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Lucius Caecilius Iucundus

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Not to be confused withCaecilius of Calacte.
Lucius Caecilius Iucundus
Bronze head statue of an ageing, bald man, with a conspicuous facial wart.
Bronze head from ahermfound in theHouse of Lucius Caecilius Iucundus,believed to depict Iucundus
Bornc. AD 9[1]
Died62 (aged 52–53), assumed
Known forPompeian banker
Children

Lucius Caecilius Iucundus(bornc. AD 9,[1]fl.AD 27–c. AD 62) was a banker who lived in theRomantown ofPompeiiaround AD 14–62. His house still stands and can be seen in the ruins of the city of Pompeii which remain after being partially destroyed by the eruption ofVesuviusin AD 79. The house is known both for itsfrescoesand for the trove ofwax tabletsdiscovered there in 1875, which gave scholars access to the records of Iucundus's banking operations.

Iucundus is the basis of the character Caecilius in theCambridge Latin Course,a British series of Latin textbooks based around the life of Caecilius and his family. He is also the basis of theDoctor Whocharacter Lobus Caecilius, played byPeter Capaldi,whose fate is given symbolic importance for theversion of the title characterlater portrayed by Capaldi. He also appears as a minor character in the novelPompeiibyRobert Harris.

Life

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Freedmen and slaves performed many small business tasks for Iucundus, such as signing receipts as witnesses and collecting payments from clients. The freedmen Phoebus, Communis and Chryseros are named in his records as acting for him, as are the slaves Philadelphus, Menippus and Dionysus.[2]A further freedman named Felix has been suggested as the dedicator of the portrait herm of Iucundus found in theatriumof the house.[3]

Portrait bust found in theatriumof the house of Iucundus, one of two thought to depict him[3]

Many names of elite Pompeian citizens occur frequently in his transaction records, suggesting that Iucundus also had dealings with the upper class of his town. In fact, he even travelled to nearbyNuceriato help the wealthyPraetorian Guardsenior centurion Publius Alfenus Varus resell some slaves that he had purchased in an auction.[4]

He had at least two sons, Sextus Caecilius Iucundus Metellus andQuintus Caecilius Iucundus.Iucundus departed from the traditional naming system, giving each of his sons a name that implied a relationship with the illustrious family of theCaecilii Metelli.[5]Little is known of either, though the incomplete state of the records of Iucundus's business — which were buried in his house, alongside unfinished and unused tablets, in AD 79, but contain no records later than 62 — has been taken as evidence that they did not follow their father into the banking trade.[6]

Little is known for sure about Iucundus's life.[3]He was born around the end ofAugustus's reign (that is, beforec. AD 14) to afreedmannamed Felix, who was also a banker.[7]He is likely to have entered the banking business by AD 27.[1]By AD 58 he was well-established as a successful banker who dealt with a wide variety of Pompeiians.[7]He is believed to have had offices either in themacellumor in his house, and to have worked alongside around six associates, including a freedman of theHelvii familynamed Apollonaris.[2]

Marble sculpture showing falling buildings, including a Roman temple.
Thisbas-relieffrom thelarariumof the House of Lucius Caecilius Iucundus shows damage toPompeii's Temple of Jupiter,during the earthquake of AD 62 in which Iucundus is thought to have died.

The tablets that Iucundus left behind suggest that he died in theearthquake on 5 February 62,since his records stop a few days before that date.[8]His name does not appear in any known inscriptions from the 70s, and he was almost certainly dead by AD 79, by which point he would have been at least seventy.[1]

Banking in Pompeii

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Caecilius was a type of banker called anargentarius,which meant that he acted as a middleman in auctions. The Pompeianargentariuswould pay the vendor for the purchased item and then grant the buyer a time frame in which to repay him. According to the records of Caecilius, mostly dating from the 50s, the buyers had between a few months and a year to repay the loan to theargentarius.[9]

Theargentariuswould receive interest on the loan, as well as a commission known as amerces.[10]Someargentarii,calledcoactores argentarii,collected debt money in addition to making arrangements in the auctions, while otherargentariiwere assisted bycoactoreswho collected the debts for them. It is uncertain whether Caecilius was acoactor argentariusor simply anargentarius.

