F. .l

PAWEŁ MADEISKIMaria Curie-Skłodowska University, Lubline-mail: tresvir@gmail.com

Death, Funeraland the Tomb of Sulla

eath is a destiny ofall people, even those considered great. Its inescapabiliryadditionally linked to an unquestioning, in the majoriry of cultures, dury

of taking care of the human remains and further arrenrion about the memory ofthe deceased, provides however specific and rational benefits. The first benefit isproviding favourable attitude of the spirit towards the living people, while thesecond one is the possibiliry of building or confirming the prestige kept by thefamily of the deceased. In the wider aspect, it is possible to enhance through onetdeath and funeral, apart from a good fame, also the influence of a social group, anideology, a pattern of moral grounds, and an ethos. This manner of communicat-ing the rituals, in terms of the funerary rites, has long been an object of interest ofscholars from different historical eras. Ancient biographies paid particular amendonto the deaths of the individuals, particularly if the didactical aim was taken intoconsideration. On the other hand, sudden deaths were a pleasant object of story-telling. An example can be drawn from the death of C. Iulius Caesar - the ancientaccounts about it created a tairly consistent narrativer; another example can be themurder of M. Tirllius Cicero2. As far as the deaths of these two individuals becamean inseparable part of the public culture, L. Cornelius Sulla is associated in it only

H. Gugel, Caesars Tod (Sueton, Diu. Iul. 81, Ł82, j): Aspekte zur Darstellungskunst undzum Caesarbild Suetons, "Gymnasium" 77, 1970, pp. 5-22i P. Made.iski, Idy marcowtprzebieg ułydarzeti w źrÓdtach staroż1nych i uczesnośredniou,iecznych (rekonesan), (in:.) Idl7nAlcoue: 2050 ht p źniĄ, ed. L. Mrozewicz,Pozna(t 2008' pp. 175_199.

H. Homeyer, Die antiken Berichte iiber den Tbd Ciceros und ihre Quelkn, Baden-Baden1964; M. B. Roller, Cohr-blindness: Cicero's death, dzckmation, and the production ofhistory,"Clu,sical PhilologT" 92, 1997, pp. 109-130.

lli

Lo4 Paweł Madejski

with proscriptions. Perhaps it is interconnected to the fact that the Dictator left

this world in a manner of unspectacular death, and additionally a natural one3.

The circumstances of Sullat death in the widespread and popularising con-

ceptualisations and assessments of his life paled into insignificance. However, if

the author, taking into account his own convictions, makes Sulla a role model

for modern politicians, he omits them altogether, at most developing after Ap-

pian the description of the funerala, while the authors who are critically inclined

towards Sulla refer, with a hint of satisfaction, to the circumstances of death asa natural result of the characteristics and policies of Sullat.'Within the literatureon rhis matteĘ Sullat death was given some attention, however, the scholars fo-cused primarily on the historiographical material and pediculosisG, and then onthe meaning of funerary ceremoniesT.

The circumstances of Sullas death were detailed the most by Plutarch fromChaeronea and Appian. The information provided by them was also known fromthe worls of other ancient authors. The significant fact is that, apart from thedetails, all the accounm broadly repear the same evidence. This indicates that theyare all based on one or two primary sources, not preserved until modern times.Plutarch and Appian used the sarne accounts or an accound, however so far itwas unsuccessful to unambiguously determine which one it wase. To some degreethis hvoothetical common account cited the Commentarii of Sulla himself and

8

9

At least none ofthe surviving sources suggest that the death ofSulla was an effect ofthemeasures taken by other parties.

I.e. a right-wing publicist I. Oksza-Grabowski, Dybtator S/la, Warszawa 1928, pp.2G-27.

I.e. .W.

Strumski, T1ran'Lub|in |984, pp.27Łf7' (the author linked the motives knownfrom the ancient sources into a new narrative: Sulla dies suddenly, catching fish - hisenemies, who escaped him).

J, Zieben, Sullłs Pbtbiriasli, ..Phi1ologus'' 57,1898' pp. 189-191; E. Kind, Quaestionum

Plutarchearum capita tria ad Marii et Sulhe uitas pertinentia, Lipsiae 1900; A. Solari, Parlafonte di Plutarcho nella morte di Sllh,"Nvista di Filologia e d'Isrruzione Classica" 31,1903' pp.115-120; L. Piotrowicz, Plutarcb a Appjan: studjd źnidłzue co historii Rzymuu epoce rewolucji okres I (133-70),Pozna ,1921, pp.132-134; T. F. Carney, The deathof Sulk, ..Acta Classica'' 4, 196| , pp. 6Ęś9; J. Schamp, La mort m fzurs: considćrationssur l.a rnahdie ,,pćdiculłire,, de $llla,.tAnriqtitć Classique'' 60, |99|, pp. 139_|70-

M. S. Popławski, L,apotbeose de Slk et dAuguste, Leopoli 19f7; J. Atce, Funus impera-torurn: losfunerak de los emperadores rornanos, Madrid 1988, pp. I8-f5, p.31.

