• 1 See, e.g., Edmondson 2006, p. 250-255; Derks 2011; Chulsky 2015. I am grateful to the referees of (...)
• 2 On urbanization policy in Mauretania Tingitana, see Coltelloni-Trannoy 1997, p. 146-152; Gozalbes (...)
• 3 Ponsich 1988; Gozalbes Cravioto 1997; Mohcin Cheddad 2006; Pons Pujol 2010; Papi 2017; Bigi 2019.
• 4 Étienne 2002; des Boscs 2019.
• 5 Duncan-Jones 1967, nos. 63 and 184-185.
• 6 Fishwick 1972; Kotula 1975; Delgado Delgado 1998.
• 7 Lefebvre 2008, p. 122-124.
• 8 E.g., Lamoine 2009; Belkahia Karoui 2010; Ben Romdhane 2011; Magistrados locales 2013; Senados mun (...)

1A crucial step in the pacification and assimilation of the western Roman provinces was the creation of cities with a romanized élite1. The province of Mauretania Tingitana (fig. 1) boasted five colonies (Banasa, Babba and Zilil founded by Augustus, to which Claudius added Tingi and Lixus) and at least two municipia (Volubilis and Sala, both privileged by Claudius)2. Tingitana’s mercantile élite profited from Mediterranean and Atlantic trade routes, exporting fish products and olive oil3. Of particular importance was the family of the Ocratii, which was involved in Baetican oil exports in the mid-second century but was also active at Volubilis, producing Tingitana’s only known senator, T. Ocratius Valerianus, quaestor pro praetore prouinciae Baeticae at the end of the second or beginning of the third century AD4. Previous studies have examined the careers of Tingitanan notables who held equestrian rank5, as well as provincial priests6. But in contrast to this recognition of the province’s commercial, equestrian and religious élites, insufficient attention has been paid to the civic officials of colonies and municipalities. Apart from two paragraphs in an article by S. Lefebvre7, the local magistrates and decurions of Tingitana have been almost completely ignored. This is all the more surprising since local magistrates and decurions in other western provinces have been the subject of important recent investigations8.

• 9 Callegarin 2011.
• 10 Cf. Liv. 39, 61: cum sufetes ad ius dicendum consedissent.
• 11 See below, section 2.

2Local magistrates undoubtedly existed in this region before the Roman annexation. Although coins issued by coastal towns of Tingitana in the last two centuries BC do not name the minting officials9, a Punic inscription from inland Volubilis names four sufetes in the latter half of the second century BC, three of them with Libyan names and one with a Punic name (below, n^o 60-63). Since the Punic word šptm (shuphetim, latinized as sufetes) literally means “judges”, the title connotes magistrates with judicial power10. Volubilis still had sufetes in the first century AD11.

• 12 Bernard, Callegarin 2017, p. 186-190. In 38 BC Tingi, having revolted against the Mauretanian king (...)
• 13 Pflaum 1972, p. 60.
• 14 RPC I, 860; Gascou 1974.
• 15 RPC S-3, p. 22; Bernard, Callegarin 2017, p. 186-187. This is parallel to the legend EX D D on the (...)
• 16 Plin. nat. 5, 2, 4; CIL VI, 31870. On the problematic status of Tingi, see also Mackie 1983, p. 34 (...)

3The first recorded Roman magistrates in Tingitana are the quattuoruiri and aediles (42-49) named on coinage of Iulia Tingi, in the period 38-27 BC12. The presence of quattuoruiri rather than duumuiri has been seen as indicating that Tingi began as a Latin colony13. On the other hand, the presence of duumuiri and aediles in the period 33-27 BC (50-55), together with the supposed legend col(onia) Iul(ia) Tingi on one of these issues, has been taken as evidence of an Augustan veteran colony14. However, recent numismatic research has shown that the three letters before Iul cannot be read col; they are more likely e(x) d(ecreto) d(ecurionum)15. The most probable explanation is that Tingi, after the revolt of 38 BC, was made a municipium Iulium with quattuoruiri (comprising two duumuiri and two aediles), and did not become an honorary colony until the reign of Claudius16. Therefore, the apparent switch from quattuoruiri to duumuiri would not denote a change in civic status, but merely an alternative title of the chief magistrates. Two further duumuiri of Tingi (54-55) are datable to the reign of Augustus, most likely between 27 and 19 BC. Altogether there are 14 attested coining magistrates at Tingi. One of these, Q. Fabius Fabullus (43), appears to have held office in three separate (not necessarily consecutive) years – twice in the period 38-33, and once in 33-27 BC – with different colleagues.

