Wiener Studien 126/2013, pp. 145-176, 2014/01/16
Zeitschrift für Klassische Philologie, Patristik und lateinische Tradition
What was the relationship between Martial and the powerful freedmen of the emperor Domitian? The answer to this question bears heavily on the modern interpretations of Martial’s striving to improve his social standing under the last of the Flavian emperors. Today classical scholars believe that some of those freedmen were his friends or patrons, and helped him in gaining access to and winning Domitian’s favour. This paper will show how and why Martial courted them, especially Parthenius, as well as what he actually got for his long-time efforts.