![]() He purchased Cicero's estate at Tusculum and the tomb of Virgil in Naples, which he restored. Silius idealized and almost worshipped two great Romans of the past, Cicero and Virgil. As he aged, he moved permanently to his villas in Campania, not even leaving to attend the accession ceremony of Trajan. The other, Decianus, went on to become consul. ![]() He had two sons, one of whom, Severus, died young. The philosopher Epictetus judged him to be the most philosophic spirit among the Romans of his time, and Cornutus, the Stoic, rhetorician and grammarian, dedicated to Silius a commentary upon Virgil. Silius was considered highly educated by contemporaries. The poet's attitude to Domitian tends to be laudatory and friendly, employing the full spectrum of Virgilian panegyrical language and imagery. The poem mentions primarily Domitian but later seems to discuss the emperor Nerva, although Domitian may be meant by the latter reference. His poem contains several passages relating to the Flavians, and Domitian is eulogized as a warrior and as a singer whose lyre is sweeter than that of Orpheus himself. Book 14 has been dated tentatively to after AD 96 based on the poet's treatment of Domitian. Martial 7.63 indicates that some of the Punica had been published by AD 92 and that Silius was no longer making speeches in court. It is firmly believed that the Punica was written during this retirement period of Silius' life. Silius was evidently writing poems as early as AD 88. Pliny depicts him spending time in learned conversation at his villas, writing, passionately collecting books and sculpture, and giving recitations of his works. Thus, he outlived the Flavian dynasty without incident. 3.7), he performed his duties well and earned himself a place of importance in the empire.Ĭampanian retirement and suicide Īfter his proconsulship in Asia, Silius seems to have left politics in favor of a leisurely life despite his wealth and importance in the state, he seems to have exercised little power and avoided offence. Silius became proconsul of Asia AD 77-78 as attested in an inscription from Aphrodisias which describes his activities in maintaining the institutions of the city. He is mentioned by Tacitus as having been one of two witnesses who were present at the conferences between Vitellius and Flavius Sabinus, the elder brother of Vespasian, when the legions from the East were marching rapidly on the capital. He was consul in the year of Nero's death (AD 68), and afterward became a close friend and ally of the emperor Vitellius, whom he served, according to Pliny sapienter et comiter, wisely and amicably. Silius was generally believed to have voluntarily and enthusiastically become an informer under Nero, prosecuting in court persons whom the emperor wished condemned. In early life Silius was a renowned forensic orator, later a safe and cautious politician. Campbell based on a seeming bias in favor of the region in the Punica and the prevalence of the name Asconius in inscriptions from the region. The city of Patavium, Padua in northern Italy, has been suggested by J. Italica, in the Roman province of Hispania, (modern Spain), was once considered the prime candidate, based on his cognomen Italicus, but, if that were the case, Latin usage would have demanded the form Italicensis, and it is highly improbable that Martial would have failed to name him among the literary celebrities of Spain in the latter half of the 1st century. Silius is believed to have been born between AD 23 and 35, but his birthplace has not been securely identified. The sources for the life of Silius Italicus are primarily Letter 3.7 of Pliny the Younger, which is a description of the poet's life written on the occasion of his suicide, some inscriptions, and several epigrams by the poet Martial. A painting by Joseph Wright of Derby depicting Silius Italicus at the tomb of Virgil.
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