Volcacius Sedigitus
Volcacius Sedigitus (Latin pronunciation: [wɔɫˈkaːki.ʊs seːˈdɪɡɪtʊs]) (alternative spelling Volcatius[1]) was the titulus[2] of a Roman literary critic[3] who flourished around 100 b.c.,[4] noted for his ranking of those he considered the best Latin comics.
Nothing is known about Sedigitus beyond that Pliny[5] calls him illustrem in poetica and states that he got his cognomen because he was born with six fingers (Latin sex digitī) on each hand.[2] This rare state, known as polydactyly, is caused by a dominant gene. The Romans did not avoid openly referencing blemishes and personal infirmities in the names they gave to public figures.[6] (See Roman naming conventions.)
His origin may have been lowly or from outside the Roman Empire. His nomen gentilicium, "Volcacius", may be derived from the Volcae, a Celtic people.[7]
Aulus Gellius' Noctēs Atticae[8][9][10] preserves 13 iambic senarii from the De Poetis in didascaly, in which "Canon", as it has been termed, the principal Latin comics are enumerated in order of merit, from greatest: Caecilius, Plautus, Naevius, Licinius, Atilius, Terence, Turpilius, Trabea, Luscius, Ennius.[1]
Historian Suetonius' work Vita Terentii (Life of Terence) quotes "Vulcacius" as having given a few details about Terence's leaving Rome and consequent disappearing. Namely, Sedigitus said that the playwright was going to Asia, i.e., Pergamum, and was never seen again.[11][12][13]
References
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- ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ "Caecilius, Statius." Encyclopædia Britannica. Ultimate Reference Suite. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2008. "Roman comic poet ranked by the literary critic Volcatius Sedigitus at the head of all Roman writers of comedy."
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- ^ Natural History 11.244.
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value). Apud "Sigon. de Nom. Rom", p. 365.
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- ^ xv.24.
- ^ "LacusCurtius • Gellius — Noctes Atticae, Liber XV". Retrieved on 2008-11-25.
- ^ Johann Jacob Hofmann (1635—1706). Lexicon Universale. Lugduni Batavorum, 1698. p. 695. (In Latin.)
- ^ Vita 5 = fpl fr. 2.
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Bibliography
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