When I finished, Aurora looked at me in surprise. “And you find that acceptable, Gaius? I thought you had more self-respect than that.”
“I find anything acceptable that allows us to be together, my love.”
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Unless otherwise indicated, numbers in parentheses refer to Pliny’s letters (e. g., 7.16 means book 7, letter 16). Unless otherwise indicated, all dates are A.D.
HISTORICAL PERSONS
Aeneas Survivor of Troy, mythical founder of Rome, and son of Venus. According to Virgil, he did consider staying with Queen Dido in Carthage until Jupiter sent Mercury to kick-start him back on the journey to Italy.
Calestrius Tiro In a letter to Calpurnia’s grandfather, Pliny calls Calestrius “one of my dearest friends” (7.16). In another letter he says he loves him “like a brother” (7.23). He refers to him, or writes to him, in several letters (1.12; 6.1; 6.22; 7.32; 9.5).
Democrites Greek physician living in Rome in the mid- to late first century A.D. Pliny the Elder mentions his healing of a young woman (Nat. Hist. 24.28). He was a client of one of Pliny the Younger’s friends, Servilius Pudens.
Dido cf. Aeneas.
Domitian Princeps (emperor) 81–96. The portion of Tacitus’ Histories that told of his reign is lost. His reputation was tarnished by Tacitus’ Agricola and Suetonius’ biography, as well as by references in Pliny’s Panegyricus, a lengthy speech in praise of the princeps Trajan that makes Trajan look better by making Domitian, his predecessor, look bad. In his letters Pliny also criticizes Domitian every chance he gets. Pliny may have been embarrassed by the fact that his political career advanced smoothly in the last years of Domitian’s reign, while friends of his were being arrested or driven into exile.
Erotion Child mentioned in three of Martial’s epigrams (5.34; 5.37; 10.61). She died six days before her sixth birthday. Entrusting her to the spirits of his parents, Martial buried her on his farm near Nomentum, which Pliny had given him. Years later, when he sold the farm, he required the purchaser to tend to her grave. There has been much speculation about whether she was his daughter by a slave woman. I argued that she was in my article, “Martial’s Daughter,” in Classical World 78 (1984), 21–24. She figures prominently in my e-book, The Flute Player.
Martial Marcus Valerius Martialis, epigrammatist active in the reign of Domitian. His witty poems made him the darling of Roman society. Pliny mentions him in a couple of letters and gave him some traveling money when Martial left Rome to return to his native Spain. Informing a friend of Martial’s death, Pliny says his poems might not be immortal, “but he wrote them as if they would be” (3.21).
Plinia Pliny’s mother, and sister of the elder Pliny. She is mentioned in only three of Pliny’s letters (4.19; 6.16; 6.20). We are uncertain when she died.
Pompeia Celerina The mother of Pliny’s first or second wife. She is referred to in several letters (1.4; 1.18; 3.19; 6.10; 9.13) and had a villa at Narnia (cf. in Glossary below). Pliny mentions staying in one of her houses as though it was his own and how well her servants treated him. His relationship with her seems cordial, despite the rocky start I have posited in this book. Her daughter, Pliny’s wife, seems to have died about the time Domitian was assassinated, in 96 A.D. He mentions his grief at her death (Ep. 9.13).
Regulus Marcus Aquilius Regulus, orator and notorious delator, or informer. He earned a fortune informing on people during Nero’s reign. Vespasian and Titus were too honest to listen to him, but he regained the princeps’ ear when Domitian took power. Pliny opposed him in court a number of times and, in his letters, makes no secret of his loathing of the man.
Servilius Pudens Acquaintance of Pliny’s who was appointed as his assistant when Pliny was governor of Bithynia. Pliny mentions his arrival in the province in a letter to Trajan (10.25). A Pudens is mentioned in 2 Timothy 4:21 as a companion of Paul, and there is a tradition in the church that a senator of that name was converted by Peter. Scholars generally agree that there is little likelihood 2 Timothy was written by Paul. Regardless of who wrote the letter, the appearance of the name is intriguing, although Pudens is not a rare name in first-century Rome. Martial mentions a Pudens and his marriage to a woman named Claudia (4.13; 11.53). 2 Timothy 4:21 also mentions a Claudia. Cue the “Twilight Zone” theme.