A. Solari doubts this, op. cit., p. 119.

Piouowicz, op. cit, p.90 passim; A. Chodzko-Domaniewska, Tindencje historiografirzymskiĘ na przetomie II i I uieku..Roczniki Humanisryczne,,, |I, 1962, 3, pp.75_76(wit}l a rather backbreaking hypothesis rhat ir was one account for each, but includingrwo divergent interpretational tendencies).

Death, Funeral and the Tomb ofSul la 105

at any rate Plutarcht work leaves a clear impression that he reached the sourcesdirectly or indirectlyro.

The narrative of the last days of Sulla presenrs itself as follows. As is known,after the abdication from the function of a dictator, the conqueror of Mithridatesbetook himself to his estares in Cumaerr. He died there in 78BClr, being 60 yearsof ager1. The more accurate date of his death is nor known, but it is accepred,based on the indirect data, that it was in lare summertimera. The death was pre-saged to Sulla in his dreams, menrioned by Pliny the Elderr5, and described inmore details by Appian and Plutarch. According to the Alexandrian author, Sullahad a dream about his own geniusr6, who called him in; in the version of theChaeronean author - his deceased son from Merella, who also bade to follow himand live in peace with MetellatT, but then again Plutarch states that the informa-tion derived from Sulla himself, from the lasr book of his Commentariits. Sullahimself was to include in the source also the news that rhe Chaldeans foretoldfor him a death at the climax of his successesre. In the later Roman biographiesthe announcement of death of a distinguished individual is a standard element,however in comparison to, for instance, Caesart death, a fundamental differenceoccurs. Firstly, the omina list is short, and more importandy, they are nor publicand they manifest themselves only to the man interested in the marter, and notto the whole communiry understanding that the death of Sulla did not carrythe same consequences as the Ides of March. Another issue worthy of attentionis a primary agreement of the preserved sources on the nature of omina, the onlydifference being the identiry of the character, which Sulla saw in his dream. On

l0 Piotrowicz, op. cit., s. 133; Chodźko-Domaniewska, op. cit., p, I0I.tt App., BCI 104 Mendelssohn; A. Keaveney, Sulla: the Last Republican, London 2005,

p. 168.t2 Liv., Perioch.XC Rossbach; Vell. Pat. II 17Wat;Plut., Sulh 36 Lindskog, Ziegler; App.,

BC I 105 Mendelssohn; Memnon apud Phot., Biblizth. f24, 232b = FGrH 434,27, ).Jacoby; Hieron., Chronic. 1937;T. Mommsen, Riimische Gescbichte, Bd II, Berlin6 1874,p.375;Frohlich, Cornelius 392, (in:),REVII, Stuttgan 1900, 1522;Keaveney, op. cit.,p. 175.

l3 Val. Max. IX 3, 8: utpote sexagesirnum ingrediens annułn; Ęp., BC I105 Mendelssohn;Knd', op. cit., p.48; Mommsen, op. cit', lłc. cit.;Keaveney, op. cit,, loc. cit.

'* Arce, op. cit., p. 18.t5 NHwt 4r (43),138 Mayhoff.'o App., BC I lO5 Mendelssohn; Frohlich, op. cit., column ).563.'7 Plut., Sulh37,2 Lindskog, Ziegler.|8 lbidtm, loc. cit. (= Historicorum Romanorum reliąuiae, ed. Peter, vo|. |,2o4).Le lbifum.I. loc. cit.

r

Lo6 Paweł Madeiski

the other hand, the fact of Sulla's faith in a divine power of dreams is in itselfauthenticated by other excerprs and by a famous coin2o.

Howevet such agreement does not exist when the direct reason for death isconcerned. The earliest account, surviving until our times and mentioning thismatteĘ Valerius Maximus, gives as a reason the outburst of anger towards a certainGranius of Puteoli, who wanted to embezzle the funds collected for the resrorarionof the Capitol; this outburst caused the haemorrhage from tłre stomach (for bloodmixed with wine is mentioned)zr. The whole matrer is defined by Plutarch- Sullasuffered from ulcers, he knew nothing about, which caused the bleeding after theoutburst of anger towards Granius; as a consequence of the haemorrhage, afterthe night full of suffering, the ex-dictator diedź'. The progression of the pepticulcer disease was also known to Plinfr. Appian is much kinder, claiming tharright after the oracular dream sulla was writing his last will with the help of hisfriends from an early morning, and after having it hardly sealed, he developeda fever, in effect of which he died at night: such death was considered by theAlexandrian as fortunate2a.

