Tiberius Claudius Balbillus Modestus (died June AD 79), more commonly known as Tiberius Claudius Balbilus, was a distinguished Ancient Roman scholar, politician and a court astrologer to the Roman emperors Claudius, Nero, and Vespasian.

Forms of his name

Other forms of Balbilus's name include the Latin forms Tiberius Claudius Balbillus, Barbillus, Balbillus and Balbillus the Wise, Greek forms include , modern Greek transliteration '.

Descent, family background and early life

It is assumed that the birthplace of Balbilus was Alexandria in Roman Egypt. and the younger child born to Tiberius Claudius Thrasyllus. Thrasyllus was a grammarian, literary commentator, and court astrologer who became the personal friend of the Roman emperor Tiberius.

Balbilus had one known sibling, an elder unnamed sister, who married the Eques Lucius Ennius. Through her, Balbilus was the maternal uncle of Ennia Thrasylla from 69 until 79. Although Balbilus was born and raised in Egypt, he was of the Roman equestrian order. A second papyrus dated to his tenure in Egypt is a draft of a petition from tax collectors to excuse them from collecting the poll taxes for several villages where the inhabitants have either fled out of poverty or died without leaving heirs. At some date in the reign of Caligula, Balbilus left Rome and returned to Alexandria.

Political career

Balbilus military and political career began when Claudius came to the imperial throne. Balbilus accompanied Claudius on his expedition to Britain in 43, serving as a military tribune in Legio XX Valeria Victrix and as the Commander of the Military Engineers. As Balbilus was a part of his retinue, it seems likely that his awards, as much as his military rank, were honorary.

Balbilus was one of the highest ranking Equestrian Magistrates After his prefecture ended in Egypt, Balbilus continued to live in Alexandria. Some scholars -- notably Arthur Stein, editor of the Balbillus entry in the Prosopographia Imperii Romani -- contended that Balbilus the astrologer and Balbilus the prefect of Egypt (sometimes referred to as "Gaius Balbillus") were different people, though this is not the universal consensus.

Astrology

Balbilus followed his father in developing skills in astrology. He became a leading astrologer of his time in Rome. He remained in Rome during Claudius’ reign as his advisor, after Claudius had passed an edict expelling all astrologers from the city. Balbilus foretold an eclipse which fell on one of the emperor's birthdays.

During the reign of Nero, Balbilus served as an astrological adviser to him and his mother, He wrote an astrology treatise, titled Astrologumena, of which only fragments have survived. By his wife Balbilus had a daughter called Claudia Capitolina. who lived in the second half of the 2nd century and the first half of the 3rd century. Like Balbilus, both were descendants of the King Antiochus I of Commagene, through Balbilus’ maternal aunt Iotapa who married into the Emesene dynasty.

Posthumous honours

In his later years Balbilus lived in Ephesus. Vespasian granted privileges to him and his city of Ephesus because of his proficiency as an astrologer.

As Vespasian thought very highly of him, he dedicated and allowed Ephesians to institute games held in his honour.

  • Balbilus's role as court astrologer is referred to throughout the fourth to sixth parts of the novel series Romanike by Codex Regius (2006–2014)
  • The character of Barbillus in the Cambridge Latin Course, a wealthy but superstitious Alexandrian with an interest in astrology living around AD 79, is based on Balbilus.

References

Sources

  • Thrasyllus’ article at ancient library
  • P. Robinson Coleman-Norton & F. Card Bourne, Ancient Roman Statutes, The Lawbook Exchange Limited, 1961
  • G.H. Halsberghe, The Cult of Sol Invictus, Brill, 1972
  • H. Temporini & W. Haase, 2, Principat: 9, 2, Walter de Gruyter, 1978
  • B. Levick, Tiberius: The Politician, Routledge, 1999
  • J. Hazel, Who's who in the Roman World, Psychology Press, 2002
  • E.A. Hemelrijk, Matrona Docta: Educated Women in the Roman Élite from Cornelia to Julia Domna, Routledge, 2004
  • R. Beck, Beck on Mithraism: Collected Works With New Essays, Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2004
  • J.H. Holden, A History of Horoscopic Astrology, American Federation of Astrology, 2006
  • M. Bunsen, Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire, Infobase Publishing, 2009
  • H. Willer Laale, Ephesus (Ephesos): An Abbreviated History from Androclus to Constantine XI (Google eBook), WestBow Press, 2011
  • Martin Gansten, "Balbillus and the Method of aphesis", Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies, 52 (2012), pp. 587–602
  • Article by Martin Gansten from Lund University – Balbillus and the Method of aphesis (July 2012)