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69-402: The surviving sections of the original (much longer) text detail the bizarre exploits of the narrator, Encolpius, and his (possible) slave and catamite Giton, a handsome sixteen-year-old boy. It is the second most fully preserved Roman novel, after the fully extant The Golden Ass by Apuleius, which has significant differences in style and plot. Satyricon is also regarded as useful evidence for

138-534: A statio provisionally identified near the Aemilian Bridge. As mentioned elsewhere detachments of watchmen were stationed at Ostia and Portus and there were sub-stations throughout the city. What arrangements were made for policing the outer suburbs of the city is not known. (Certainly after the governmental reforms of Diocletian the jurisdiction of the Praefectus Urbi extended as far as

207-409: A werewolf (62) and witches are told (63). Following a lull in the conversation, a stonemason named Habinnas arrives with his wife Scintilla (65), who compares jewellery with Trimalchio's wife Fortunata (67). Then Trimalchio sets forth his will and gives Habinnas instructions on how to build his monument when he is dead (71). Encolpius and his companions, by now wearied and disgusted, try to leave as

276-626: A bed at Encolpius's request (97). Eumolpus threatens to reveal him but after much negotiation ends up reconciled to Encolpius and Giton (98). In the next scene preserved, Encolpius and his friends board a ship, along with Eumolpus's hired servant, later named as Corax (99). Encolpius belatedly discovers that the captain is an old enemy, Lichas of Tarentum . Also on board is a woman called Tryphaena, by whom Giton does not want to be discovered (100–101). Despite their attempt to disguise themselves as Eumolpus's slaves (103), Encolpius and Giton are identified (105). Eumolpus speaks in their defence (107), but it

345-501: A crime of murder, or more likely he simply feared being sentenced, to fight to his death in the arena. The statement probably is linked to an earlier insult by Ascyltos (9), who called Encolpius a "gladiator". One scholar speculates that Encolpius had been an actual gladiator rather than a criminal, but there is no clear evidence in the surviving text for that interpretation. A number of fragments of Petronius's work are preserved in other authors. Servius cites Petronius as his source for

414-422: A cure by sleeping without Giton (129–130). When he next meets Circe, she brings with her an elderly enchantress called Proselenos who attempts a magical cure (131). Nonetheless, he fails again to make love, as Circe has Chrysis and him flogged (132). Encolpius is tempted to sever the offending organ, but prays to Priapus at his temple for healing (133). Proselenos and the priestess Oenothea arrive. Oenothea, who

483-449: A custom at Massilia of allowing a poor man, during times of plague, to volunteer to serve as a scapegoat , receiving support for a year at public expense and then being expelled. Sidonius Apollinaris refers to "Arbiter", by which he apparently means Petronius's narrator Encolpius, as a worshipper of the "sacred stake" of Priapus in the gardens of Massilia. It has been proposed that Encolpius's wanderings began after he offered himself as

552-410: A dinner at the estate of Trimalchio , a freedman of enormous wealth, who entertains his guests with ostentatious and grotesque extravagance. After preliminaries in the baths and halls (26–30), the guests (mostly freedmen) enter the dining room, where their host joins them. Extravagant courses are served while Trimalchio flaunts his wealth and his pretence of learning (31–41). Trimalchio's departure to

621-412: A group of students arrive (6). Encolpius then gets lost and asks an old woman for help returning home. She takes him to a brothel which she refers to as his home. There, Encolpius locates Ascyltos (7–8) and then Giton (8), who claims that Ascyltos made a sexual attempt on him (9). After raising their voices against each other, the fight ends in laughter and the friends reconcile but still agree to split at

690-507: A grown man. The word derives from the proper noun Catamitus , the Latinized form of Ganymede, the name of the beautiful Trojan youth abducted by Zeus to be his companion and cupbearer, according to Greek mythology. The Etruscan form of the name was Catmite , from an alternative Greek form of the name, Gadymedes . In its modern usage, the term catamite refers to a boy as the passive or receiving partner in anal intercourse with