Apart from a version of a sudden death, caused by the internal haemorrhagefrom the stomach, the sources provide one more cause - a disease referred to aspbthiriasisl$0erpto,or62t. At present it is a name for one of the variations of pe-diculosis, more precisely the one responsible for pubic louse contagion (morbuspedicularis).Information about this ailment essentially appears only in the Greeksources' exception being Pliny26, Serenus SammonicusrT and De uiris illustribus:the author of this treatise claims that Sulla, agitated by the Puteolians, died fromphthiriasił' . Fortunately enough, Plutarch was not that laconic and left the descrip-tion ofSullat struggles with parasites: rheir appearance was an effect ofdebauched

20

f 1

22

Chodźko.Domaniewska, op' cit, pp. 101-102; RRC 48o.1.Vart. Max. IX 3,8 Kempf: Puteolis enim ardtns indignation, quod Granius princeps ezuscoloniae pecuniam a d-ecurionibus ad refectionem Capholii promissam cunctantibus d-aret,animi concitatione nimia atque inmoderato uocis impetus conuubo pectore spiritum cntoreac uinis mirtum euomit, nec senio iam prokpsus (...).

Plut' Sulk 36, z.

NHVII 4f (43) 138Mayhoff: age,nonexitusuitae(...)cradtliorfuiterodenteseipsocorPora et suP?licid sibi gignente?App., BCI 105 Mendelssohn.TbGL,vo|.MII, Parisi is 1865'column.759-760;Ziehen,op. t it,pp.l89_191; FrÓhl ich,op. cit.,1563.

|/I1)OO(W 42 (43) 138 Mayhoff; Schamp, op. cit., p.145.Seren. Samm., lib' medic.6243Yo|Imer: S/k quoque irlfelix tali languore peresus I comłitetfoedo se uidit ab agrnine uincii Ziehen, ip. c;i., p. ],3l.75,12: (.--) unde sperni coeptus Puteolos concessit et morbo, qai phthiiasis uocatur, interiit.

t ,

Ęl

Death, Funeral and the Tomb ofSulla Lo7

lifesryle that Sulla led in Cumae and the progressing of peptic ulcer disease. Thelatter was destroying the body, which started turning into lice; many people wereemployed for their removal, the parient washed himself all the time, but it wasall in vain2e. Pediculosis, as the only reason for Sullas death, was also known toPausanias3o and Helladios3r. The latter author noted that the ailment, causing thewhole body being covered in lice, was rare since only the mythical Acastus andhistorical figures, Pherecydes ofSyros and Sulla, died from it; Plutarch added tothis list also Alcman, Callisthenes of Olynthus, the jurists Mucius and Eunus3z,and modern scholars also other historical figuresr3.

The literature on this problem usually omirs the question of pediculosis (par-ticularly when it creates him as a role model for a politician) or considers it aninventive ideara. It is therefore worth having a closer look at the Sullas deathcauses as well as the narratives mentioning it. In the period predating the dearh,the former dictator must have been in an excellent shape, frisch an Kiirper undGeist, as Theodor Mommsen stated35. Sullat next wife36, Valeria, was pregnanr- after her husbandt death she will give birth to a daughtet'T - and also in thepublic matters the dictator was displaying activiry. Ten days before death he wasreconciling the factions of Dicaearchia38, was engaged in the restoration of theCapitol3e, with the help of his secrerary, Cornelius Epicadus, he was writing theComrnentarii (they finished rhe22"a book rwo days before his dearhao). The isolatedcomment by Plutarch that the defrauder Granius was waiting for Sullas deathat,

2e Plut., Sulk 36, 34 Lindskog, Ziegler.30 Izo,7 Spiro.31 Phot., Biblioth. z79, 533a.

38

39

3Ą

15

36

Plut., Sulh 36, 34 Lindskog, Ziegler; the list of ancienr victims of pediculosis is givenand ana.lysed by Schamp, op. cit., p. 139-162.

Solari, ap. cit., p.720: Ferdinand II, King of Naples. In fact, his remains showed that hewas infected by head |ouse Qlediculus humanis capitis) and pubic louse Qłhthirus pubis).Mommsen, op. cit., p.375.

Ibidem, loc. cit.

Three of the first wives of Sulla carry similar names (Ilia, Iulia and Aelia), suggesting thatit was one and the sarne person.Plllt., Sulk 37,4 Lindskog,Ziegleri Fr<thlich, op. cit.,7563; Miinzer, Cornelius 448, (in:)REl/I-I, Stuttgart 1900, 1601.

Plu., Sulk 37, 4 Lindskog, Zieglen'Vhat is evidenced by the case of Granius, bur also a note in Pliny (NllVII 42 (43) 138Mayhoff): (...) hoc tamen nempefelicitati suae dtfuisse confessus est quod Capitolium nondedicauisseą Frahlich, op. cit., 1563; Keaveney, I., op, ch., p.135.Plur., Sulh 37, 1 Lindskog, Ziegler.

Plut., Sulla 37, 3 Lindskog , Ziegler.

