58 The Imperial Government
LegaciesandInheritances
Like prominent republican political figures, Augustus and his successors
couldexpecttoinheritorreceivelegaciesfromfriendsandpoliticalallies—
andsomeemperorsmadeitclearthattheyexpectedlegaciesfromothersas
well.^82 Theword‘‘fiscus’’appearslittleinthisconnection,for,inaccordance
withthelaw,theheirorlegateehadtobeaperson,aparticularemperor.The
onlyinstanceiswhereSuetoniusmentionsNero’sregulation‘‘thatthewills
ofthosewhoshowedingratitudetotheEmperorshouldbelongtothefis-
cus’’;^83 that(underDomitian)thesamefateawaitedthepropertyofthegrate-
fulandtheungratefulisclearfromPliny’sPanegyric:‘‘Nolongercanasingle
heirinheritall,sometimesunderthepretextthathisnameisthereinwrit-
ing,sometimesthatitisnot.’’^84 Itisclearenoughthatnumerousproperties
whichcametoanemperorbylegacyorinheritanceremainedtheproperty
ofhissuccessorsassuch.^85
Bona Caduca(UnclaimedProperty)
Thepressuretomaketestamentarydispositionsinfavouroftheemperoraf-
fected, normally,only the upperclasses in Rome.The Fiscus’ reception of
bonacaduca,however,wasoffarwidersocialapplicationandoccupiesmostof
thespaceinlegalsourcesontheFiscus.Itseemsclearthatlikebona damnato-
rum,tobediscussedbelow,bonacaducaorvacantia(unclaimedorvacantprop-
erty)wasdividedbetweentheAerariumandtheFiscus—thusPliny,again
inthePanegyric,has‘‘Boththefiscusandtheaerariumusedtobeenrichednot
somuchbythelex Voconiaandthelex Iuliaasfromthesingularandunique
chargeofhightreason[maiestatis crimen].’’^86 TheLexVoconiaof169b.c.for-
bade those in the richest class to makewomen their heirs and limited the
proportionoflegaciesinawill.^87 ‘‘Iuliaeleges’’isprobablyashorthandway
- TheevidenceisgiveninfullbyR.S.Rogers,‘‘TheRomanEmperorsasHeirsand
Legatees,’’TAPhA77(1947):140,andintelligentlydiscussedbyJ.Gaudemet,‘‘‘Testamenta
ingrataetpietasAugusti’:contributionàl’étudedusentimentimpérial,’’StudiArangio-Ruiz
3(Naples,1953):115. - Suet.,Nero32,2.
- Pliny,Pan.43,1.
- See,e.g.,Hirschfeld(n.35),518–19.
- Pliny,Pan.42,1.
- Onthedifficultiessurroundingtheexactprovisionsofthislaw,seeP-WXII,2418–
30,andB.Biondi,Successione testamentaria e donazione^2 (Milan,1955),134–35.Moreover,the