759-638: A later date (9–10). Later, Encolpius tries to have sex with Giton, but is interrupted by Ascyltos, who assaults him after catching the two in bed (11). The three go to the market, where they are involved in a convoluted dispute over stolen property (12–15). Returning to their lodgings, they are confronted by Quartilla , a devotee of Priapus , who condemns their attempts to pry into the cult's secrets (16–18). The companions are overpowered by Quartilla, her maids, and an aged male prostitute, who sexually torture them (19–21), then provide them with dinner and engage them in further sexual activity (21–26). An orgy ensues and

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828-652: A man. Vigiles Vigiles or more properly the Vigiles Urbani ("watchmen of the City ") or Cohortes Vigilum (" cohorts of the watchmen") were the firefighters and police of ancient Rome . The triumviri nocturni (meaning three men of the night ) were the first men, being privately owned slaves , organized into a group that combatted the common problems of fire and conflagrations in Rome. Another organization dedicated to fighting fires in ancient Rome

897-537: A night watch, keeping an eye out for burglars and hunting down runaway slaves , and were on occasion used to maintain order in the streets. Their most famous prefect, Naevius Sutorius Macro , succeeded Lucius Aelius Sejanus as Prefect of the Praetorian Guard after his men had been used by the Emperor Tiberius to retake control of the city from Sejanus's soldiers. Vigiles were stationed at

966-524: A pump and an aquarius supervised the supply of water. The ordinary firefighters were called milites (soldiers). The Vigiles were organized into seven cohorts each 1,000 men strong. The cohorts contained seven centuries . The centuries were commanded by centurions , and the cohort was commanded by a tribune . The commander of the Vigiles was the Praefectus Vigilum. The centurions of

1035-534: A real fire (78). Encolpius returns with his companions to the inn but, having drunk too much wine, passes out while Ascyltos takes advantage of the situation and seduces Giton (79). On the next day, Encolpius wakes to find his lover and Ascyltos in bed together naked. Encolpius quarrels with Ascyltos and the two agree to part, but Encolpius is shocked when Giton decides to stay with Ascyltos (80). After two or three days spent in separate lodgings sulking and brooding on his revenge, Encolpius sets out with sword in hand, but

1104-435: A storm (114). Encolpius, Giton, and Eumolpus get to shore safely (as apparently does Corax), but Lichas is washed ashore drowned (115). The companions learn they are in the neighbourhood of Crotona , and that the inhabitants are notorious legacy-hunters (116). Eumolpus proposes taking advantage of this, and it is agreed that he will pose as a childless, sickly man of wealth, and the others as his slaves (117). As they travel to

1173-424: Is also a sorceress, claims she can provide the cure desired by Encolpius and begins cooking (134–135). While the women are temporarily absent, Encolpius is attacked by the temple's sacred geese and kills one of them. Oenothea is horrified, but Encolpius pacifies her with an offer of money (136–137). Oenothea tears open the breast of the goose, and uses its liver to foretell Encolpius's future (137). That accomplished,

1242-471: Is disarmed by a soldier he encounters in the street (81–82). After entering a picture gallery, he meets with an old poet, Eumolpus. The two exchange complaints about their misfortunes (83–84), and Eumolpus tells how, when he pursued an affair with a boy in Pergamon while employed as his tutor, the youth wore him out with his own high libido (85–87). After talking about the decay of art and the inferiority of

1311-553: Is disputed. Many modern scholars accept the identification, pointing to a perceived similarity of character between the two and to possible references to affairs at the Neronian court. Other scholars consider this identification "beyond conclusive proof". The Satyricon is considered one of the gems of Western literature, and, according to Branham, it is the earliest of its kind in Latin. Petronius mixes together two antithetical genres:

1380-550: Is in a Greek town in Campania , perhaps Puteoli , where he is standing outside a school, railing against the Asiatic style and false taste in literature, which he blames on the prevailing system of declamatory education (1–2). His adversary in this debate is Agamemnon, a sophist , who shifts the blame from the teachers to the parents (3–5). Encolpius discovers that his companion Ascyltos has left and breaks away from Agamemnon when

1449-402: Is only after fighting breaks out (108) that peace is agreed (109). To maintain good feelings, Eumolpus tells the story of a widow of Ephesus . At first she planned to starve herself to death in her husband's tomb, but she was seduced by a soldier guarding crucified corpses, and when one of these was stolen she offered the corpse of her husband as a replacement (110–112). The ship is wrecked in

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1518-620: Is prefaced by a verbatim quotation out of Trimalchio's account of visiting the Cumaean Sibyl (Chapter 48), a supposedly immortal prophetess whose counsel was once sought on all matters of grave importance, but whose grotto by Neronian times had become just another site of local interest along with all the usual Mediterranean tourist traps : Nam Sibyllam quidem Cumīs ego ipse oculīs meīs vīdī in ampullā pendere, et cum illī puerī dīcerent : " Σίβυλλα τί θέλεις; " respondēbat illa : " ἀποθανεῖν θέλω. " Arrowsmith translates: I once saw

1587-439: Is the only known instance of the holder of this office being given a substantive command outside Rome. Whether or not his force included vigiles from the city is uncertain. Whether or not the Praefectus Vigilum had his headquarters in any of the stationes identified above or whether he had an entirely separate praefectura is not known. If he is associated with one of the barracks it is likely to have been that of I Cohort in

1656-474: The Satyricon ascribe the work to a "Petronius Arbiter", while a number of ancient authors ( Macrobius , Sidonius Apollinaris , Marius Victorinus , Diomedes and Jerome ) refer to the author as "Arbiter". The name Arbiter is likely derived from Tacitus' reference to a courtier named Petronius as Nero's arbiter elegantiae or fashion adviser ( Annals 16.18.2 ). That the author is the same as this courtier

1725-406: The Satyricon was controversial in 19th- and 20th-century scholarship, with dates proposed as varied as the 1st century BC and 3rd century AD. A consensus on this issue now exists. A date under Nero (1st century AD) is indicated by the work's social background and in particular by references to named popular entertainers. Evidence in the author's style and literary concerns also indicate that this

1794-428: The Satyricon' s Sibyl when faced with the same question, responds "I want to die." Catamite In ancient Greece and Rome , a catamite ( Latin : catamītus ) was a pubescent boy who was the intimate companion of an older male, usually in a pederastic relationship. It was generally a term of affection and literally means " Ganymede " in Latin, but it was also used as a term of insult when directed toward

1863-482: The Via Lata . Every cohort was equipped with standard firefighting equipment. The sipho or fire engine was pulled by horses and consisted of a large double action pump that was partially submerged in a reservoir of water. The Vigiles designated as aquarii needed to have an accurate knowledge of where water was located, and they also formed bucket brigades to bring water to the fire. Attempts were made to smother

1932-597: The Vigiles never achieved the prestige of the Praetorian Guard or the Urban Cohorts , serving in the corps was usually only a means of achieving more honourable and lucrative posts. One known praefectus , Placidianus was put in charge of an expeditionary force sent to Gaul by Claudius II (Gothicus) on his accession in 269 AD to secure the lower Rhone valley against the so-called Gallic Empire . This

2001-641: The Vigiles would often go on to become centurions in the Urban Cohorts, followed by becoming a centurion in the Praetorian Guard. They would then transfer to the Legions, where they could reach the rank of Primus Pilus . The prefect was also known as the Prefect of the Watch. The prefect was an eques appointed by the emperor to command the seven cohorts. It was not a particularly sought after office until