Tacitus Historian of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus to the end of the first century A.D.His Annals cover the period up to the end of Nero’s reign (68), though portions are lost. His Histories covered from 68 to 96, but everything after 70 is lost. He also wrote works on oratory, on Germany, and a biography of his father-in-law, Julius Agricola. Tacitus’ family name (nomen) was Cornelius, but we don’t know his first name (praenomen). Some manuscripts say Publius. He and Pliny exchanged letters and critiqued one another’s work. He was a few years older than Pliny and probably outlived Pliny by a few years.
Voconius Romanus Friend of Pliny’s in northern Italy. Pliny writes several letters to him (1.5; 2.1; 6.15; 6.33; 8.8; 9.7; 9.28) and recommends him for appointments (2.13), even asking Trajan to promote Voconius to senatorial rank (10.4).
FICTITIOUS PERSONS
Aurora Pliny’s servant and lover. She first appeared in The Blood of Caesar and has become an increasingly important character in succeeding stories.
Clodius Supposititious son of Popilius.
Crispina Wife of Popilius. It is a Roman woman’s name, though not common. It would be derived from the man’s name, Crispus, which isn’t common either but does occur in Acts 18:7.
Demetrius Pliny’s steward, overseer of his household in Rome. Father of two daughters, Hashep and Dakla.
Fabia Stepdaughter of Crispina. Daughter of her first husband, Fabius Albinus.
Jacob (aka Nestor) Steward in Regulus’ household.
Lentulus Titus Lentulus, owner of a country villa next door to the one where a horrendous crime takes place.
Livilla Pliny’s fiancée. For the purposes of this story, she is the younger of two sisters and so would be known as Livia Minor or Livia Secunda, or Livilla (“Little Livia”). All daughters were given the feminine form of their father’s family name. We do not know the names of Pliny’s two (or three) wives, except the last, Calpurnia.
Lorcis Common-law wife of Martial and mother of Erotion, also an acquaintance of Aurora. The main character in my e-book, The Flute Player.
Marcella and Nonnius Neighbors and relatives of Popilius. Aunt and uncle to Clodius.
Marinthus Owner of a taberna on the Ostian Road.
Melanchthon Pliny’s gardener (see topiarius in the Glossary). The name is Greek for “black earth.” In the early modern period, when educated people took on Greek or Latin forms for their names, Philip Schwarzfeld, an associate of Martin Luther, renamed himself Melanchthon, since his inelegant German name means “black earth.” I hope readers will pardon my little joke.
Naomi Faithful servant of Pliny’s mother and mother of Phineas, Pliny’s scribe. She and her son were taken captive in the fall of Jerusalem.
Phineas Pliny’s chief scribe, a young man of Pliny’s age and master of the complex system of shorthand known as Tironian notation.
Popilius Second husband of Crispina and lover of Crispina’s step-daughter Fabia.
Segetius Freedman of Tabellius, along with the slow-witted Rufinus.
Tabellius Sextus Tabellius, owner (deceased) of the villa where Pliny discovers a horrific crime has been committed.
Theodorus Son of Marinthus and admirer of Aurora.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Also see glossaries in Death in the Ashes and previous books in this series.
auloi—Sometimes translated flutes, but actually a reed instrument more like a clarinet or oboe. They consisted of two pipes, usually with a strap to hold them around the player’s mouth. Plutarch says the lower pipe carried the melody, just as a husband’s voice should dominate in a marriage.
Baths of Titus—Built near the Flavian Amphitheatre (the Colosseum), on top
of the ruins of part of Nero’s Golden House. They were soon torn down and replaced by the larger Baths of Trajan. Pliny’s entry into these baths figures in the second book in this series, The Blood of Caesar.
caliga—Heavy sandals/boots worn by Roman soldiers. The mad emperor Caligula got his nickname “Little Boots” from the pair he wore with the miniature soldier’s uniform his mother made for him.
