A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

POLLIO. POLLIO. 439
Charis. i. p. 56, ed. Lind.) The words of Virgil manicus are here called Philadelphi, because they
(Ecl. iii. 86), " Pollio et ipse facit nova carmina," were brothers by adoption; and there was an obprobably refer to tragedies of a new kind, namely, vious reason why Pollio had these coins struck,
such as were not borrowed from the Greek, but inasmuch as Drusus was the half-brother of Pollio
contained subjects entirely new, taken from Ro- by the same mother Vipsania. (Eckhel, vol. vi.
man story. (Welcker, Die Griechischen Trayodien, pp. 210, 211.)
p. 1421, &c.) 3. ASINIUS POLLIO, the commander of a regiPollio also enjoyed great reputation as a critic, ment of horse, serving under Luceius Albinus in
but he is chiefly known in this capacity for the Mauritania, was slain in A. D. 69, when the troops
severe judgment which he passed upon his great con- espoused the side of Vitellius. (Tac. Hist. ii. 59.)
temporaries. Thus he pointed out many mistakes 4. ASINIUS POLLIO VERRUCOSUS, consul A. D.
in the speeches of Cicero (Quintil. xii. I. ~ 22), 81. (Dion Cass. lxvi. 26; Fasti.)
censured the Commentaries of Caesar for their PO'LLIO, ASI'NIUS, a native of Tralles in
want of historical fidelity, and found fault with Asia Minor, is described by Suidas (s. v. IloAiw'v)
Sallust for affectation in the use of antiquated as a sophist and philosopher, who taught at Rome
words and expressions (Suet. de Ill. Gram. 10), at the time of Pompey the Great, and succeeded
a fault with which Pollio himself is charged by Timagenes in his school. But as Timagenes flouother writers. He also complained of a certain rished B. C. 55 [TIMAGENES], we must place the
Patavinity in Livy (Quintil. i. 5. ~ 56, viii. 1. date of Asinius Pollio rather later. Judging from
~ 3), respecting which some remarks are made in the name of the latter, we may infer that he was
the life of Livy. [Vol. II. p. 795.] a freedman of the great Asinius Pollio. Suidas
Pollio had a son, C. Asinius Gallus Saloninus,,who ascribes to the Trallian the following works: 1.
is spoken of elsewhere. [GALLUS, No. 2.] Asinius An Epitome of the Atthis of Philochorus, respectGallus married Vipsania, the daughter of Agrippa ing which see PHILOCHORUS, p. 299,b. 2. Meand Pomponia, the former wife of Tiberius, by morabilia of the philosopher Musonius (Rufus).
whom he had several children: namely, 1. Asinius 3. An Epitome of the Georgics of Diophanes, in
Saloninus. (Tac. Ann. iii. 75 ) 2. Asinius Gallus. two books. 4. A commentary on Aristotle's work
[GALLUS, No. 3.] 3. Asinius Pollio, spoken of on Animals. 5. On the Civil War between Caesar
below [No. 2], Asinius Agrippa, consul A. D. 25 and Pompey. The second of these works how[AGRIPPA, p. 77, a], Asinius Celer. [CELER.] ever could not have been written by this Pollio,
(Lipsius, ad Tac. Ann. iii. 75.) since Musonius lived in the reign of Nero: some
(The following are the most important authori- writers ascribe it to Valerius Pollio, who lived in
ties for the life of Pollio, in addition to those which the reign of Hadrian, but others to Claudius Pollio,
have been cited above: Cic. ad Fans. ix. 25, x. 31, a contemporary of the younger Pliny. The work
xi. 9, ad Att. xii. 2, 38, 39, xiii. 20; Appian, on the civil war between Caesar and Pompey may
B. C. ii. 40, 45, 82, iii. 46, 74, 97, iv. 12, 27, perhaps have been a translation into Greek of the
v. 20-23, 50, 64; Vell. Pat. ii. 63, 76, 86; history of the great Pollio on the same subject.
Dion Cass. xlv. 10, xlviii. 15, 41; and among (Vossius, de Hist. Graecis, p. 197, ed. Westermann;
modern writers, Eckhard, Commentatio de C. Alsi- Fabric. Bibl. Grace. vol. iii. p. 566, with the note
sio, iniquo optim7orum Latinorum auctorum censore, of Harles; Clinton, F. /I. vol. iii. p. 550.)
Jen. 1793, and especially Thorbecke, Commnentatio PO'LLIO, CAE'LI US, was commander of the
de C. Asinii Pollionis Vita et Studiis, Lugd. Batav. Roman army in Armenia, A. D. 51, and was bribed
1820.) by Rhadamistus to betray the cause of Mithridates
2. C. ASINIUS POLLIO, grandson of the pre- king of Armenia, whom the Romans had placed
ceding, and son of C. Asinius Gallus Saloninus upon the throne. Notwithstanding his corrupt
and of Vipsania, the daughter of Agrippa, was conduct, he was allowed to remain in Armenia till
consul A. D. 23 with C. Antistius Vetus. (Tac. A nn. the first year of Nero's reign, A. D. 54, when he
iv. 1; Plin. II. N. xxxiii. 1. s. 8.) We learn was succeeded by Laelianus. (Tac. Ann. xii. 44,
from coins, a specimen of which is annexed, 45; Dion Cass. lxi. 6.)
that he was also proconsul of Asia. The ob- PO'LLIO, CARVI'LIUS, a Roman eques,
verse represents Drusus, the son of the emperor lived in the times of the dictator Sulla, and was
Tiberius and Germanicus seated on a curule chair, celebrated for several new kinds of ornamental
with the legend APOT~O2 KAI rEPMANIKOZ furniture, which he invented and brought into use.
KAI2APE2 NEOI OEOI IIAAAEAIOI; the re- (Plin. H. N. ix. 11. s. 13, xxxiii. 11. s. 51.)
verse a crown of oak leaves, with the legend rAID PO'LLIO, CLAU'DIUS, a contemporary of
AMINIn IIOAAInNI ANOTIIATII, and within the younger Pliny, who extols his merits in one
the crown KOINOT AMIA2. Drusus and Ger- of his letters (vii. 31). Pliny states that Pollio
had written the life of one of his friends: the
name is corrupt in the manuscripts; the best modern editions have Annius Bassus; but some read
Musonius, and therefore suppose that the MIemorabilia of Musonius, which Suidas ascribes to
Asinius Pollio, is the very work alluded to by
r X e >fit5XD Pliny. The name however of the philosopher was
Musonius Rufus, and not Bassus; and the way
in which he is spoken of by Pliny would lead to
the conclusion that he was not the celebrated philosopher.
PO'LLIO, CLAU/DIUS, a centurion, who put
Diadumenianus to death. (Dion Cass. lxxviii.
FF40.)
FlFr4