2070-463: The capture of Troy (89) has been related to Nero's Troica and to the tragedies of Seneca the Younger , and parody of Seneca's Epistles has been detected in the moralizing remarks of characters in the Satyricon . There is disagreement about the value of some individual arguments but, according to S. J. Harrison, "almost all scholars now support a Neronian date" for the work. The manuscripts of

2139-471: The cynic and parodic menippean satire , and the idealizing and sentimental Greek romance . The mixing of these two radically contrasting genres generates the sophisticated humor and ironic tone of Satyricon . The name “satyricon” implies that the work belongs to the type to which Varro , imitating the Greek Menippus , had given the character of a medley of prose and verse composition. But

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2208-437: The praefectus urbi , "if the offender is a person of such thuggish and infamous character ... the case is sent on to the prefect of the city". Often times Praefectus Vigilum would go on to be prefects of the Praetorian Guard . Beyond the office of the prefect, the Vigiles were ordered by rank similar to the military. While some terms of service could extend beyond twenty years, most commissioned ranks were much shorter. Since

2277-461: The 3rd century. Prominent jurists with a legal background began serving as Prefect to fulfil the magisterial capacity of the office. As a judge, the Prefect made rulings in his court for the common thieves caught during the night. Eventually, the Prefect was given jurisdiction over daytime petty crimes as well. According to Justinian, in the event of more serious crimes the decision was made by

2346-578: The Sibyl of Cumae in person. She was hanging in a bottle, and when the boys asked her, "Sibyl, what do you want?" she said, "I want to die." In Isaac Asimov's short story " All the Troubles of the World ", Asimov's recurring character Multivac , a supercomputer entrusted with analyzing and finding solutions to the world's problems, is asked "Multivac, what do you yourself want more than anything else?" and, like

2415-549: The authority of the Praetorian prefects sometime in the early 3rd century. In the beginning, the corps had difficulty recruiting men. In an effort to entice men to enlist the Lex Visellia was passed in 24 AD, granting full citizenship and a bonus cash stipend to Vigiles after six years of service. By the 2nd century, citizens were also allowed to enlist. The Vigiles were accommodated in barracks and patrolled

2484-433: The baths and reveals that a man there (evidently Ascyltos) was looking for someone called Giton (92). Encolpius decides not to reveal Giton's identity, but he and the poet fall into rivalry over the boy (93–94). This leads to a fight between Eumolpus and the other residents of the insula (95–96), which is broken up by the manager Bargates. Then Ascyltos arrives with a municipal slave to search for Giton, who hides under

2553-408: The buckets they carried water in, which were made of rope sealed with pitch . In AD 6, Augustus levied a 4% tax on the sale of slaves and used the proceeds to set up the new force. The first units of vigiles were under the command of the aediles and the vicomagistri . There were only 6,000 vigiles and they were all slaves. In 22 AD they were commanded by the praefectus vigilum , who

2622-498: The city to burn under orders from Nero, who later built his palace on land that was cleared by the fire. Regardless, Nero enacted fire code laws following the Great Fire to avoid further conflagrations. These laws called for more public access to water and prohibited buildings from sharing a common wall. Starting about 27 BC, Augustus added a police function to the Vigiles to counterbalance the urban mobs that had run rampant during

2691-691: The city, Eumolpus lectures on the need for elevated content in poetry (118), which he illustrates with a poem of almost 300 lines on the Civil War between Julius Caesar and Pompey (119–124). When they arrive in Crotona, the legacy-hunters prove hospitable. When the text resumes, the companions have apparently been in Crotona for some time (125). A maid named Chrysis flirts with Encolpius and brings to him her beautiful mistress Circe, who asks him for sex. However, his attempts are prevented by impotence (126–128). Circe and Encolpius exchange letters, and he seeks