Wax tablets

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Iucundus kept many private records of his business transactions on wax tablets, many of which were found in his house in 1875.[11]The state of these documents has been described as "ruinous": many were charred beyond legibility by the eruption of Vesuvius.[12]

All of the documents are receipts.[12]Of the 153 tablets discovered, two date from AD 15 and 27, and so are likely the records of Iucundus's father Felix;[12]sixteen are receipts for contracts between Iucundus and the city of Pompeii, and the remaining 137 are receipts from auctions on behalf of third parties.[13]Seventeen tablets record loans that Iucundus advanced to buyers of auction items.[14]The tablets testify to the success of Iuncundus' business:[15]all but three record transactions in excess of 1,000sestertii(HS), while their median value is 4,500 HS and three record deals worth over 30,000 HS.[13]A Roman legionary's annual pay during the same period was 225denarii,or 900 HS.[16]One receipt of 14 March AD 53 records the payment by Iucundus for atax farmingcontract.[15]

In addition to the transaction information, Iucundus's tablets record the names of vendors and witnesses to the arrangements. The lists of witnesses also give some insight into the social structure of Pompeii, since Iucundus had his witnesses sign in order of social status.[17]The tablets include a reference to the freedmanMarcus Venerius Secundio,whose tomb in the Porta Sarnonecropoliswas excavated in 2021.[18]In total, the names of around 115 people (excluding those acting as witnesses) are known from the tablets, of which fourteen — all sellers in auctions — belong to women.[3]

The tablets themselves are mostlytriptychs,which means that they have three wooden leaves tied together to make six pages.[19]Wax was put on the inner four pages, and the receipt was written on these surfaces. The tablet was then closed and wrapped with a string, over which the witnesses placed their wax seals. This prevented the document itself from being altered, and there was a brief description of the receipt written on the outside for identification purposes.[20]

Inscription from a tablet

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Drawing of Roman handwriting.
Drawing of the handwriting from one of the tablets found in Iucundus's house (CIL IV, 3340), concerning afullery.

The following is the translation of an AD 56 receipt for the proceeds of an auction sale.[21]

Umbricia Ianuaria declared that she had received from L. Caecilius Iucundus 11,039 sesterces, which sum came into the hands of L. Caecilius Iucundus by agreement as the proceeds of an auction sale for Umbricia Ianuaria, the commission due him having been deducted.

Done at Pompeii on the twelfth day of December, in theconsulshipofLucius DuviusandPublius Clodius.

Seal of Quintus Appuleius Severus, Marcus Lucretius Lerus, Tiberius Julius Abascantius, M. Julius Crescens, M. Terentius Primus, M. Epidius Hymenaeus, Q. Granius Lesbus, Titus Vesonius Le…., D. Volcius Thallus.

In this inscription, Iucundus included the date and the list of witnesses, which were listed in descending order of social status.[4]By examining several of his tablets, it is possible to determine the relative social standings of clients with whom Iucundus arranged numerous transactions.

House

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photograph of a Roman house
Thehortus(garden) of the House of Lucius Caecilius Iucundus

Iucundus's house, known as theHouse of Lucius Caecilius Iucundus,still stands on what is now called theVia Stabia(Regio V, Insula 1.26) in Pompeii.[22][23]It is known for the discovery of Iucundus's business records and wax tablets, as well as for its wall-paintings. Thelararium,or shrine of thelares,features a relief depicting theTemple of Jupiterduring the AD 62 earthquake.[24]Theatriumwas once decorated with paintings; the floor is decorated with a black and white mosaic and at the entrance a reclining dog is depicted. Most of these images are now displayed in theNational Archaeological Museum, Naples.