• 17 The location of Babba is uncertain. Attempts have been made, none conclusively, to identify it wit (...)
• 18 Ñaco 2010, p. 149 n. 18. Although Rome appointed annual praefecti to supervise markets and the adm (...)
• 19 AE 2006, 645, cap. 13; CIL II²/5, 1022, cap. 31.
• 20 CIL I², 592.
• 21 RPC I, 162-165, 261, 440; Melchor Gil, Torres-González 2018, p. 529.
• 22 RPC I, 483.
• 23 CIL VIII, 8995; ILAlg. II.3, 7662-7663. Cf. Gascou 1990, p. 369-370.
• 24 E.g., CIL XI, 8066; EE VIII, 1, 636; AE 1996, 423.

4On the coinage of the colony of Babba17, dating to about 19 BC, we meet C. Mar(ius) or Mar(cius) Ambatus, praef(ectus) iter(um) (1). He appears alone on one coin, and together with two aediles (2-3) on another. Since a colony should have two chief magistrates, how do we explain the presence of a single prefect? According to one interpretation, Ambatus could be a garrison commander or territorial governor18. Such a solution might make sense in the context of the civil war, but not under the pax Augusta. While there were presumably troops stationed at Babba for defence against neighbouring tribesmen, the colony itself would have been administered by its own magistrates. The naming of aediles confirms that the coinage was issued by civilian authorities. Moreover, the word iterum regularly refers to renewal of an annual magistracy. A more convincing interpretation is that Ambatus served as praefectus in place of the colony’s duumuiri. This procedure was already well established; for instance, the lex of the Caesarian colony of Vrso in Hispania Vlterior provided for quicumque IIuiri praefectiue (...) facti creatique erunt and placed juridical power aput IIuir(um) pr(a)ef(ectum)ue19. Similarly, the Lex Rubria de Gallia Cisalpina, dating to the 40s BC, refers to the jurisdiction and decrees of the IIuir IIIIuir praefec(tus)ue20. Such a prefect, often styled praefectus iure dicundo, normally replaced one of the duumuiri who was absent or unable to complete his term. If both duumuiri required substitutes there would be two praefecti, as we see on coins of Carthago Noua, Celsa and Calagurris in the triumviral and Augustan periods21. What is unusual here is that Ambatus is named without a colleague. We might compare the praef(ectus) Cn. Statius Libo, who appears alone on a coin of an unidentified Spanish city22; but without knowing the date of this coin or the juridical status of the city, it is impossible to draw a reliable parallel with an Augustan colony in Mauretania. However, several African inscriptions name a praef(ectus) pro IIuiris (instead of the expected pro IIuiro), suggesting that a single prefect was sometimes appointed to replace both duumuiri23. This seems the likeliest explanation for the lone praefectus at Babba. It was unusual but not unknown for a praefectus to serve a second term (iterum)24.

• 25 Mattingly 2003², p. 97. For the mahazim see IRT 599, commentary.

5While the earliest Roman magistrates are known only from coins, all the evidence from the post-Augustan age comes from inscriptions. These provide more detailed information, including family relations and in some cases special achievements. An interesting Latin inscription of the first century AD provides attestation of a sufes, M. Valerius Severus, at Volubilis (64). This man, whose father bore the Punic name Bostar, held office prior to Mauretania becoming a Roman province in the early 40s AD. He lists his previous office as aedilis, which is clearly interpretatio Romana of a Punic title. He would have been one of the mahazim or junior magistrates of the pre-Roman town25. After Volubilis was granted municipal status by Claudius, Severus was elected duumuir.

• 26 Curchin 1990, p. 29-33; Dondin-Payre 2007, p. 292.
• 27 Dig. 50, 2, 6, 1, Papinian: minores uiginti quinque annorum decuriones facti (...) suffragium inte (...)

