In the light of the problematic nature of the sources and of previous research, any portrayal of the development of administrative posts can only be tentative. In the period from Augustus to the end of Nero's reign, four principal areas developed within the part of the administration entrusted to equestrians, imperial freedmen and slaves: offices around the emperor; positions which were mainly connected with the city of Rome; offices whose responsibilities extended beyond the city of Rome itself; and numerous other administrative posts in Italy. At the start of the reign of Vespasian, one can distinguish with relative certainty about seventy areas of work, with widely differing importance and scope, which were concerned with the administration of the empire alongside the areas entrusted to members of the Senate. While the number of administrative departments in the provinces had increased considerably, from the time of Vespasian onwards, there were only a few new offices created at the heart of the empire.