40

Ą|

108 Paweł Madejski

points out, howevet that his health was not in the best condition. The sa-me

conclusion is suggested by the references in the Commentarii that he expected

death, placed there most ltkely post mortem by Epicadus. The most probable istherefore the version universally accepted in the literature on the matter that Sulla

died after a shortJasting disease in consequence of an internal bleeding caused

by the peptic ulcer, cancer or cirrhosisa2. Therefore, where did pediculosis comefrom? First of all, pediculosis cannot be ruled out - lice were an acrid issuea3 * butall leads to the suggestion that it was an invention of the Greek historiography,unfriendly towards Sulla, fervently seized by the enemies of the Dictatoraa. TheHellenes had no reasons to keep the conqueror of Athens in a thankful memory.Pausanias directly expressed the notion rhat pediculosis was a divine punishmentfor what Sulla dld to Aristionas. Plutarch's account, stating that wherever the dicta-tor went he polluted the surroundings with worms46, also confirms this directionof interpretation. Julius Ziehen explained the version about pediculosis with anevent which occurred three years earlier: in 81 BC Sulla ordered the killing of

Q. Lucretius Ofella, all in front of the eyes of the voting Romans, but earlier hepresented them with a story about a farmer who was catching lice annoying himduring work-time so that he finally burnt his chitona7, Zięhen recognised theRomans from the populares faction as the authors of the pediculosis m)'th, moreprecisely C. Iulius Caesara8, Some scholars see tn phtbiriaszi an incorrectly definedreal disease like i.e. syphilisae, and in fact its name was often given to some otherailmentsto. Jacques Schamp proved in a convincing argument that the moralisingand didactic descriptions of horrific deaths and passing away of criminal individualsattributed to S0erpioorg are motivated by etymological connection berween theverb S0eipo and the noun Q0eip and S0erpioorqir. It is worth considering onemore clue, not excluding, and perhaps even enhancing the previous argument.

41

44

Frohlich, op. cit., column 1563; Mommsen, op. cit. J/J;Keaveney, op. cit., p. 175.

T.Birt, Laus und Enthusung: ein Beitrag zu Lucilius und Martial,,,Rheinisches Museum'71, 1916, pp. 269-277; G. Thiiry, Milll und Marmorsiiulen: Siedlungslrygiene in der rij-mischen Antike, Mainz 2001, pp. 5f-53.Ernest Kind ascribed it not so much to the historiography, but to the rhetoric, and hepointed Cornelius Nepos and Fenestella as potential authors - Kind, op. cit., p.50.

Paus. I 20,7 Spiro; Ziehen, op. cit.189.

PIur., Sulh 36, 2 Lindskog, Ziegler.

App., BC I 101 Mendelssohn; Ziehen, op. cit.. p. 190.

Ziehen, op. cit., pp. 190-191.

This conclusion was reached byT.F. Carney, op. cit.

Cf. Schamp, op. cit., pp. 147-16f.

Schamp, op. cit., pp. 162-168.

47

48

49

50

&'.

Death, Funeral and the Tomb of Sulla 109

The Latin cognomen Sulla, adopted by one of the branches of the Cornelii, refersro someone with fair hair52. The word is phonetically close to the Greek rpril"l"o,meaning "flea'. The existence of association between sulla-y XXuis authenticatedby no other than Cornelius Epicadus. Sullat secretary left behind a short rreariseDe cognominibus, in which he was attempted to prove that the cognomen Sulladerived from Sibilla, since one of the ancestors of Cornelli Sullae was to be thefirst one making an offering according to the order of the Sibylline boola; Cha-risius, citing Epicadus, himself adds rhat the name sulke or psyllae is humorouslyreferred to as ffiminati53. Thence there is evidence for diversionary Greek jokesat Sulla based on associating him with a troublesome parasire. Since oi yrllJ,cnand cri Q0epeig were associated with each other5a, it can be accepted with a highdose ofprobabiliry that the connection berween Sulla and those quite unpleasantorganisms was an invention of the Hellenes, which later became enthusiasticallytaken over by the Latin circles of supporters of C. Marius and their successors,hostile towards the dictator.

Equally important in this matter is a moralising motif. Sulla, guilry of deathof so many great men, falls a victim to a disease which shows to the enrire worldhis real nature and condition. Stained with the bloodshed, he now pollutes ev-erything around. In the narratives about rulers perpetrating mass murders similarmotives can be easily found - in the description of death of Herod the Greatt5, inwhose rotting body worms muldplied, in the death of persecutors of Christians,in the narrative on Duke Popiel eaten alive by mice. Therefore rhere musr haveexisted two narratives about the death of Sulla - the first one, deriving probablyfrom his Commentarii completed by Epicadus, in which he dies due to bleedingfast, yet not suddenly, and the second, giving his death abhorrent characrerisricsand epitomising the criminal narure of Sulla himself,

The funeral of the dictator was given the most atrenrion, both in rhe sourcesas well as in the academic work. In a consisrent opinion of scholars, rhe evenr wasunprecedented and was an announcement of future grand ceremonies associatedwith the consecration of the Caesars56. The funerary ceremonv was described in

53

Charis.'I,pp.)'40_141 Barwick: quiquodfauoetcomptocapilhfueriąMinzer,CorneliusSuIh 376, (in:) REVII' Stuttgart 1900, 151Ł1515,

Charis., I, pp. 140-141 Barwick.