2760-470: The daughter, although because of his pretence of ill health he requires the help of Corax. After fondling the son, Encolpius reveals that he has somehow been cured of his impotence (140). He warns Eumolpus that, because the wealth he claims to have has not appeared, the patience of the legacy-hunters is running out. Eumolpus's will is read to the legacy-hunters, who apparently now believe he is dead, and they learn they can inherit only if they consume his body. In

2829-495: The dining room. And it's been pretty cold. I could scarcely get warm in a bathtub. But a hot drink is a wardrobe in itself. I've had strong drinks, and I'm flat-out drunk. The wine has gone to my head." In the process of coming up with the title of The Great Gatsby , F. Scott Fitzgerald had considered several titles for his book including "Trimalchio" and "Trimalchio in West Egg;" Fitzgerald characterizes Gatsby as Trimalchio in

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2898-770: The east coast and for 100 miles (160 km) in every direction. This might suggest that his subordinate, the Praefectus Vigilum , had a commensurate responsibility.) The Vigiles often play a prominent role in the Marcus Didius Falco novels of Lindsey Davis , providing assistance in Falco's investigations. In particular, Falco's old army friend Lucius Petronius Longus is a 'Watch Captain' in Regio XIII. In Death in Vesunna by Harry Turtledove ,

2967-598: The final passage preserved, historical examples of cannibalism are cited (141). Although interrupted by frequent gaps, 141 sections of consecutive narrative have been preserved. These can be compiled into the length of a longer novella. The extant portions were supposedly "from the 15th and 16th books" from a notation on a manuscript found in Trau in Dalmatia in 1663 by Petit. However, according to translator and classicist William Arrowsmith , Still, speculation as to

3036-417: The fire by covering it with patchwork quilts ( centones ) soaked with water. There is even evidence that chemical firefighting methods were used by throwing a vinegar based substance called acetum into fires. In many cases the best way to prevent the spread of flames was to tear down the burning building with hooks and levers. For fires in multiple story buildings, cushions and mattresses were spread out on

3105-489: The ground for people to jump onto from the upper levels. A major duty of the Vigiles was to enforce preventative measures against conflagrations. Adequate fire fighting equipment was required in every home. The Digest of Justinian decrees that Vigiles are "ordered to remind every one to have a supply of water ready in his upper room". While the Vigiles only had advising authority, their recommendations were often followed to avoid repercussions for negligence. Corporal punishment

3174-458: The harbour cities of Ostia and Portus . A vexillatio (detachment) of four centuries was detached from Rome for four months at a time, with two centuries being stationed at each city. During the Great Fire of Rome , the vigiles took to looting the city rather than enforcing law and fighting the fires. The vigiles appear to have lost their status as an independent unit and come under

3243-488: The latter days of the Republic. In addition to extinguishing fires, the Vigiles were the nightwatch of Rome. Their duties included apprehending thieves and robbers and capturing runaway slaves. The task of guarding the baths was added as a duty of the Vigiles during the reign of Alexander Severus when the baths remained open during the night. They dealt primarily with petty crimes and looked for disturbances of

3312-458: The lavatory (47), the succession of courses is resumed, some of them disguised as other kinds of food or arranged to resemble certain zodiac signs (35). Falling into an argument with Agamemnon (a guest who secretly holds Trimalchio in disdain), Trimalchio reveals that he once saw the Sibyl of Cumae , who because of her great age was suspended in a flask for eternity (48). Supernatural stories about

3381-402: The mid-2nd century that official stations were built explicitly for the Vigiles' use. By the early 3rd century sub-stations ( excubitoria ), which held forty to fifty men, were constructed to accommodate the expanding city and the surrounding suburbs. The locations of four of the seven cohort stationes or barracks have been fairly definitively identified: The VII Cohort was probably housed in

3450-515: The novel, notably in the first paragraph of Chapter VII: It was when curiosity about Gatsby was at its highest that the lights in his house failed to go on one Saturday night—and, as obscurely as it had begun, his career as Trimalchio was over. An early version of the novel, still titled "Trimalchio", was published by the Cambridge University Press . T. S. Eliot 's seminal poem of cultural disintegration, The Waste Land ,

