Volcatius Sedigitus (
) was the ''titulus''
of a Roman
literary critic
Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. Th ...
who flourished around 100 , noted for his ranking of those he considered the best Latin comics.
Nothing is known about Sedigitus beyond that
Pliny, who calls him ''illustrem in poetica'', states that he got his
cognomen because he was born with six fingers on each hand.
[ This rare state, known as '' polydactyly'', is caused by a dominant gene. 'Six digits (fingers or toes)' in Latin is ''sex digitī'' (singular ''digitus''.) The Romans did not avoid openly referencing blemishes and personal infirmities in the names they gave to public figures. (See '' Roman naming conventions''.) A literary critic, his origin may have been from outside the Roman Empire or his origins may have been lowly. ''Volcatius'' is an adjective referring to the Volcatia ]gens
In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; plural: ''gentes'' ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same Roman naming conventions#Nomen, nomen and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a ''stirps'' (p ...
and to the Volcae, a Celtic people.
From his work ''Dē Poētīs'' Aulus Gellius
Aulus Gellius (c. 125after 180 AD) was a Roman author and grammarian, who was probably born and certainly brought up in Rome. He was educated in Athens, after which he returned to Rome. He is famous for his ''Attic Nights'', a commonplace book, or ...
' ''Noctēs Atticae''["LacusCurtius • Gellius — Noctes Atticae, Liber XV"]
Retrieved on 2008-11-25. Incorrectly spelled here as "Vulcacius" (see next reference).[Johann Jacob (1635—1706). '' Lexicon Universale''. Lugduni Batavorum, 1698]
p. 695
(In Latin.) preserves 13 iambi
senarii
in didascaly, in which "Canon", as it has been termed, the principal Latin comics are enumerated in order of merit, from greatest: Caecilius, Plautus, Naevius
LiciniusAtilius
Terence
TurpiliusTrabeaLuscius
Ennius.[
Historian ]Suetonius
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire.
His most important surviving work is a set of biographies ...
' work ''Vita Terentii'' (''Life of Terence'') quotes "Vulcacius" as having given a few details about Terence's leaving Rome and consequent disappearing. Viz., Sedigitus said that the playwright was going to Asia, i.e., Pergamum, and was never seen again.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Volcatius Sedigitus
Year of birth missing
Year of death missing
Ancient Roman poets
2nd-century BC poets
2nd-century BC Romans
Literary critics
Volcatii