6The “standard” municipal cursus (quaestor–aedilis–duumuir) is never recorded in Tingitana. Indeed, studies of other provinces suggest that this pattern was less common than is usually assumed26. While it was possible to become duumuir without holding the two lower offices, it was also not obligatory for a duumuir to indicate that he had been quaestor or aedilis. Thus, for instance, none of the numerous duumuiri of Banasa is recorded as having held an earlier magistracy. Such omissions make it difficult to reconstruct career trajectories. In any event, not everyone progressed to the duumvirate. Many of the inscriptions record decurions who rose to no higher office; and one praetextatus who was co-opted as a decurion at both Volubilis and Sala died at age 5 (33). Praetextati were ranked among the decurions, as can be seen in the album of Canusium in Apulia (our only complete list of a city council), but could not vote until the age of 2527. Only two quaestores are attested, in the municipia of Sala (36) and Volubilis (82), and the second of these was subsequently duumuir. Five duumuiri mention that they were previously aediles (57, 64, 65, 70, 74). The title duumuir quinquennalis, referring to one of the magistrates in charge of the periodic census, is not attested in Tingitana.

• 28 The curia Vlpia, mentioned on a statue base from Sala (IAM II, 307) as the meeting-place of the Sa (...)
• 29 IAM II, 95 (Marcus Aurelius), 304b (Constantine), 305 (unnamed emperor), 375a (deified Matidia); I (...)
• 30 IAM II, 369.
• 31 IAM II, 474.
• 32 IAM II, suppl., 6 (“d. d.” plausibly restored); IAM II, 304a.

7In addition to individual decurions, the inscriptions mention their corporate decisions (decreta decurionum) made in the curia28. These often involve the erection of a statue or other monument to the emperor or a member of his family29. In particular, the decurions of Volubilis offer a dedication to Claudius, thanking him for giving their city Roman citizenship, the right of marriage, and a tax exemption30. They also approve a statue to a municipal patron, L. Sariolenus Proculus31. There is an inscription from Tingi decreeing a statue to a provincial dignitary (perhaps the governor or patron), and one from Sala approving a statue for L. Minicius Pulcher, praefectus equitum32. Another praefectus equitum, M. Sulpicius Felix (37), is awarded honours by the decurions of Sala because of his many benefactions to the city.

• 33 Decurionatum gradum IIuiralem: IAM II, 307, line 21.
• 34 Horster 2004.
• 35 E.g., CIL II²/14, 794; AE 1957, 36. The Mauretanian kings Juba II and Ptolemy were honorary duumui (...)

9There is also one example of an honorary magistracy. The equestrian officer M. Sulpicius Felix (37), prefect of a squadron of cavalry, who helped protect Sala from raids by marauders and who moreover made numerous benefactions to the city, was made a decurion with rank of duumuir33 by the grateful ordo. Such honorary duumvirates (duumuirales honores) could be awarded by decree of the ordo to members of the imperial family34 or to other distinguished individuals35, for instance to persons who were not citizens of the town.

• 36 On civic embassies see Eck 2009; Hurlet 2012.
• 37 Salway 2000, p. 144; Nicols 2014, p. 315.
• 38 Delgado Delgado 1988, p. 87-89.

10Besides the three traditional magistracies, members of the ordo sometimes held other local offices. Several men from Banasa, Sala and Volubilis, were dispatched as envoys (legati) to make a petition to the emperor (20-21, 64) or the governor (39-40). Such legationes were an important avenue of communication between provincial cities and the ruling élite of Rome36. Other legati were sent to offer a senator (himself sometimes a current or former governor) an appointment as the city’s patron (5-8, 11-15). In this capacity the legati performed a particularly valuable service, because a civic patron could intercede with the governor or the emperor, defend the city in the Senate or in the courts, and mediate between the city and the imperial bureaucracy in matters such as tax disputes37. One of the legati of Banasa in AD 162 was a serving duumuir (11), showing that legati were not necessarily inferior to magistrates; indeed, given the importance of their mission, some of them may have been ex-magistrates, even if this is not indicated in the inscriptions. Magistrates also played a notable role in emperor worship. One duumuir at Tingi, and several at Volubilis, became flamines of the imperial cult (56, 64, 70, 74, 81, 82). However, the duumvirate was not always a stepping-stone to the flaminate, since one man records the flaminate before the duumvirate (81), while another flamen was a decurion but apparently not a duumuir (71). But although the prior exercise of a magistracy was thus not a prerequisite for becoming a flamen in Tingitana, it would probably have been a strong asset38.

