ANTH 3030 Study Guide - Final Guide: Sestertius, Tigellinus, Ronald Syme
Document Summary
The sources for the julio claudian period (i) Works: the annals (his masterpiece), histories (a. d. 69-96), dialogues, agricola, germania. Account affected by contemporary concerns: tyranny of domitian; army"s intervention in. Trajan"s succession; problem of informers; but exonerates augustus by beginning at his death. Note annals is incomplete: 2 years of tiberius, whole reign of caligula, half of claudius", last. 2 years of nero missing; years covered are 14-29, 31-37, 47-66, so 40 out of 54 years survives. But most important surviving source for 1st century a. d. provides narrative thread and the bulk of our understanding of the period a. d. 14-66. Draws on lost historical works but is not overly critical: e. g. ann. Simple annalistic framework (1. 54): i. e. divides his history according to consular years, but the work is also a sophisticated literary presentation (history was considered a form of literature at this time), vivid and searching, also rhetorical.