Aristot., Hist. anitn. IV 10; V 3I; TbGL, Parisiis 1865, vol. VIII, column 758-759;1937,1938.

Ios., Antiq. X\,'II 6, 5; H. H. Ashrafian, Herod the Great and his utorms, "Journd, ofInfection" 51,2005, 1, pp.82-83.

Cf. Arce, op. cit.,18-25,31; H. I. Flower, Ancestor mask and aristocratic pouter in Romanculture, Oxford. 1996,96 and passim.

110 Paweł Madeiski

detail by Plutarch, Appian and, using LĘ Granius Licinianus. Certain recom-

mendations regarding the funeral were included by Sulla in his last will- he cer-

tainly expressed in it a wish of being buried in accordance with the tradition of

the house of the Cornelil, that is without being crematedtT, and he prearranged

the version of his funerary inscriptiont8. Howevet the details were probably made

more precise by Sullat followers- the sources menrion in this context L. Philippus,

who suggested that the body should be nevertheless reduced to asheste, Pompefo

and Catullus6t, who convinced the Senate to commemorate the deceased with

a public funeral; the involvement of relatives also cannot be ruled out.

The Sullan opposition, by the person oFLepidus, demanded the body to be

buried without any ceremonies, but the proposal got rejected62 and the Senate

sancrioned that the deceased be honoured with special privileges. First of all, it was

allolłrd for Sullat tomb to be erected on Campus Martius. For it to be an honour

is confirmed by Livt'3 and Appian6a, while Plutarch hardly mentions that Sulla had

a tomb there6t. The burying of the deceased on Campus Martius was, according

to the information from the surviving sources, an ancient practice: Appian states

that only kings were buried there (to ne8tov rd Aperov, illOcr poo0"eiq OÓ.ntovtcrt

pÓvor66 - Campus Martius, where the only buried men are kings). This reference

is considered to be an anachronism due to understanding of the word pooil'eug -

the present tense suggests that Appian referred to a situation contemporary with

him, that is the burying of the principr"s on Campus Martius. Another possibiliry

is an assumption that he overall meant the imperatores and the tradition initiated

by Sulla67. An ancient origin ofthe practice is to be also attested by Servius: izas

fuerat ut uirisfortibus siue regibus pro łlonore d,aretur aliquapublici agri particula ut

58

59

60

6 r

6f

(A

o)

66

67

It results from a word iusserat used by Granius Licinianus- Gran. Lic. )OO(W' p. 32Flemisch: [...] condi corpus iusserat, non comburi (...); cf. Cic., leg. Il 56; Plin.' NtlVII54, 187 Mayhoff.

Plut., Sulla 38, 6 Lindskog, Ziegler; Keaveney, op. cit., p. l3f, p. 176.

Cran. Lic. )OO(W, p. 32 Flemisch.

Plut., Sulh 38,1 Lindskog, ZiegIer.

App., BCI 105 Mendelssohn.

Plut., Sulla 38, I Lindskog, Ziegler; App., BC I 105 Mendelssohn.

Perioch. XC Rossbach: (...) honosque ei a sendtu babitus est, ut in Campo Martio sepeliretur.

BC i 106 Mendelssohn.

Plut., Sulk 38, 6 Lindskog, Ziegler.

App., BC I 106, 500 Mendelssohn.

F. Coarelli, Il Campo Marzio: dalle origini a.lla 6ne della repubblica, Roma 1997,591,n . 4 .

l::

*. ,- t a

Death, Funeral and the Tomb of Sulla

habuit Thrquinius Superbus in canpo Martio6s (there was a cusrom that brave menor kings, as a testimony to them, were given a piece of public land, as was givento Tarquinius Superbus on Campus Martius). However, Servius does not writeabout the funerary rites, but about the practice of rewarding with public domains.Therefore he does not confirm an earlier passage from Appian. Nonetheless, inrhe period close to Sulla, C. Poplicius Bibulus was buried on Campus Marrius,what is confirmed only by inscription e, nor long after that is was suggested thatalso Lucullus should be buried nexr ro Sulla7o. In the Augustan period the burialin this area was considered dignified, what is corroborated by StraboTr.