• 39 Alae Gemellianae ex prouincia Ting(itana): CIL VIII, 24635; AE 1906, 150.
• 40 On the career of M. Valerius Severus see Christol, Gascou 1980, p. 129-133. On the chronology of t (...)

11Little is known of the careers of these men prior to becoming magistrates. A few specify that they had been decuriones, and in many other cases this can be assumed even if not mentioned. A duumuiralis (ex-duumuir) from Babba (4) was previously a decurio (cavalry officer, not municipal decurion) in the ala Gemelliana, an auxiliary unit raised in this province39. The previously mentioned M. Valerius Severus of Volubilis (64) commanded locally raised auxiliaries during the revolt of Aedemon in AD 40; this apparently occurred after serving as aedilis and sufes in the indigenous town and before becoming duumuir and flamen in the newly enfranchised municipium40.

• 41 Le Roux 2013, p. 244.

12Few magistrates held office beyond the local level. Some men, content with local honours, may have spurned an imperial career. Others may have been more ambitious but lacked ability or opportunity for advancement. For instance, none of the known local magistrates went on to hold the provincial priesthood. Only one success story is documented: the decurion L. Pompeius Senior of Volubilis was awarded the equus publicus, becoming praefectus cohortis and tribunus militum (72). This meagre track record for the local élite of Tingitana is hardly surprising, since provincial cities had limited influence and were not designed as a recruiting base for the Roman aristocracy41.

• 42 E.g., Roncaglia 2018, p. 65; Henzel 2022, p. 225.
• 43 Langhammer 1973, p. 166; Camodeca 2008, p. 512.
• 44 Local magistrates in Africa were still being chosen by popular vote until at least the time of Con (...)
• 45 Jacques 1984, p. 282.

13One other equestrian officeholder, though not of local origin, deserves mention here. At Tingi in the Severan period we encounter a probable curator coloniae (58). This official, known in some cities as curator rei publicae, was an appointee of senatorial or equestrian rank who supervised the city’s finances. The curator rei publicae is sometimes regarded as a city magistrate42; alternatively, he has been seen as a “Reichs- bzw. Staatskommissar” or “funzionario”43. None of these definitions is entirely satisfactory. Unlike a local magistrate, the curator was chosen not by popular election but by the emperor44; however, unlike an imperial administrator or bureaucrat, he served the interests of the city rather than those of the state45.

• 46 Cf. Rémy 1998, p. 78: “pour faire partie de l’aristocratie d’une cité il fallait disposer d’un pat (...)
• 47 Attested summae honorariae in Africa range from HS 800 for a sufes in a small town (AE 1946, 234) (...)
• 48 Leveau 1985, p. 23-26; Nonnis 1999.
• 49 Rémy 1998, p. 89.
• 50 See above, n. 3.

14Decurions and magistrates belonged not only to the political élite but also to the economic élite of their communities46. The property qualification for admission to the ordo decurionum, and the expectation that magistrates would either sponsor games at their own expense, make an ob honorem donation, or pay a fixed summa honoraria for their office47, meant that these men needed deep pockets. While the sources of their wealth can only be speculated upon, some general indications may be suggested. The Roman élite traditionally invested their wealth in land, which in turn generated agricultural profits. However, it has been shown that a significant part of the wealth of municipal élites came from commercial and industrial activities48. Even large landowners may have invested in such enterprises, which offered higher earnings and fewer risks than farming49. In the case of Tingitana, this could have included the export of such products as olive oil and fish sauce50.

• 51 Rhorfi 2015, p. 785.

