Publius Rufus Anteius was a politician of

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 B ...

of the 1st century CE.

Syria

Anteius was a notably wealthy man in Rome. He had in the past served as

legate Legate may refer to: *Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

Roman Syria Roman Syria was an early Roman province annexed to the Roman Republic in 64 BC by Pompey in the Third Mithridatic War following the defeat of King of Armenia Tigranes the Great. Following the partition of the Herodian Kingdom of Judea into tetr ...

, and governed

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

in 51. He was close friends with

Agrippina the Younger Julia Agrippina (6 November AD 15 – 23 March AD 59), also referred to as Agrippina the Younger, was Roman empress from 49 to 54 AD, the fourth wife and niece of Emperor Claudius. Agrippina was one of the most prominent women in the Julio-Claud ...

, mother of the emperor

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...

, and had in the past received gifts and promotions because of her patronage. As part of Nero's short-lived reconciliation with his mother at the end of 55, Anteius was promised governorship of Syria, though by the time of Agrippina's murder on Nero's order in 59, this does not appear to have come to pass. Continuous excuses were made to keep Anteius in Rome, and leave the incumbent

Gaius Ummidius Durmius Quadratus Gaius Ummidius Durmius Quadratus (c. 12 BC – c. 60 AD) was a Roman senator of the Principate. He was the first member of the Ummidii to reach the office of consul in his family, or a ''homo novus''. Quadratus is also known for his tenure as gove ...

in charge of Syria. On Ummidius's death in 60, governorship was given to

Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo (Peltuinum c. AD 7 – 67) was a popular Roman general, brother-in-law of the emperor Caligula and father-in-law of Domitian. The emperor Nero, highly fearful of Corbulo's reputation, ordered him to commit suicide, which ...

instead of Anteius.

Accusation and death

In 66, Anteius was detained in Rome by

after having been denounced, along with

Publius Ostorius Scapula Publius Ostorius Scapula standing at the terrace of the Roman Baths (Bath) Publius Ostorius Scapula (died 52) was a Roman statesman and general who governed Britain from 47 until his death, and was responsible for the defeat and capture of Ca ...

, by

Antistius Sosianus The gens Antistia, sometimes written Antestia on coins, was a plebeian family at ancient Rome. The first of the gens to achieve prominence was Sextus Antistius, tribune of the plebs in 422 BC.''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Myth ...

. Because an accusation -- '' delatio'' -- would mean the accuser might receive some portion of the property of the accused, this could be quite lucrative in imperial Rome. The grounds for this accusation were that Sosianus said he had discovered that Anteius had set up a yearly pension for the exiled Greek

astrologer Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Dif ...

Pammenes -- at this time, use of astrology could result in a charge of magic and treason against the emperor. As proof, Sosianus produced a letter from Pammenes to Anteius, as well as Pammenes's notes on Anteius's and Nero's future careers, ostensibly requested by Anteius. The accused quickly became the condemned, without much in the way of a formal trial, if any. Fear of Nero, and of getting swept up in the accusation, was so great that none of Anteius's friends even stepped forward to witness his last

will and testament A will or testament is a legal document that expresses a person's (testator) wishes as to how their property ( estate) is to be distributed after their death and as to which person ( executor) is to manage the property until its final distributi ...

. Finally, the

praetorian prefect The praetorian prefect ( la, praefectus praetorio, el, ) was a high office in the Roman Empire. Originating as the commander of the Praetorian Guard, the office gradually acquired extensive legal and administrative functions, with its holders be ...

Tigellinus Ofonius Tigellinus (c. 10 – 69) was a prefect of the Roman imperial bodyguard, known as the Praetorian Guard, from 62 until 68, during the reign of emperor Nero. Tigellinus gained imperial favour through his acquaintance wit ...

, did it, warning Anteius not to "procrastinate" with preparations for his death. Tigellinus was himself a noted profiteer from such accusations, and it's likely he himself profited by witnessing the will. Anteius was already disliked by Nero on account of his intimacy with Nero's hated mother Agrippina, and was forced by Nero to kill himself in 67. Anteius first took poison, which did not work, and after which he cut open his own veins. This Anteius's cognomen "Rufus" is not recorded in the account of

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historiography, Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his t ...

, but is ascribed to him by the scholar

Edmund Groag Edmund Groag (2 February 1873, in Prerau – 19 August 1945, in Vienna) was an Austrian classical scholar, who specialized in Roman history. From 1892 he studied history and philology at the University of Vienna, receiving his doctorate in 18 ...

based on inscriptions in his ''

Prosopographia Imperii Romani The ', abbreviated ''PIR'', is a collective historical work to establish the prosopography of high-profile people from the Roman empire. The time period covered extends from the Battle of Actium in 31 BC to the reign of Diocletian. The final volum ...

''.

Relations

There was also an Anteius who fought with

Germanicus Germanicus Julius Caesar (24 May 15 BC – 10 October AD 19) was an ancient Roman general, known for his campaigns in Germania. The son of Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia the Younger, Germanicus was born into an influential branch of the Patric ...

on the front in

Germania Germania ( ; ), also called Magna Germania (English: ''Great Germania''), Germania Libera (English: ''Free Germania''), or Germanic Barbaricum to distinguish it from the Roman province of the same name, was a large historical region in north- ...

, and was banished and executed by the emperor

Caligula Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (31 August 12 – 24 January 41), better known by his nickname Caligula (), was the third Roman emperor, ruling from 37 until his assassination in 41. He was the son of the popular Roman general Germanicu ...

, who was perhaps the father of Publius Rufus Anteius.

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 ...

mentions one, killed by the bodyguards of Caligula, who may be Publius Rufus Anteius's brother. As well there is recorded by Pliny an Anteia, who was the wife of

Helvidius Priscus Helvidius Priscus, Stoic philosopher and statesman, lived during the reigns of Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius and Vespasian. Biography Helvidius came from town of Cluviae, and his father had been the senior centurion of a legion. From early yout ...

, who is possibly the daughter of Publius Rufus Anteius.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anteius, Publius Rufus 67 deaths 1st-century Romans Ancient Roman politicians who committed suicide Forced suicides Year of birth unknown