3519-412: The other guests proceed to the baths, but are prevented by a porter (72). They escape only after Trimalchio holds a mock funeral for himself. The vigiles , mistaking the sound of horns for a signal that a fire has broken out, burst into the residence (78). Using this sudden alarm as an excuse to get rid of the sophist Agamemnon, whose company Encolpius and his friends are weary of, they flee as if from

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3588-443: The painters and writers of the age to the old masters (88), Eumolpus illustrates a picture of the capture of Troy by some verses on that theme (89). This ends when those who are walking in the adjoining colonnade drive Eumolpus out with stones (90). Encolpius invites Eumolpus to dinner. As he returns home, Encolpius encounters Giton, who begs him to take him back as his lover. Encolpius finally forgives him (91). Eumolpus arrives from

3657-462: The peace while they patrolled the streets. Sedition , riots and violent crimes were handled by the Cohortes urbanae and (to a lesser extent) the Praetorian Guard , though Vigiles could provide a supporting role in these situations. The Vigiles were not considered a para-military unit. The first Vigiles sequestered private homes and buildings to use as their command posts . It was not until

3726-635: The present several writers have attempted to round the story out. In certain cases, following a well-known conceit of historical fiction, these invented supplements have been claimed to derive from newly discovered manuscripts, a claim that may appear all the more plausible since the real fragments actually came from two different medieval sources and were only brought together by 16th- and 17th-century editors. The claims have been exposed by modern scholarship, even 21st-century apocryphal supplements. The Satyricon provides description, conversation, and stories that have become invaluable evidence of colloquial Latin. In

3795-443: The priestess reveals a "leather dildo" ( scorteum fascinum ), and the women apply various irritants to him, which they use to prepare Encolpius for anal penetration (138). Encolpius flees from Oenothea and her assistants. In the following chapters, Chrysis herself falls in love with Encolpius (138–139). An aging legacy-huntress named Philomela places her son and daughter with Eumolpus, ostensibly for education. Eumolpus makes love to

3864-795: The realism of Trimalchio's dinner party, we are provided with informal table talk that abounds in vulgarisms and solecisms which give us insight into the unknown Roman proletariat . Chapter 41, the dinner with Trimalchio, depicts such a conversation after the overbearing host has left the room. A guest at the party, Dama, after calling for a cup of wine, begins first: "Diēs," inquit, "nihil est. Dum versās tē, nox fit. Itaque nihil est melius quam dē cubiculō rēctā in triclīnium īre. Et mundum frīgus habuimus. Vix mē balneus calfēcit. Tamen calda pōtiō vestiārius est. Stāminātās dūxī, et plānē mātus sum. Vīnus mihi in cerebrum abiit." — "Daytime," said he, "is nothing. You turn around and night comes on. Then there's nothing better than going straight out of bed to

3933-418: The reconstruction of how lower classes lived during the early Roman Empire . The work is narrated by its central figure, Encolpius. The surviving sections of the novel begin with Encolpius traveling with a companion and former lover named Ascyltos, who has joined Encolpius on numerous escapades. Encolpius' slave, Giton, is at his owner's lodging when the story begins. In the first passage preserved, Encolpius

4002-475: The scapegoat and was ritually expelled. Other fragments may relate to a trial scene. Among the poems ascribed to Petronius is an oracle predicting travels to the Danube and to Egypt . Courtney notes that the prominence of Egypt in the ancient Greek novels might make it plausible for Petronius to have set an episode there, but expresses some doubt about the oracle's relevance to Encolpius's travels, The date of

4071-464: The sequence ends with Encolpius and Quartilla exchanging kisses while they spy through a keyhole at Giton deflowering a seven-year-old virgin girl (26). This section of the Satyricon, regarded by classicists such as Conte and Rankin as emblematic of Menippean satire , takes place a day or two after the beginning of the extant story. Encolpius and companions are invited by one of Agamemnon's slaves to

