Late Antique Historiography

Panegyric of Sallust

Title(s):
  • Panegyric of Sallust
Author:
Period covered:
363?
Language:
Latin
State of Preservation:
Fragmentary
Genre:
  • Secular history (classicizing history)
  • Oration (panegyric)
Remarks:
The only information about a work dedicated to Flavius Sallustius, Praefectus praetorio Galliarum and consul with the emperor Julian in 363 (Green 1991: 334) comes from Ausonius: according to the poet, the writing of Alcimus would give Sallust more glory than his consulate.
The nature of Alcimus' work has been widely discussed. According to Rochefort (1960: xxxiv, xlix), the rhetorician translated and annotated Sallust's treatise On the gods and the world, but Courcelle (1960: 414) and Étienne (1962: 257-259) reject this interpretation.
Booth (1974: 172, 239) hypothesizes that Alcimus wrote a single panegyric to both Sallust and Julian (named in lines 21-22), but that is not sure: indeed, the plural form of line 23 (libri tui) could refer to more than one work (Courcelle 1960: 414). That we are dealing with panegyric is, however, very probable.
Edition - Translation:
  • P. Van Nuffelen, L. Van Hoof (2020) The fragmentary Latin histories of Late Antiquity (A.D. 300-650): Edition, translation and commentary. Cambridge.
Fragments:
  • Ausonius, Professors of Bordeaux 2, l. 23-24
Users:
Sources:
Bibliography:
  • A.D. Booth (1978) 'Notes on Ausonius' Professores'. Phoenix 32: 235-249.
  • A.D. Booth (1974) A Study of Ausonius’ Professores. M.A. Dissertation. Hamilton.
  • R. Courcelle (1960) 'Saloustios: Des dieux et du monde'. Revue des études latines 38: 413-414.
  • R. Étienne (1962) Bordeaux antique. Bordeaux.
  • R.P.H. Green (1985) 'Still waters run deep: A new study of the Professores of Bordeaux'.The Classical Quarterly 31: 491-506.
  • R.P.H. Green (1991) The works of Ausonius. Oxford: 42-43, 333-334.
  • D. Melsbach (2007) Bildung und Religion. Hamburg: 42-43.
  • G. Rochefort (1960) Saloustios: Des dieux et du monde. Paris.