The ''gens Cantilia'' was a Roman family during the late

Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

. It is known chiefly from a single individual, Lucius Cantilius, secretary of the pontiffs in 216 B.C., during the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Ital ...

. After the catastrophic defeat of the Romans by

Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Puni ...

at the

Battle of Cannae The Battle of Cannae () was a key engagement of the Second Punic War between the Roman Republic and Carthage, fought on 2 August 216 BC near the ancient village of Cannae in Apulia, southeast Italy. The Carthaginians and their allies, led by ...

, Rome was beset by ill omens and superstitious dread. It was soon discovered that two of the Vestal Virgins, Opimia and Floronia, had been debauched. One of them took her own life, while the other was buried alive at the

Colline Gate The Colline Gate (Latin ''Porta Collina'') was a landmark in ancient Rome, supposed to have been built by Servius Tullius, semi-legendary king of Rome 578–535 BC. The gate stood at the north end of the Servian Wall, and past it were two impo ...

, which was the traditional punishment for her offense. Cantilius, who had debauched Floronia, was scourged to death in the comitium by the Pontifex Maximus. Titus Livius, ''

Ab Urbe Condita ''Ab urbe condita'' ( 'from the founding of the City'), or ''anno urbis conditae'' (; 'in the year since the city's founding'), abbreviated as AUC or AVC, expresses a date in years since 753 BC, the traditional founding of Rome. It is an exp ...

'', xxii. 57.

Footnotes

Roman gentes {{Roman-gens-stub

See also

Footnotes