4140-503: The size of the original puts it somewhere on the order of a work of thousands of pages, and comparisons for length range from Tom Jones to In Search of Lost Time . The extant text runs to 140 pages in the Arrowsmith edition. The complete novel must have been considerably longer, but its true length cannot be known. Statements in the extant narrative allow the reconstruction of some events that must have taken place earlier in

4209-522: The streets, especially at night, on the lookout for any unsupervised fires. Every householder was obliged to keep equipment for fighting fires, and the men themselves were equipped with pumps, buckets, hooks (for pulling down burning material), picks, mattocks and axes. They also used ballistae for knocking down burning houses and creating firebreaks . They even had their own medical support ( medici ), with four doctors attached to each cohort, and their own chaplains ( victimarii ). A siphonarius operated

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4278-479: The string of fictitious narrative by which the medley is held together is something quite new in Roman literature. The author was happily inspired in his devices for amusing himself and thereby transmitted to modern times a text based on the ordinary experience of contemporary life; the precursor of such novels as Gil Blas by Alain-René Lesage and The Adventures of Roderick Random by Tobias Smollett . It reminds

4347-463: The toilet (he is incontinent) allows space for conversation among the guests (41–46). Encolpius listens to their ordinary talk about their neighbors, about the weather, about the hard times, about the public games, and about the education of their children. In his insightful depiction of everyday Roman life, Petronius delights in exposing the vulgarity and pretentiousness of the illiterate and ostentatious wealthy of his age. After Trimalchio's return from

4416-417: The well-read protagonist of Joris-Karl Huysmans 's À rebours of certain nineteenth-century French novels: "In its highly polished style, its astute observation, its solid structure, he could discern curious parallels and strange analogies with the handful of modern French novels he was able to tolerate." The incomplete form in which the Satyricon survives has tantalized many readers, and between 1692 and

4485-435: The work. Encolpius and Giton have had contact with Lichas and Tryphaena. Both seem to have been lovers of Tryphaena (113) at a cost to her reputation (106). Lichas' identification of Encolpius by examining his groin (105) implies that they have also had sexual relations. Lichas' wife has been seduced (106) and his ship robbed (113). Encolpius states at one point, To many scholars, that suggests Encolpius had been condemned for

4554-444: Was a band of slaves led by the aedile Marcus Egnatius Rufus . The privately operated system became ineffective, so in the interest of keeping himself and Rome safe, Augustus instituted a new public firefighting force called the vigiles . Augustus modelled the new firefighters after the fire brigade of Alexandria, Egypt . The vigiles were also known by their nickname Spartoli or "little bucket fellows", given to them because of

4623-545: Was of equestrian rank, and subpraefectus and were divided into seven cohorts commanded by a tribune . Usually tribunes would begin their career by commanding a unit of the Vigiles. Each cohort was divided into seven centuries , each of 70–80 men commanded by a centurion . Each cohort patrolled two of the city's fourteen administrative regiones . The vigiles were made up of freedmen by this time. The cohorts were doubled in size in AD 205. The vigiles also acted as

4692-466: Was the most common punishment for negligence according to the Digest of Justinian, "where persons have paid insufficient attention to their fire, the prefect ... orders them to be beaten". During the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64 over one third of Rome was destroyed by flames. The young Emperor Nero helped to direct the Vigiles in fighting the flames. It was rumoured that the Vigiles intentionally allowed

4761-542: Was the period during which he was writing. Except where the Satyricon imitates colloquial language, as in the speeches of the freedmen at Trimalchio's dinner, its style corresponds with the literary prose of the period . Eumolpus' poem on the Civil War and the remarks with which he prefaces it (118–124) are generally understood as a response to the Pharsalia of the Neronian poet Lucan . Similarly, Eumolpus's poem on

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