Several graffiti messages have been found on the walls of the house, including one that reads "May those who love prosper; let them perish who cannot love; let them perish twice over who forbid love."[25]Another, which probably postdates Iucundus's death, proclaims his son Quintus' support for Ceius Secundus, a candidate for the office ofduumvir.[26][27]

Thetablinum,or study, contains numerous wall paintings.[5]Anamphoragiven by one of his sons, Sextus, to the other, Quintus, was also found in the house.[26]

In 2023 a marble relief depicting the earthquake of AD 62 that was stolen from thedomusin 1975 was found in a house in Belgium.[28]

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Images of the House of Lucius Caecilius Iucundus

Depictions in fiction

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The classicistMary Beardhas described Iucundus as "a bit of a breakout star".[29]Book One of theCambridge Latin Courseis a fictionalised account of the life of Iucundus, who is referred to as "Caecilius" in the series.[30]In theCambridge Latin Course,Caecilius has a wife, Metella; a daughter, Lucia; and a son,Quintus,on whom books two and three in the series are based. He also has two slaves; one named Clemens and another, a cook, named Grumio. It is also revealed that Caecilius once had another slave, Felix. However, after he saved Quintus from a kidnapping attempt, Caeciliusmanumittedhim. In theCambridge Latin Course,Caecilius dies in the AD 79 eruption ofVesuvius.[31]

Iucundus appears as a character in the 2003 novelPompeiibyRobert Harris.The novel's protagonist, Ampliatus, works for Iucundus; in a 2024 interview, Harris described him as an "enforcer"for the latter. Harris has described Iucundus as an" obvious "inclusion in the story, and as an illustration of the dynamic nature of Roman society.[32]

In a 2008 episode of British television science-fiction seriesDoctor Whoentitled "The Fires of Pompeii",Peter Capaldiportrays Lobus Caecilius, a marble merchant based on Iucundus. In this story, he and his family are saved from the eruption bythe Doctor,who transports them to safety.[33]Capaldi later played the Doctor'stwelfth iteration;in a 2015 episode, the character explains that he chose to assume Caecilius's appearance to remind him of his duty to save people like Caecilius. The show's writer,Steven Moffat,said that the Doctor's resemblance to Caecilius, as well as to a character named John Frobisher (also played by Capaldi) in the spin-offTorchwoodseries symbolised "the Doctor’s eternal battle with doom and destiny".[34]

References

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  1. ^abcdAndreau 1974,p. 29.
  2. ^abButterworth & Laurence 2005,p. 76.
  3. ^abcdeBeard 2010,p. 181.
  4. ^abButterworth & Laurence 2005,p. 77.
  5. ^abMau 1902,p. 507.
  6. ^Andreau 1974,p. 27.
  7. ^abButterworth & Laurence 2005,p. 75.
  8. ^Butterworth & Laurence 2005,p. 159.
  9. ^Andreau 2008,p. 772.
  10. ^Andreau 2008,p. 773.
  11. ^Andreau 1999,p. 71.
  12. ^abcWolf 2015,p. 68.
  13. ^abWoolf 2008,p. 884.
  14. ^Andreau 1999,p. 44.
  15. ^abWolf 2015,p. 71.
  16. ^Southern 2007,p. 106.
  17. ^Woolf 2008,p. 885.
  18. ^Archaeological Site of Pompeii 2021.
  19. ^Mau 1902,p. 499.
  20. ^Mau 1902,p. 500. To read about the tablets in greater detail and to view pictures of reconstructed tablets, see pp. 499–501 (online version only has text, not images).
  21. ^To view the original Latin inscription and English translation together, seeMau 1902,pp. 502–503.
  22. ^Clements & Clements 2009.
  23. ^Mau 1902,p. 352.
  24. ^Zanker 1998,p. 106.
  25. ^Butterworth & Laurence 2005,p. 134.
  26. ^abAndreau 1974,p. 36.
  27. ^Corpus Inscriptionum LatinarumIV.3433
  28. ^Waterfield 2023.
  29. ^Beard 2024,c. 4:11.
  30. ^Lister 2015,p. 196.
  31. ^Cambridge Latin Course,5th Edition, Book 1.
  32. ^Beard 2024,04:45–05:43.
  33. ^BBC 2007.
  34. ^Bartleet 2015.

