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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 February 2009
(1) Agr. 6. 4. The MSS give idem praeturae certior et silentium. Usually this corrupt passage is restored according to the conjecture of Rhenanus as idem praeturae term et silentium,1 because certior et does not make sense, although it has been pointed out several times that even this, the best of various suggestions as to how to solve the problem, is basically not satisfactory.2
1 The evidence is set out in Ogilvie-Richmond, , A Commentary on Tacitus, Agricola (Oxford, 1967), and in other editions.Google Scholar
2 See Verdière, R., ‘Notes de lecture’, Latomus 19 (1960), 729Google Scholar; Wellesley, K., JRS 59 (1969), 266Google Scholar; Borzsàk, È., Latomus 38 (1979), 165.Google Scholar
3 Strictly speaking, it would be senseless to translate praeturae tenor as ‘the course of the praetorship’, for that is normally only praetura.
4 The editors of the Thesaurus informed me in a letter (25 September 1979): praeturae tenor or quaesturae tenor could not be found, apart from Tac. Agr. 6. 4. The closest parallel is Val. Max. 9. 11 ext. 4 privati ac publici officii tenor. Some passages of Livy could be interesting in this connection, especially 4. 10. 9 quinque consulatus eodem tenore gesti and 7. 40. 9 eodem tenon duo insequentes consulatus gessi. These passages of Livy, however, prove clearly that tenor means ‘uninterrupted course’.
5 Sen. QNat. 7. 25. 6 tenor et aequalitas.
6 cf. the problems at Agr. 34. 3 and Germ. 46. 1.
7 The editors of the Thesaurus were kind enough to provide me with these passages: Ov. Met. 1. 206 tenuere silentia cuncti; Liv. 1. 28. 8 Albana pubes…silentium tenet; Val. Fl. 2. 584 medii tenuere silentia ponti; Stat. Theb. 6. 467 ff. solus Echionides…silentia…maesta tenet. It does not change anything in our argument that silentium in Tac. Agr. 6. 4 is a synonym of quies et otium, which is evident from the context (cf. Gerber et Greef, Lexicon Taciteum, s.v). For we are not dealing here with a special meaning of silentium, but with a lexical variant of the general meaning of silentium which is dictated by the context.
8 See Ogilvie-Richmond, ad loc. Consider also the notes by M. Lausberg, Gymnasium 87 (1980), 420 f. about the description of the diversitas morum in ancient biographies. Note also Tac. Germ. 15. 1.
9 The usual interpretation (e.g. of Ogilvie and Richmond) is ‘nothing violent in his face, kindliness of expression abounded”; or (R. Till) ‘in his features was no passion, but kindliness predominated’; (H. W. Benario) ‘there was a good deal of facial charm’. But interpreting it in this way one misses the fact that the biography was meant to express something positive but in a contradictory way.
10 The passage Sail. lug. 34. 1 …multiludo – vehementer adcensa terrebat eum clamore, voltu, saepe impetu atque aliis omnibus, quae ira fieri amat, vicit tamen inpudentia is only an accidental lexical parallel.
11 cf. Suet. Tit. 3. 1 cui (sc. formae Titi) non minus auctoritatis inesset quam gloriae; Claud. 18. 76 defloruit oris gratia.
12 cf. Menge, H., Lateinische Synonymik (Heidelberg, 1959), p. 149Google Scholar; Jax, K., Studi in onore di U. E. Paoli (1955), pp. 423–32.Google Scholar
13 See E. Koestermann, ad loc.
14 cf. Cic. De Leg. 1. 27; In Pis. 1. 1; De Oratore 2. 148, 3. 218, 3. 221.