Turcius Rufius Apronianus Asterius ( AD 494) was a Roman aristocrat during the reign of Theodoric the Great. He held the consulship with Flavius Praesidius in 494, having been ''

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 before holding that honor. One of the oldest texts of

Vergil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...

's works, the '' codex Mediceus'' (Florence Laur. 39.1 + Vatican lat. 3225, f.76), which was written in Italy in the fifth century, contains a subscription stating that it was corrected at

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

by Turcius Rufius Apronianus Asterius. As John Matthews notes, "Not only did Asterius thus record for posterity his literary work ... in an elegiac poem he also commemorated the consular games given by him (in 494) at great expense to his now slender fortune." According to the ''

Liber Pontificalis The ''Liber Pontificalis'' (Latin for 'pontifical book' or ''Book of the Popes'') is a book of biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the ''Liber Pontificalis'' stopped with Pope Adrian II (867� ...

'', enemies of Pope Vigilius claimed the pope married Asterius to his niece Vigilia, "then took an opportunity to have him arrested at night and beaten to death." However Jeffrey Richards strips the defamation from this claim, and explains that Vigilia was married to Asterius following her father Reparatus's death in 539 as a way to provide for her. According to Christian Settipani, it was in fact Asterius's namesake grandson who married Vigilia.Settipani, Christian. ''Continuité gentilice et continuité sénatoriale dans les familles sénatoriales romaines à l'époque impériale'' (2000), p. 161

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Asterius, Turcius Rufius Apronianus 5th-century Romans 5th-century Roman consuls Imperial Roman consuls Patricii Rufii Urban prefects of Rome