Denarius issued by Publius Petronius Turpilianus, circa 19 or 18 BC. The obverse depicts Augustus, the reverse Pegasus.
The gens Petronia was a plebeian family at ancient Rome. This gens claimed an ancient lineage, as a Petronius Sabinus is mentioned in the time of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the last of the Roman kings, but few Petronii are mentioned in the time of the Republic. They are frequently encountered under the Empire, holding numerous consulships, and eventually obtaining the Empire itself during the brief reign of Petronius Maximus in AD 455.[1]
Origin
The Petronii were of Sabine origin, as indicated by the surname Sabinus, belonging to the legendary figure from the time of Tarquin, and alluded to by coins minted by Publius Petronius Turpilianus, depicting the death of Tarpeia, whom according to legend was persuaded by the Sabines under Titus Tatius to open the citadel to them, in the time of Romulus.[2] The nomen Petronius appears to be a patronymic surname derived from the OscanpraenomenPetro or Petrus, the Oscan equivalent of the LatinQuartus, fourth, and making Petronius cognate with a number of obscure Latin gentilicia, such as Quartius and Quartinius.[3] An alternative derivation would be from the cognomenPetrus, a rustic, although this may also derive from the Oscan praenomen. Petronius belongs to a large class of gentilicia derived from other names ending in -o, most of which are plebeian.[4]
Praenomina
The early Petronii used the praenomina Gaius, Marcus, and Publius, all of which were very common throughout Roman history. Other names occur toward the end of the second century AD, including Quintus, Lucius, and Sextus, but these may have been inherited from other families.
Members
This list includes abbreviated praenomina. For an explanation of this practice, see filiation.
Petronius Sabinus, said to have copied the Sibylline Books during the reign of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, with the assistance of a certain Marcus Tullius or Atilius.[5][6]
Petronius, one of the conspirators in the assassination of Caesar, was apprehended by Marcus Antonius in Asia, and put to death.[10]
Gaius Petronius, governor of Egypt, circa 25 to 21 BC, fought against Amanirenas of Kush, also known as "Candace of Aethiopia", and took a number of towns. A friend of Herod, Petronius supplied Judaea with grain during a famine.[11][12][13]
Petronius,[i] perhaps the same person as the physician Marcus Petronius Heras, a writer on pharmacy mentioned by a number of sources. He must have lived toward the beginning of the first century AD.[15][16][17]
Marcus Petronius Heras, a physician mentioned in an inscription recorded by Jan Gruter, perhaps the same person as the writer on pharmacy.[18]
Gaius Petronius Pontius Nigrinus, consul in AD 37, the year which saw the death of Tiberius.[23][24][25][26]
Aulus Petronius Lurco, consul suffectus in AD 58, serving from the Kalends of July to the end of the year.[27]
Gaius Petronius Arbiter an intimate friend of Nero, noted for his luxury and decadence. He was appointed proconsul of Bithynia, and later held the consulship. Accused of treason, he slowly weakened himself by bloodletting, until his death in AD 66. He is best known as the author of the Satyricon.[28][29][30]
Publius Petronius Niger, consul suffectus for the months of May to August in AD 62.[33]
Titus Petronius Niger, consul suffectus for the months of July and August in AD 63.[34]
Petronius Priscus, banished by Nero in AD 66, after the conspiracy of Piso was suppressed. Tacitus gives no indication that Priscus was in any way involved in the conspiracy, instead suggesting that his exile was arbitrary. He was permitted to settle in the islands of the Aegean.[35]
Marcus Petronius Umbrinus, consul suffectus in AD 81, probably for the months of September and October.[36][37]
^Probably not Petronius Diodotus, as found in some manuscripts of Pliny, or Petronius Musa, as inferred from Galen, which seems to be a misunderstanding of Μουσας in the original.
Giovanni Battista de Rossi, Inscriptiones Christianae Urbis Romanae Septimo Saeculo Antiquiores (Christian Inscriptions from Rome of the First Seven Centuries, abbreviated ICUR), Vatican Library, Rome (1857–1861, 1888).
René Cagnat et alii, L'Année épigraphique (The Year in Epigraphy, abbreviated AE), Presses Universitaires de France (1888–present).
George Davis Chase, "The Origin of Roman Praenomina", in Harvard Studies in Classical Philology, vol. VIII (1897).
Hans Petersen, "The Numeral Praenomina of the Romans", in Transactions of the American Philological Association, vol. xciii, pp. 347–354 (1962).
Alan E. Samuel, Greek and Roman Chronology: Calendars and Years in Classical Antiquity, C. H. Beck, Munich (1972).
Paul A. Gallivan, "Some Comments on the Fasti for the Reign of Nero", in Classical Quarterly, vol. 24, pp. 290–311 (1974), "The Fasti for the Reign of Gaius", in Antichthon, vol. 13, pp. 66–69 (1979), "The Fasti for A.D. 70–96", in Classical Quarterly, vol. 31, pp. 186–220 (1981).
Paul M. M. Leunissen, Konsuln und Konsulare in der Zeit von Commodus bis Severus Alexander (Consuls and Consulars from the Time of Commodus to Severus Alexander), Verlag Gieben, Amsterdam, (1989).
Werner Eck, "Miscellanea Prosopographica", in Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik, vol. 42 (1981), "Die Fasti consulares der Regierungszeit des Antoninus Pius, eine Bestandsaufnahme seit Géza Alföldys Konsulat und Senatorenstand" (The Consular Fasti for the Reign of Antoninus Pius: an Inventory since Géza Alföldy's Konsulat und Senatorenstand), in Studia Epigraphica in Memoriam Géza Alföldy, Werner Eck, Bence Fehér, Péter Kovács, eds., Bonn, pp. 69–90 (2013).