The description of pompafunebris is usually based on the narrative ofAppian asthe most detailed and the most sublimei2. Sullat body (probably subjected to rrear-ments preventing the decay and, with the opportunity arising, the doctors couldexamine the internal organs of the Dictatot ascertaining rhe presence of ulcers ortumours) was carried to Rome on a golden litter, being accompanied in this lastjourney by former soldiers and a crowd of ordinary people. The procession waspreceded by trumpeters and horsemen. The vererans moved in organised groupswhich is not surprising. The body was brought ro rhe ciry in an unprecedentedway: in the procession were carried more than rwo hundred golden crorvns togerherwith gifts from cities, legions and friends; the presence of gathered soldiers forcedalso all the priests, priestesses and magistrates to appear in ceremonial costumeswhile the veterans themselves donned procession armamenr. Sullat corpse, afterbeing shown in the forum on rhe rostra where the laudatio was given - the Sen-ate commissioned this task to the best of the orators since Sullat son, Fausrus,was too young - was carried by the senators to Campus Martius and there ir wasburnt; when the pyre was on fire, tŁe troops of the veterans marched in frontof ir73. Plutarcht artention was drawn to orher elements of the funeral: the in-volvement of PompeyTa and a huge amounr of frankincense and cinnamon, whichfitted onto two hundred litters and was enough for moulding the life-size imagesof Sulla himself and a lictor. He also noted that the day of the funeral was cloudy,but when the pyre was set on fire, the wind appeared which inflamed the fire,while when the pyre was burning our, ir srarred raining whar enabled gathering

66

69

70

7 l

Ad Aen. 1X272.

ILLRP 357; Flower, op. cit., p.96.Plur., Lucull- 43 Lindskog, Zieglet

S t raboV3,8Me inecke .

Mommsen, op. cit, pp. 375-376; Oksza-GrabowsL<, op. cit., pp. 26-27 .App., BCI, 105-106 Mendelssohn.According to Ernest Kind, it is an effect of basing on Pompeian Livy- Kind, op. cit.,D . 4 / -

117

72

71

lr

112 Paweł Madeiski

of the ashes. These were the indications of Sullaty'licitas, summarises Plutarch,which did not leave him until the very end75. The meteorological wonders wereconsidered worthy of emphasising also Granius LicinianusT6. The three authorsagree that the funeral was lavish and gathered a countless mass of participanrs andspectatorsTT - an isolated note from Servius suggests that there were six thousandproper participantsT8. The funeral did not end the posthumous rites - Sulla wasbewailed by matrons for one more yearTe.

The similariry between Sulla's funeral and a triumphal procession was alreadynoticed earlierso. The remaining quesrions are: who took the responsibiliry for thedirecting of the ceremony and what factors formed it? As already mentioned, somehints were left by Sulla himself in the last-will, but his followers acknowledgedthemselves as having the authoriry to ignore them. The best known example refersto the cremation of Sullat body against his own will and the family tradition - onlyGranius Licinianus stated that L. Marcius Philippus was responsible for that, whilethe reason for making such decision was, according to Cicero, Pliny and Granius,fear that Sullas body would be desecrated, as previously C. Marius' bodl'. Thisaction must have brought on some discussions on the funerary rites, the evidenceof which are given by Cicero and Pliny. It is accepted that inhumation and crema-tion were not opposed to each otheĘ however, if Philippus managed to convinceothers to his rationale, some difFerences must have existed.

'lTithin the riruals of

Roman vendetta, the posthumous desecration of the rivalt body belonged to a fixedrepertoires2, but there was no ?ost mortem revenge on the body already placed in

75

76

Plu., Sulh 38 Lindskog, Zieg\er.

Gran. Lic., )OC{II, p. 33 Flemmisch: cuius r0go quam ignis esset inlatus, non rnediocrisirnber est insecutus.

Gran. Lic., )OC(II, p. 33 Flemmisch: amplissimo funere ektus.

Sęrv., ad Aen. VI 861: nam Sulh sex milia habuit |bcti); Flower, a2. cit., pp. 100_101;G. Sumi, Spectacles and Sulhls public image, "Historia" 51, 2002, 4, p. 428 recognizedthat these were the death masks of forefathers.

?;T;|i.., )OC(II, p. 32 Flemmisch: itaque iustitiumfuit natrondeque eum toto anno

J. Carcopino, Sylla ou la monarchie manquće, Paris 1931, p.f30; Arce, oP. cit., P. 17_f4;Flower, ap. cit., pp. 123-124; Sumi, ap. cit., pp.420421; E. Flaig, Zrytualizoxudn.tpolityka: znaki, ges4l i utadza u starożltnlm Rzymie, trans. L. Mrozewicz, A. Pawlicka,Poznaó 20|3, pp. 3Ł37.

Gran-Lic.,)OC(II,p.32Flemmisch;Cic., leg.II 56^57;Pl., I/FIVII 54, 187 Mayhotr;Suet., Caer.1 1,1 Ihm.

