Jews living in Alexandria, petitioned Pollio with their grievances; Pollio referred the matter to Claudius. A copy of the emperor's reply has survived in a papyrus found in the

Fayyum Faiyum ( ar, الفيوم ' , borrowed from cop, ̀Ⲫⲓⲟⲙ or Ⲫⲓⲱⲙ ' from egy, pꜣ ym "the Sea, Lake") is a city in Middle Egypt. Located southwest of Cairo, in the Faiyum Oasis, it is the capital of the modern Faiyum ...

. Pollio and the commander of the

cohors A cohort (from the Latin ''cohors'', plural ''cohortes'', see wikt:cohors for full inflection table) was a standard tactical military unit of a Roman legion. Although the standard size changed with time and situation, it was generally composed ...

Ituraeorum, Lucius Eienus Saturninus, erected a dedication to emperor Claudius 28 April 39 at

Syene Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the ...

. When he returned to Rome, Vitrasius Pollio brought several pieces of porphyry stone he had quarried in Egypt, hoping to introduce an interest in that material. According to

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...

, it failed to attract sufficient interest.Pliny, ''

Naturalis Historia The ''Natural History'' ( la, Naturalis historia) is a work by Pliny the Elder. The largest single work to have survived from the Roman Empire to the modern day, the ''Natural History'' compiles information gleaned from other ancient authors. ...

'', xxxvi.57

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vitrasius Pollio, Gaius 1st-century Romans 1st-century Roman governors of Egypt Roman governors of Egypt

Pollio Pollio may refer to: * Marcus Vitruvius Pollio, Roman architect usually known as Vitruvius * Gaius Asinius Pollio, Roman historian and orator * Gaius Asinius Pollio (consul 23), grandson of the preceding * Rufrius Pollio, Roman Prefect of the Praet ...