15From the romanized names of these magistrates, it is difficult to distinguish immigrants from indigenes. However, some of the latter (or their ancestors) seem to have acquired Roman citizenship, either per magistratum or for some other reason. Four of the legati of Banasa (5-8) were enrolled in Fabia, the tribe assigned to new citizens in this colony. Similarly, several of the magistrates of Volubilis were enrolled in Claudia, the tribe allotted to new citizens there. This included some of the Caecilii (68, 79, 80 and presumably 75), a family prominent in this city. However, Q. Caecilius Plato (70) belonged to tribe Galeria. It has been suggested that the Caecilii in tribe Galeria could be immigrants from Spain, where a number of communities were assigned to this tribe under Augustus and where the nomen Caecilius occurs frequently51. However, the fact that the patently autochtonous M. Valerius Bostaris f. Severus (64) was also enrolled in Galeria reminds us that this tribe was not confined to Iberia, while the recently enfranchised Caecilii in tribe Claudia prove that this nomen could be given to new citizens. The female relatives of some of the magistrates have Libyan cognomina, such as Fabia Bira Izeltae f. (64), Gabinia Babbus (71) and Caecilia Dideiia (78), showing that the family was at least partly indigenous.

• 52 Alföldy 1984.
• 53 CIL IX, 338; Pérez Zurita 2013, p. 310-311.
• 54 Jacques 1984, 510.
• 55 On these families see Lefebvre 2012.
• 56 For a detailed analysis of this family, see Lefebvre 1992.
• 57 Since male cognomina were sometimes derived from the mother’s nomen (e.g., Vespasianus, son of Ves (...)
• 58 On this strategy see Kleijwegt 1993, p. 114.

16Alföldy has demonstrated that some cities had closed élites, controlled by a handful of prominent families, while others were open to participation by a more diverse demographic52. A further example is provided by the album of Canusium where the 29 duumuiralicii represented 25 different gentes and only three men served twice, indicating that this office was not being monopolized by a few families53. Moreover, among the 125 decurions and praetextati in this album, 32 gentes appear only once54. Similarly, at Tingi and Banasa we find a variety of different nomina, though there are two Aemilii (not necessarily related) at the former and two Domitii (possibly father and son) at the latter. At Volubilis, in addition to two Antonii, two Valerii and two Pompeii (father and son), there is a strong presence of Caecilii, comprising six of the eighteen known magistrates and decurions55. Moreover, it is possible to trace the exact relationship of four of these on the basis of their female kin (fig. 2). The duumuir and flamen L. Caecilius Caecilianus (74) was the father-in-law of Manlia Romana and thus the grandfather of her son, the decurion L. Caecilius Clemens (75). Another L. Caecilius L. f. Clemens, duumuiralis (79), was presumably the son of the latter. The mother of the younger Clemens was Caecilia Caeciliana, probably to be identified as the daughter of the duumuir Q. Caecilius Plato (70); this would make Plato the father-in-law of the elder Clemens56. Another Caecilia is named as mother of the decurion C. Gellius Seneca (78), reflecting a marital alliance between the Caecilii and Gellii57. A further possible example of family influence on the town council is the appointment of a child decurion, Q. Antonius Tranquillus Saturninus (33) at Volubilis and Sala. This can be seen as an attempt by a prominent family to reserve a seat on the council and prevent it going to a non-élite candidate58. His mother’s cognomen, Caeciliana, suggests descent from, or adoption by, the Caecilii.

• 59 IAM II, 439-440.
• 60 Briand-Ponsart 2004, p. 183-184.
• 61 In IAM II, 439, Aemilia Vrbana is his uxor, but in IAM II, 504 he is her patronus.

17Another likely example of an alliance between leading families is provided by M. Valerius Bostaris f. Severus (64), duumuir and flamen primus at Volubilis under Claudius, and his wife Fabia Bira Izeltae f., flaminica prima59. Their fathers, Bostar and Izelta, were probably prominent members of the peregrine community60. As duumuir, Valerius Severus was eligible for Roman citizenship per magistratum for himself and his wife, although (as suggested by the tribe Galeria instead of Claudia) he may already have received it through a viritane grant as a reward for his service as praefectus of local auxiliaries during the revolt of Aedemon. A very different, non-strategic sort of marriage is evident in the case of another Volubilitan duumuir and flamen, M. Aemilius Severus (81), who wedded his own liberta, Aemilia Vrbana61, perhaps valuing love over the social prestige he might have acquired by marrying into an important family such as the Caecilii or Pompeii. The Aemilii are otherwise unknown among the political élite of Volubilis.

• 62 CIL VIII, 5884, 12421; AE 1996, 1706.
• 63 Horster 2014; Lefebvre 2022.