Bibliography

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  • Andreau, Jean(2008) [2000]. "Commerce and Finance". InBowman, Alan K.;Garnsey, Peter;Rathbone, Dominic(eds.).The Cambridge Ancient History: Volume 11: The High Empire, CE 70–192(2nd ed.). pp. 769–786.doi:10.1017/CHOL9780521263351.ISBN9781139054393.
  • Andreau, Jean(1999).Banking and business in the Roman world.Translated by Janet Lloyd. Cambridge University Press.ISBN9780521389327.
  • Andreau, Jean(1974)."Les affaires de Monsieur Jucundus".Publications de l'École Française de Rome(in French).19(1). Rome:École française de Rome.Archived fromthe originalon 2022-09-22.Retrieved2023-01-22.
  • Bartleet, Larry (2015-11-15)."Doctor Who Showrunner Steven Moffat Explains how Peter Capaldi's Doctor Shares a Face with His Other Cameo Parts".NME.Retrieved2024-04-02.
  • Beard, Mary(2024-06-11)."The Wolf of Via Vesuvio"(Podcast). Being Roman with Mary Beard. BBC Radio 4.
  • Cambridge Latin Course: Book 1(5th ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2022.ISBN9781009162647.
  • Beard, Mary(2010).Pompeii: The Life of a Roman Town.London: Profile Books.ISBN9781847650641.
  • Butterworth, Alex; Laurence, Ray (2005).Pompeii: The Living City.London: Orion Books.ISBN0297645609.
  • Clements, Peter; Clements, Michael (2009)."House of L. Caecilius Jucundus".AD 79: Destruction and Recovery.Archived fromthe originalon 2023-01-22.
  • Lister, Bob (2015). "Exclusively for everyone: to what extent has theCambridge Latin Coursewidened access to Latin? ". In Archibald, Elizabeth P.; Gnoza, Jonathan; Brockliss, William (eds.).Learning Latin and Greek from Antiquity to the Present.Cambridge University Press. pp. 184–197.ISBN9781107051645.
  • Mau, August(1902).Pompeii: Its Life and Art.Translated by Francis W. Kelsey. New York: MacMillan.OCLC152397550.Retrieved2023-01-22.
  • "Overseas filming for ambitious episode".BBC. 25 September 2007. Archived fromthe originalon 2007-10-11.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  • Southern, Pat(2007).The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History.Oxford University Press.ISBN9780195328783.
  • "The tomb of Marcus Venerius Secundio discovered at Porta Sarno with mummified human remains".Pompeii.Archaeological Site of Pompeii. 2021. Archived fromthe originalon 2022-12-03.Retrieved2023-01-22.
  • Waterfield, Bruno (2023-12-20)."Souvenir from Italy turns out to be priceless Pompeii relic".The Times.Retrieved2024-06-11.
  • Wolf, Joseph Georg (2015). "Documents in Roman Practice". In Johnston, David (ed.).The Cambridge Companion to Roman Law.Cambridge University Press. pp. 61–85.ISBN9780521895644.
  • Woolf, Greg(2008) [2000]. "Literacy". InBowman, Alan K.;Garnsey, Peter;Rathbone, Dominic(eds.).The Cambridge Ancient History: Volume 11: The High Empire, CE 70–192(2nd ed.). pp. 875–897.doi:10.1017/CHOL9780521263351.ISBN9781139054393.
  • Zanker, Paul(1998).Pompeii: Public and Private Life.Translated by Deborah Lucas Schneider. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.ISBN9780674689671.
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