Cf. Y. Thomas, Se uenger au forum. Solidaritć familiale et proces criminel a Rome (premiersiłcle aa. - detłxiłme sićcle ap. J. C.), (in:) Wngeance, pouuoirs et ideohgies dzns queĘuesciuilisations de lAntiquitć, ed. R. Verdier, J..P. Polln Paris 1984, pp. 65_88.

łI

tł.''.

8 l

Death, Funeral and the Tomb ofSulla 173

the grave - the first one to acr in this manner was Sulla (or rarher his soldiers) wirhthe body of C. Marius. Accordingly, by using rhe existing convictions, Philippusmust have validated his claim, srating that the potenrial desecration of the ashesdid not have an equal overtone to the desecration of the body, even though theashes were still being dishonoured (as per usually cited urinating ro rhe ashes)83.

Philippus' statemenr also suggests rhat apart from or alongside with the dis-cussion in the Senate, the arrangements in the Sullan circle were also in progress.From their point of view the manifesration of power was necessary as rhey realisedthat the death of Sulla deprived their enemies of the most important factor- rhepersonal fear. Hence the pursuit of the grearesr momenrum including the break-ing of laws introduced by Sulla himself - lex Cornelia sumptudrią\4. This led rothe straining of the last will of the dictator and his family, which at that time wasdeprived of a leader - Faustus, the son, was around 9 years old, the wife was nottaken into account. Pompey and Lucullus were probably those who made decisions.They arranged the influx ofthe veteran soldiers and they voted in the Senate thenecessary decrees, pacifying the anti-Sullan opposition. By directing Sulla's funeralthey assumedly aimed at introducing the precedents, which they could later use,and primarily they exercised the methods for going beyond the common habits.Pompey will reach mastery in this. At the same rime, new solutions were imple-mented in the Roman ritual communication. Sullat cremation is considered as anadaptation of the Hellenistic rituals of the ruler's cult and a regular addendum tohis exquisite position in his life-time towards the supernatural world85. However,it did not lead to any similar cult in Rome. The only aim was elaboration of a newform of honouring an individual. The existing sources accepr as a fundamentalhonos decreed by the Senate not a cremarion, but a burial on Campus Martius. Inthis matter the Senate acted on rhe procedure, which oudived the Republic - rhereligious matters remained in its area of responsibiliry. As it were, it accommodatednew needs. The choice of Campus Martius was determined by the fact thar from125 BC onwards the area was a centre of the civic actions of the Romans. Perhapsthe extension of the pomeriumby Sulla also played irs role in ir.

The exact location of Sullat tomb is nor known. Lucan only laconically men,tioned that it was placed in medio Campos6.In the near fi.rture were placed there

Hor., Ars poetica 47I.

Arce, op. cit., p. 18.

F. Cumont' Lux perpetua,Paris |949, p. 46; Popławs|a, op. cit., pp. 45_56; Coarelli,op, cit., p.592.

Lucan, BC 221-222 Shackleton Bailey. Thoroughly different understanding oFthe phraseSullani tnanes - not as a 'tpirit of Sulla", but as "spirits of Sullat victims" - was offered byGilbert Bagnani (Sulkni manes and Lucanś rhethoric,..Phoenix'' 9, |955, |, pp.27.31).

8 l

8{

Ó)

114 Paweł Madeiski

the tombs of the Iulii, Aulus Hirtius and others, and lastly rhe Mausoleurn Augusti.Assumedly, also other members of the family were buried there later, but there isno confirmation of it. fuchardson brought up a hypothesis that the tomb of Sullawas positioned in a way that the crowd gathered for the tribal assembly votingin Saepta could see it as a memento reminding them about the political systemrules which Sulla introduced. The erection of Saepta Iulia arguably ended suchimpression. The tomb as such was a tumulus that is an architectural structurecovered by the mound of soil. In the times of Caracalla it was already necessaryto search for it; Caracalla also ordered its renovation, what Cassius Dio explainedas willingness for commemorating a role model for cruelqfT. This is the last refer-ence regarding the tomb.

In summary the death of Sulla as a historiographical phenomenon interestedthe ancient authors, what resulted in a creation ofa coherent narrative dedicatedto it, and yet preserving also the echoes ofdiversionary narrations. The sources ofthis narrative need to be sough, on the one hand, in the lost Commentarii of Sullaand Epicadus, and, on the other hand, in the lost passages ofliry. The existence ofsome occasional and political pamphlets should be also taken into considerationssince they were used in the later struggles for power in Rome. Undoubtedly, thefuneral became engraved in the memory of the inhabitants of the city upon Tiberas an unprecedented event. The death of the dictator beca-me a public event and,to varying degrees, it involved the community- the mourning (iustitium) Iaxedfor a year. It did not turn into any form of a cult or a sub-cult. These ceremo-nies comprised the expressions of searching for the new forms of honouring anddisgracing the individuals because the traditionally available ones turned out tobe insufficient88. In both matters Sulla appeared as an innovator worth imitating,from which his epigones benefited.

