Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus
Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus (Greek: Τιβέριος Ιούλιος Κέλσος Πολεμαιανός, Tibérios Ioúlios Kélsos Polemaianós)[1] commonly known as Celsus (ca. 45 – before ca. 120) was an Ancient Greek Roman citizen who became a Roman senator,[2][3] and served as a Roman consul in 92 and governor of Asia (105–107). Celsus Polemaeanus was a wealthy and popular citizen and benefactor of Ephesus, and was buried in a sarcophagus beneath the famous Library of Celsus,[4] which was built as a mausoleum in his honor by his son Julius Aquila Polemaeanus.[5]
Biography
He was born ca. 45 to a family of Greek origin[5][6][7] in either Ephesus or Sardis.[6] His family were priests in Rome and were originally from Sardis in Asia Minor.[8] They had been granted Roman citizenship, and some of them held official positions in the service of the Roman Empire. In 69, during the Year of the Four Emperors, when Celsus was launching his equestrian career, he and his legion acclaimed Vespasian emperor. After Vespasian solidified his control of the Empire, he rewarded Celsus by raising him to the senatorial class.[8] Celsus went on to hold the highest position open to Roman senatorial aristocrats, becoming suffect consul in 92. In 105, he was named proconsular governor of the Roman province of Asia by the Emperor Trajan.[3][4]
Library of Celsus
The Library of Celsus in Ephesus was built to honor Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus after his death. He paid for the library from his own personal wealth,[9] and bequeathed a large sum of money for its construction which was carried out by his son Julius Aquila Polemaeanus.[4] The library was built to store 12,000 scrolls and to serve as a monumental tomb for Celsus. The library is both a crypt containing his sarcophagus and a sepulchral monument of Celsus.[10] The library collapsed after Ephesus was deserted but it was restored by an Austrian Archaeology Foundation in the 1970s.[11]
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