Centumviral Court—Like us, the Romans had civil and criminal courts. The Centumviral Court dealt primarily with inheritance cases, although, according to the Oxford Classical Dictionary, “its competence was evidently considerably wider.” Though the title would indicate a membership of 100, the actual number was 180, usually divided into four panels that could hear cases simultaneously or, occasionally, as a full body. Pliny’s letters mention several appearances before this court.
clientela—The group of people supported by a wealthy Roman. The root of the word, cli-, means reclining or leaning on, as in triclinium, three people reclining on a couch. An upper-class Roman tried to support as large a clientela as he could, in order to impress others. His clients came to his house each morning and followed him around as he conducted his business in the early part of the day. He recognized their birthdays, invited them to dinner, and helped them in financial emergencies. They were a visible measure of a man’s wealth and status. In the absence of a government welfare system, this arrangement provided for a redistribution of some money to the lower classes.
cochlearia—A spoon with a long, pointed handle, similar to an ice pick. The Romans had no forks, but they could spear bites of food with the handle of this utensil.
cursus honorum—The “course of honors.” When a Roman aristocrat reached his mid-twenties he was ready to embark on a political career. The first office on the ladder was quaestor (finance), then aedile (public works), followed by praetor (judicial), and hopefully culminating in a consulship when a man was in his forties.
familia—In addition to relatives by blood or marriage, a familia consisted of the slaves and freedmen/women in a household like Pliny’s. A wealthy man with several homes could have a familia urbana in his house in Rome and a familia rustica in a country estate.
hipposandals—A type of horseshoes. There is some evidence that the Romans used iron or wooden shoes nailed into the hoof of a horse, but the most common way of protecting the animals’ hooves and providing better traction was the hipposandal. It consisted of a piece of iron or leather that covered the bottom of the hoof and was tied through loops in front and back with a piece of leather. Very few survive today.
ius trium liberorum—When Augustus established the principate, he needed men to hold the numerous offices necessary to keep the bureaucracy running and he wanted to encourage members of the aristocracy to have larger families. He set up a requirement that only men who had three children could hold higher offices, inherit property, and exercise certain other rights. But birth rates among the aristocracy were so low that Augustus and later emperors had to grant this exemption, the “right/privilege of three children,” to have a large enough pool of office holders. The emperor Trajan granted this privilege to Pliny (10.2) and Pliny asked him to extend it to the biographer Suetonius (10.94).
lararium—A niche, usually in the atrium of a house, where the family’s household gods were kept.
Maenads—Devotees of the god Dionysus/Bacchus. In their rituals they drank a great deal of wine, danced to wild music, and ran through the woods chasing small animals, which they killed and devoured. Paintings and sculptures show them with their hair loose and their heads thrown back. See cover photo of Death in the Ashes for a sculpted Maenad head.
mentula—A Latin vulgarism for the penis, the membrum virile, as the prudish lexicons define it. The Latin language assigns grammatical gender to every noun, regardless of what it describes. Words ending in a are typically feminine, those ending in us, typically masculine. But this is a rule much honored in the breach. The word for farmer, agricola, is masculine, as is poeta. Thus one would say agricola bonus (the good farmer) or poeta bonus (the good poet). The grammatical gender of mentula is feminine, even though the thing it describes is definitely not, so one would say mentula magna (the big, well, you know). One word for the female genitalia (cunnus) is masculine.
Milesian tale—Fanciful stories originating in the second century B.C. in the work of Aristides, who set his books in the Ionian city of Miletus. They often featured abandoned children who grow up to be recognized and reunited with their families, or lovers captured and separated by pirates, only to be reunited after an improbable series of adventures. They were typically racy. Petronius’ Satyricon and Apuleius’ The Golden Ass are generally recognized as based on Milesian tales.
Minerva Medica—A temple in ancient Rome dedicated to Minerva the Healer, mentioned by Cicero. Its exact location is uncertain. The ruin that is now sometimes identified by that name is from late antiquity.
