The Municipal Elites of Campania During the Antonine-Severan Period

Description

Although Campania has for centuries attracted the attention of historians, epigraphers and archaeologists, no researcher has yet produced an extensive study concerning the municipal elites of the region during the 2nd and the early 3rd century CE. In this book Wojciech Pietruszka fills this void by offering a broad insight into the socio-economic aspects of the Campanian municipal elites during the Antonine-Severan period. This in-depth account employs a wide variety of source material, with particular attention on the available epigraphic material. The study focuses on several key issues, which include the general condition of Campania (emphasising the effect that events such as the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 CE and the Antonine plague had on the region), the income and expenditure of the municipal elites (both private financial affairs and public acts of euergetism), the composition of city councils, the role and position of Augustales, and the importance of Campanian equites and senators. Bearing in mind that the whole area of Campania was quite diverse, the author divides Campania into three zones - coastal, central and the foothill regions - which enables him to analyse how the geographical location (the place of living) and its distance from both the 'centre' and the important trade routes influenced the way the municipal elites functioned. Finally, by comparing these research results with information from the earlier period, Pietruszka attempts to answer the question of whether the 2nd/beginning of the 3rd century CE was a time of real crisis, continuity, or growing prosperity for the municipal elites and Campanian cities. Cover Title Pages Contents Acknowledgement Introduction 1. The geographical, chronological and thematic scope of the book 1.1 Area of research 1.2 Chronology 1.3 Definition of the elites 2. Sources 2.1 Epigraphic sources 2.2 Archaeological sources 2.3 Narrative sources 3. The current state of research 4. The composition of the work and the main research problems Chapter I: Campania felix or Campania deserta? Remarks on the economic prosperity of Campania in the 2nd and early 3rd c. CE I.1 Campania in the first half of the 1st c. CE I.2 Natural disasters of the second half of the 1st c. CE and their impact on life within the region I.3 The crisis in wine production, changes in the settlement system, and the influence of the Antonine Plague on the Campanian economy I.4 Campanian cities – the casus of Puteoli I.5 Conclusion Chapter II: Income of the Campanian elites II.1 Remarks on the Italian economy in the Roman Empire II.2 Agricultural income II.2.1 Reading the sources: research methods anda catalogue of landowners II.2.2 Signacula: a problematic case II.3 Non-agricultural income II.3.1 A catalogue of individuals engaged in trade II.3.2 A catalogue of individuals engaged in craftsmanship II.3.3 Other non-agricultural income: a catalogue II.4 Conclusion Chapter III: Expenditure of the Campanian elites III.1 Life of luxury, splendour in death: private expenditure of the Campanian municipal elites III.1.1 Private banquets III.1.2 Villas’ owners III.1.3 Tombs III.1.4 Conclusion III.2 Euergetism III.2.1 A definition of euergetism III.2.2 Interpretation of the sources III.2.3 Acts of euergetism: a catalogue III.2.4 Conclusion Chapter IV: Composition of the ordines decurionum IV.1 Ordines decurionum and the demography of the ancient world:some remarks IV.2 Honores et munera: in search of members of the ordines decurionum in the epigraphic sources IV.3 “Old” aristocracy IV.3.1 Members of the “old” aristocracy: a catalogue IV.3.2 How numerous were the members of the “old” aristocracy: further questions and conclusion IV.4 Monopoly of power within the city senates IV.5 Homines novi IV.5.1 Descendants of freedmen in the ordines decurionum IV.5.2 Soldiers, veterans, and their descendants: a catalogue IV.5.3 Nobles from other cities, immigrants and their descendants: a catalogue IV.5.4 Apparitores: a catalogue IV.5.5 Homines novi: an analysis of the sources IV.6 Family strategies of the nobility –adoption and marriage as a means of retaining power IV.6.1 Marriage IV.6.2 Adoption IV.7 Conclusion on the composition of the ordines decurionum Chapter V: Augustales in Campanian cities during the Antonine and Severan period. V.1 A priesthood or an office? V.2 The organizational evolution of the colleges, as well as the importance and socio-legal status of their members V.3 Relationships between the Augustales, the municipal notables, and the imperial aristocracy V.3.1 Freeborn Augustales: a catalogue V.3.2 Freeborn Augustales: an analysis of the sources V.3.3 Freedmen and their relationship with the municipal andimperial aristocracy V.4 The alba from Liternum: a case study V.5 Conclusion Chapter VI: The equestrian and senatorial careers. The role of the curatores rei publicae VI.1 Campanian equites VI.1.1 Campanian equites: a catalogue VI.1.2 Equites in the army and the imperial administration:an analysis of the sources VI.1.3 Conclusion VI.2 Campanian senators VI.2.1 A catalogue VI.2.2 Analysis of the sources and conclusion VI.3 Curatores rei publicae in Campania Conclusion Appendix 1 (members of the ordines decurionum, public priests). Appendix 2 (equites) Appendix 3 (ordo senatorius) Appendix 4 (Augustales) Bibliography List of figures Indices Index of sources Index of personal names General index