18The epigraphic evidence is disappointing in several regards. First, although magistrates or decurions are attested at the five colonies and two known municipia in Tingitana, none are recorded in unprivileged towns such as Thamusida and Gilda. Inscriptions from Numidia and Africa Proconsularis suggest that such communities would have had magistratus and an ordo decurionum62. Next, there are no mentions of euergetism or benefactions by local magistrates. In other provinces we have inscriptions recording that these officials sponsored games and shows, constructed or repaired public buildings at their own expense, or made testamentary donatives of money to their fellow citizens63. Such records are invaluable clues to the personal wealth of the local élite, but are unfortunately lacking in Tingitana. Also, since none of the inscriptions were set up by the magistrates themselves, they afford no insight into élite self-identity or autorepresentation, though we do see how they are described by the community, kinfolk or freedmen who set up the inscription. For the most part this is limited to the magistrate’s name, title and a stock epithet such as piissimus or indulgentissimus. At Volubilis, however, many of the magistrates’ inscriptions are on statue bases, on which a statue portraying the magistrate would originally have stood for everyone to see. A more informative epigraph recounts in some detail how M. Valerius Severus (64) led an embassy to the emperor Claudius that resulted in Roman citizenship, the right of conubium, and ten years’ immunity from taxation for the inhabitants of Volubilis.

• 64 Bronze inscriptions: IAM II, 98, 100, 125, 126, 128. Imperial dedications: IAM II, 93, 95.
• 65 Christol 1986, p. 87-89.

19Lastly, we should note the tremendous difference in the nature of the epigraphic evidence from one city to another. At Banasa, most of the magisterial inscriptions are either official documents in bronze (tabulae aeneae), or dedications to the emperor, in which the duumuiri or legati appear as agents of the ordo64. At Volubilis, by contrast, all the magistrates and decurions are recipients of funerary or honorific inscriptions, nine of them on statue bases. These are ostensibly of two kinds, those in which a statue is decreed by the ordo with the cost remitted by a relative, and those set up by family members. But as Christol has pointed out, the type of support shows that these seemingly private inscriptions actually refer to a public honour and are thus a sort of shorthand, in which we may again understand that the honour was voted by the ordo and repaid by a relative65. In the first category, those explicitly dedicated by the ordo, are the statues of the duumuir M. Valerius Severus and the aedilis L. Caecilius, the expense being repaid by a wife or son (64, 68). Those in the second group are dedicated by the father, brother, sons, daughter or daughter-in-law of the honorand, mostly while still alive though two are explicitly posthumous (66, 67, 71, 72, 73, 74).

• 67 Alexandropoulos 2007, p. 340.
• 68 Amandry 2000, p. 54 n. 8.

201. C. Mar(ius or Marcius) Ambatus – praef(ectus) iter(um); c. 19 BC. Instead of “c. mar” in RPC I, 868, Alexandropoulos proposes “camp(estris)”, since the ligature of the two middle letters can be read as either ma or am67. There are two problems with this ingenious solution. First, the letter c is followed by a dot, indicating a division between words68. Second, the prefect’s name appears in RPC I, 869 as C. M. Ambatus. We therefore retain the traditional reading.
RPC I, 868-869.

• 69 Amandry 1984, p. 92.
• 70 Solin, Salomies 1994, p. 196, 299-300. There are more than a dozen examples of Vaccius/Vaccia in t (...)

212. Vac(cius?) Ax(---) – aed(ilis), c. 19 BC. Amandry suggests that the names are reversed from the usual order, with nomen Ax(ius) or Ax(ilius) and cognomen Bac(ulus) or Bac(uarius)69, though this does not explain the spelling “Vac.”. There are several Latin nomina in Vac(---), of which Vaccius occurs most frequently, and various cognomina in Ax(--), though none is common70.
RPC I, 869.

223. A. Te(rentius?) Tiro – aed(ilis), c. 19 BC; colleague of 2.
RPC I, 869.

• 71 On the date, see Hamdoune 1993-1995, p. 147.

234. [Aqu?]ilo – du(u)muiralis, and a former decurio in the ala Gemelliana; early 2nd century AD71. The inscription was found in the thermes du fleuve at Thamusida, though this does not prove that this was the location of Babba.
IAM II, 250.

