ISic000096: Honours for Cn. Pollienus

I.Sicily with the permission of the Assessorato Regionale dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana - Dipartimento dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana
ID
ISic000096
Language
Latin
Text type
honorific
Object type
base
Status
No data
Links
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Edition

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Apparatus criticus

  • Text from autopsy

Physical description

Support

Description
A quadrangular statue base, of variegated pink/white stone. The stone is heavily damaged, entirely missing in the upper part, damaged on all corners, and heavily damaged / reduced around the base. No face is preserved intact. Traces of a projecting moulding around the base cornice visible on the sides and front. Rear is relatively flat.
Object type
base
Material
breccia (di San Marco)
Condition
No data
Dimensions
height: 128 cm, width: 54.4 cm, depth: 60 cm

Inscription

Layout
Three lines of Latin text (despite abrasions, it is likely that there are no missing lines), seemingly set in the middle of the face of the base. Use of one triangular interpunct (line 2).
Text condition
No data
Lettering

Letter heights
Line 1: 56-57mm
Line 2: 45-48mm
Line 3: 46-51mm
Interlinear heights
Interlineation line 1 to 2: mm

Provenance

Place of origin
Thermae Himeraeae
Provenance found
Reported as found 'verso il centro del piano', in the vicinity of the duomo, along with a number of other remains (mosaic pavement and other elements), on or around 22 February 1876.
Map

Current location

Place
Termini Imerese, Italy
Repository
Museo Civico Baldassare Romano , 121
Autopsy
Antoniou, 2022-07-08. On display in the courtyard portico of Museo Civico Baldassare Romano
Map

Date

Likely an early colonist of Thermae Himeraeae, probably Augustan in date (after 21 BCE). (21 BC – AD 14)
Evidence
textual-context

Text type

honorific

commentary

It is extremely likely that this base is dedicated to the same Pollienus as ISic000095. Here, only his position as tribunus militum is recorded. If correct, this Pollienus is Cn. Pollienus Cn. f. tribunus militum of the 12th Fulminata legion. While it is likely that Pollienus settled in Thermae Himeraeae after it was made a colonia, Bivona (1994, 126) and Wilson (1990, 38-39) disagree as to whether Pollienus was at the beginning of his career, or a soldier of proven experience. Bivona and Wilson equally disagree as to whether veterans of Legio XII Fulminata were sent to Thermae Himeraeae at the foundation of the colony. Our Pollienus could be the son of Gnaeus Pollienus (rendered in Greek) at Haluntium ISic001190, although the recent reconsideration of that inscription by Korhonen and Soraci (2019, 103-106) suggest that both men might be one and the same. Mommsen suggested a sizeable lacuna to the left of [A]thenienses and that this should be restored as '[c(ives) r(omani) et]', i.e. erected by Roman citizens resident in Athens, together with the Athenians (in order to explain the use of Latin by Athenians). Bivona (1994, 127) accepts this restoration. Korhonen and Soraci (2019, 105 n.51) suggest that this is unnecessary with the dimensions of the stone, and question Mommsen's reasoning that the Athenians would not dedicate in Latin; and while that reasoning must remain uncertain, the spacing seems to support their reading. Given that the letters 'CN·F' are presumably missing at the end of line 1, the text is not far off symmetrical even with only 'Athenienses' in line 3. Bivona (1994, 127) rightly rejects Manganaro's (1988, 42) suggestion of '[publice] Hennenses' as this ignores what is clearly visible in line 3 and has no justification. It is unclear why Athenians should dedicate a base to Pollienus, but perhaps relates to activities during the civil wars. The nomen Pollienus is rare, but for scattered attestations across the empire.

Bibliography

Digital editions
Printed editions

Citation and editorial status

Editor
Jonathan Prag
Principal contributor
Jonathan Prag
Contributors
Last revision
2/13/2024