Narnia—The appearance of this word in a novel set in ancient Rome may surprise readers, but C. S. Lewis was well versed in classical literature, so he knew that Narnia was a small town northeast of Rome. Martial mentions it in one of his poems (7.93) and refers to the “twin peaks,” a feature which figures significantly in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Pliny says his mother-in-law had a villa there (Ep. 1.4), which even had baths. Pliny the Elder, Tacitus, and Livy also refer to the town.
nomen A Roman man’s tripartite name, such as Gaius Plinius Secundus (the elder Pliny) contained his first name (praenomen), his family name (nomen), and the name by which he was distinguished from other members of his family (cognomen). In the case of an adoptee like the younger Pliny, part of the biological father’s name would be added, hence Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus.
omphalos—Greek for “navel.” A stone at Delphi was thought to mark the navel or center of the world. (It would probably be classified as an “outie.”) By the second century B.C. the Jews, familiar with Greek traditions, had developed a legend that the Ark of the Covenant sat on a stone that marked the center of the world. Today there is an omphalos in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.
piscina—A fishpond. Many aristocratic Roman houses had shallow pools in their gardens. Often they were used for raising fish for the dinner table.
Praetorian Guard—Augustus established this elite unit to serve as an imperial bodyguard and a police force for Rome. Roman law prohibited housing armed soldiers within the city, so Augustus kept the Guard scattered at various places around Rome. Tiberius built the Praetorian Camp just outside the walls of the city. The unit’s commander, the Praetorian Prefect, came to have enormous power, especially if an emperor was weak. When the Praetorians proclaimed Claudius emperor after the assassination of Caligula, Tacitus says the secret was out: the army made the emperor.
ROTAS/SATOR square—One of the most puzzling pieces of graffiti from the ancient world. One example has been found in Pompeii. Sometimes called “the perfect palindrome,” it consists of five words arranged so that they are the same whether read left to right, right to left, top to bottom, bottom to top, or in ox-plowing fashion (boustrophedon), left to right on one line and right to left on the next, and so on, or up one column and down the next.
R O T A S
O P E R A
T E N E T
A R E P O
S A T O R
Since the word AREPO is not Latin or Greek, no one is certain what it means. Some scholars have claimed Mithraic origins for the square; others have put a wide variety of interpretations on it. The letters can be rearranged to read:
P
A
A T O
E
R
P A T E R N O S T E R
O
S
A T O
E
R
The extra As and Os are taken to be Alpha and Omega. In the square form, all of the As and Os appear on either side of a T, the Greek letter Tau, which was the actual shape of J
esus’ cross. Some scholars dismiss this solution, arguing it is unlikely that Christians would have devised something so complicated, in Latin, before A.D. 79, or that Christians were present in Pompeii before the eruption of Vesuvius. But the church in Rome was active by the reign of Claudius (41–54), and Paul was under house arrest there by 64. Acts 28:13–14 says that Paul, on his last journey to Rome, “came to Puteoli. There we found brethren, and were invited to stay with them for seven days.” If the church existed in one spot on the Bay of Naples by that time, some scholars maintain, why not in Pompeii?
Sibylline Books—Collection of oracles, usually capable of ambiguous interpretations. When Constantine was attacking Rome in 312, one of the competing emperors, Maxentius, who held the city, read an oracle from the Sibylline Books that said, “Today an enemy of Rome will die.” He took that to apply to Constantine and so left the safety of the city’s walls and engaged Constantine’s forces at the Milvian Bridge. It turns out that Maxentius was the enemy of Rome.
topiarius—A gardener, particularly one adept in cutting images or designs into shrubbery. The word “topiary” today refers to the same practice. Pliny says in one letter that his topiarius had trimmed his shrubbery in the shape of Pliny’s name.
vestibulum—Also called the fauces, or “jaws.” The entry to a large Roman house, usually recessed a few feet from the street. If the house had a second story, it would cover the vestibulum, making a kind of stoop or front porch.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Albert A. Bell, Jr. is a college history professor and novelist who lives in Michigan. He and his wife have four adult children and a grandson. In addition to his Roman mysteries, Bell has written contemporary mysteries for children and adults, as well as nonfiction. Visit him at www.albertbell.com and www.pliny-mysteries.com, and also on Facebook.
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