• 72 “Homo nobilis certe fuit”: PIR², n^o L18.

245. C. Iulius Senis f. Fab(ia) Rogatus – legatus, 1st century AD. He and his colleague undertook an embassy conferring patronage on one L. Labienus, who is otherwise unknown but would certainly have been a nobilis72.
IAM II, 128.

• 73 On this famous inscription see Corbier 1977; Gascou 1992.

4122. L. Ant(onius) Sosibianus – duumuir, AD 215-216. He and his colleague (23) supervised the engraving of an edict from Caracalla remitting public debts73.
IAM II, 100.

• 74 For discussion of this inscription, see Lefebvre 1998; Boube 2009.

5233. Q. Ant(onius) C. f. Cl(audia) Tranquillus Saturninus – decurio munic(iporum) Volubilitani [e]t Salensis at age 5; between AD 131 and 170. Although the inscription was found at Sala, the tribe Claudia suggests that his family was from Volubilis which received citizenship under Claudius. Moreover, his mother’s cognomen suggests a connection with the Caecilii of that city. Parents: Ant(onius) Priscus and Cl(audia) Caecili[ana]74.
IAM II, 311.

• 75 For discussion of this inscription, see Boube 1979-80, p. 124-137; Rebuffat 1994; Pons Pujol 2012.

5637. M. Sulpicius M. f. Quir(ina) Felix – praef(ectus) eq(uitum) al(ae) II Syrorum c(iuium) R(omanorum); made a decurion with rank of duumuir by decree of the Salensium ordo in recognition of his numerous benefactions to the municipium; AD 144. Felix is also called patronus, possibly indicating that he was patron of the city rather than personal patron of the 38 amici who set up his statue, if we accept Boube’s argument that these amici were in fact the senior members of the ordo 75.
IAM II, 307.

• 76 The title quattuoruir is followed by iur(e) d(icundo) only in RPC I, 857. In RPC I, 859-860, which (...)

6243. Q. Fabius Fabullus – quattuoruir iur(e) d(icundo), 38-33 and 33-27 BC; served more than one year, as his name appears on coins with three sets of colleagues (42, 44, 47)76.
RPC I, 857, 859, 860.

• 77 Faria 2018, p. 105.
• 78 CIL VIII, 26949; ILAfr. 166, 15.

6748. L. Baebius Cosa (?) – aid(ilis), 33-27 BC; named on the same coin as 43 and 47. The first half of the cognomen is unclear on the coins; Faria proposes “igisa”, which is unparalleled77. The name could also be read “icisa”, cf. the names Cicisa and Micisa (perhaps a variant of Micipsa) on inscriptions from Africa Proconsularis78.
RPC I, 860.

• 79 Faria 2018, p. 105. Although freedmen could become local magistrates prior to (and rarely after) t (...)

6849. M. Clodius L. (f.?) M(---) – aid(ilis), 33-27 BC; colleague of 48. The name was previously read M. Curius. Faria interprets L. M. as “l(ibertus) m(unicipii)”, but this is disputable79.
RPC I, 860; RPC S-3, p. 22.

• 80 CIL XI, 1616; CIL XIII, 530; AE 1987, 366.

7051. Simint(hius?) – duumuir, 33-27 BC; colleague of 50. A personal name Smint(h)ius is attested in inscriptions from Etruria and Aquitania80; the first “i” could have been added by epenthesis. Also compare the Numidian toponym Simitthus (modern Chemtou), perhaps originally *Siminthus?
RPC I, 861, 861A.

• 81 Mazard 1955, p. 185 wrongly reads “Aed(ilius)”.

7253. Pol(lio?) – aed(ilis)81, 33-27 BC; colleague of 52.
RPC I, 861.

• 82 Gascou, Christol 1980, p. 338-339; Gascou 1982, p. 150, n. 62.

7556. Q. Aelius Q. f. Gal(eria) Verecundus – duumuir, flamen coloniae Tingitanae, 1st or 2nd century. The tribe Galeria possibly indicates an immigrant from Hispania82.
IAM II, 7.

• 83 Cf. PIR² B 36; Pflaum 1960-61, p. 423-424, n^o 173 and p. 532, n^o 195; Gascou 1982, p. 146-147.