6 /

E 8

Cass. Dio Dc(uI 13,5Ł59 Sturzius.

Cf. L. Olszewski, Po'liryha pamięci w starożytrylrn Rz1mie: na rnarginesie damndtio memlriaei consecratio' (in) Suiat staroż7tn1: pa stwo i społeczenstwo, ed. R. Kulesza, M. Stępie 'E. Szabąt' M. Daszuta,

.Warszawa 2013, pp,33f-345.

Death, Funeral and the Tomb ofSulla

Streszczenie

Śmierć, pogrzeb i grobowiec Sulli

Rzymianie mieli z oceną Sulli problem - z jednej strony byt on znakomitym wo.dzem, ktÓry przysporzył' chwały rzymskiemu orężu, ale z drugiej dokonat brutal-nych czystek politycznych i to w sposÓb do tej pory niepraktykowany, bo urzędowyi systematyczny. Po części ta |abilność odbija się w opowieściach o ostatnich dniachDyktatora.

Zrezygnowawszy z zajmowanych funkcji, Sulla usun4ł się do jednej ze swoichwiejskich posiadłości, tracqc czas, jak chce Plutarch, na wszeteczne rozrywki. Plutarch- wychowawca nie byłby sobq, gdyby nie zwrlcił uwagi na dewastuj4cy efekt owychzabaw: Su|la zapadł na chorobę zwan4phthiriasis, czy|i wszawicę. Nie była ona jednakbezpośrednią przyczynązgonu - Sullę zabił jego charakter. Świadectwa zgodnie wspo.minaj4, że śmierć Sulli była nagła i nastqpiła po wybuchu gniewu na nieuczciwegourzędnika. Dyktator dostał krwotoku wewnętrznego i po nocy pełnej cierpieri zmarł.To jednak jedna z wersji. Według innej śmierć nie byta ani niespodziewana, ani aż takstraszna. Zgon Sulli zapowiedziaĘ sny, odszedt także we śnie, napisawszy przedtemtestament. Jest to zatem ślad dwu zwa|czających się narracji o ostatnich dniach zdo-bywcy Aten. Nieprzychylna mu publicystyka oraz historiografia grecka i rzymska pro-pagowaĘ wizjęzzeranego przez robactwo Występnego człowieka, słusznie karanegoprzez|os, gdyz nie byt w stanie zrezygnowaćze swojej krwiożerczości. Wersja o phthi-r/asls zapewne była pokłosiem greckich pamfletÓw, w ktÓrych igrano z nazwiskiem Sulli(SyIIa - psylla, czyli pchła, pruy czym określenie to miało i obraźliwy charakte4 wska.zując na rozwi4złość seksualn4 i brak męskości]. Sulla zyj4c w swojej posiadłości,musiał być w całkiem dobrej kondycji psychofizycznej, bo nie tylko pisał pamiętnikii czekał na narodziny kolejnego potomka, ale też zajmował się sprawami publicznymi,m.in' odbudow4 Kapitolu i kwestami ustrojowymi miast greckich i italskich. ZmarłZatem po krÓtkiej chorobie, prawdopodobnie wskutek pęknięcia wrzod6w. Przed'stronnikami Sul|i stanqł problem pochÓwku' Po pierwsze, wbrew rodowej tradycjii testamentowi Sulli postanowiono poddać jego zwłoki kremacji - motJrwowano tochęci4 uniknięcia znieważenia cielesnych szcz4tkÓw, czego zołnierze samego Sul-li nie wahali się uczynić już wcześniej wobec złożonych w grobie zwłok MariuszaStarszego. Sam pogrzeb był wielką manifestacj4 siĘ i żywotności stronnictwa sullari-skiego, wymierzoną w rosn4cą w siłę opozycję, ktÓr4 śmierć Sulli pozbawiławaznejprzeszkody: uosobionego strachu. |ednocześnie podjęte dziatania miały uhonorowaćpamięć o Su|li; nie było zamiarem Lukul|usa czy Pompejuszawprowadzanie kultuczy apoteoza zmarłego. Wykorzystano, przy braku tradycji rodzimej, rozwi4zaniagreckie czy hellenistyczne'Zabezpieczone przed rozkładem zwłoki Sulli (z usunię-Ęmi wnętrznościami, co dało możność dokonania ich oględzin i ustalenia, zezmarĘcierpiał na wrzody] uroczyście przeniesiono do Rzymu, gdzi,e oprlczzvtryczajowychform upamiętnienia wedtug pompae funebris modo Romano vvykorzystano i nowe.Stworzono w ten sposÓb punkt odniesienia dla kolejnych pochÓwkÓw wybitnychRzymian. Sulla spocz4ł w grobowcu na Polu Marsowym, ktÓry po raz ostatni zostatwspomniany w czasach Karakalli.