7758. [-.] Bai[---] - [cur(atori) col(oniae) Iul(iae)] Cl(audiae) Tingi[t(anae)], AD 222-235. An equestrian official who had previously served as procurator of Pannonia and possibly as procurator governor of Mauretania Tingitana (according to Alföldy’s restoration of the text in CIL) before his appointment as curator; he subsequently served as procurator of Belgica and the two Germanies83. His nomen might be Baius or Baebius. Although the word curator is not preserved in the surviving part of the inscription, there is no other post that an equestrian official could have held in Tingi between procuratorships.
CIL VI/8.3, 41284.

• 84 Bénabou 2005², p. 570.

8263. ’RS (i.e. Aris) – sufes; 150-100 BC. Son of 62. Punic name84.
IAM I, 4.

• 85 See also Bénabou 2005², p. 571.

8364. M. Valerius Bostaris f. Gal(eria) Seuerus – aed(ilis), sufes, duumuir, flamen primus in municipio suo, ­praefectus auxiliorum aduersus Aedemonem oppressum bello; Julio-Claudian. He participated in the war that broke out in Mauretania after the death of Ptolemy in AD 40 and contributed to the defeat of the rebel leader Aedemon. He undertook an embassy (legationem bene gestam) to the emperor Claudius that resulted in Volubilis receiving Roman citizenship and conubium. However, his own citizenship, in tribe Galeria rather than Claudia, suggests that his family was enfranchised under Augustus. He would have been sufes before Volubilis received municipal status, and duumuir after. His wife, Fabia Bira Izeltae f., repaid the cost of the statue voted by the ordo.
IAM II, 44885.

• 86 Chatelain 1942, n^o 97; Cesaretti 2008, p. 60.

8970. Q. Caecilius Q. f. Gal(eria) Plato – aed(ilis), duumuir, flamen. Chatelain describes the lettering of this inscription as “belle écriture du i^er siècle”, whereas Cesaretti dates it to AD 151-20086. Unlike most magistrates of Volubilis, he was enrolled in tribe Galeria, which possibly suggests an origin elsewhere. His daughter, Caecilia Caeciliana, is the presumed mother of 79 and wife of 75.
IAM II, 438.

• 87 Cesaretti 2008, p. 60; Lefebvre 2018, p. 49.

9374. L. Caecilius L. f. Caecilianus – aedilis, duumuir, flam(en). Cesaretti dates his inscription to AD 171-200, but since the inscription of his grandson (75) is assigned to the same dates, Lefebvre is probably correct in assigning Caecilianus to the middle of the 2nd century87. His daughter-in-law, Manlia Romana, set up his statue.
IAM II, 434.

• 88 Lefebvre 1992, p. 36; 2018, p. 49.

9879. L. Caecilius L. f. Cl(audia) Clemens – dec(urio), duumuiralis, AD 201-250. Mother: Caecilia Caeciliana. His cognomen and filiation suggest that he is the son of 75. This in turn implies that 75 was the husband of Caecilia Caeciliana and thus the son-in-law of her father, Q. Caecilius Plato (70). Lefebvre suggests that, as duumuir, he might have been involved in the refurbishment of the forum (datable to c. 235-250), thereby ensuring the prominent placement of memorials to distinguished members of his family88.
IAM II, 435.

• 89 Faria 2022, p. 192.
• 90 Amandry 1984, p. 91.

106A new article by A. de Faria89 rejects the legends vac.ax. (2) and a.te.tiro (3) on a coin of Babba (RPC I, 869) on the grounds that the interpunction after the x, described as “évidente” by Amandry90, is not really visible. Faria prefers the 19th century reading vagaxa et tiro, since the ligature te can equally be read et. But while it is not unknown for a magistrate of a Roman colony to have an indigenous cognomen, there is no parallel for the supposed name Vagaxa. The female name Baquax (CIL VIII, 20702) invoked by Faria is only remotely similar; and as Amandry remarks, the theonym Bacax (CIL VIII, 18828-18850) is not found outside of Numidia. Although the name Vac(---) Ax(---) remains problematic, not least because of the absence of a praenomen, Vagaxa is hardly an improvement.