The Senate at Rome in Ostrogothic Italy 133
Umbria showed Decian property in the persons of the consul Faustus Albinus,72
the son of Flavius Caecina Decius Maximus Basilius Iunior.73 The permanent
residence of these noblemen was the city of Rome, which emphasizes the
repeated connection between the location of senatorial ownership and place
of political career.74
While the rural economy in these areas was focused on the city of Rome,
in the north there was a second concentration of senatorial economic
power. Liguria in particular was a province where many senators owned
extended estates. Among them we find the praefecti urbi Flavius Agapitus75
and Constantius,76 the comites sacrarum largitionum Cyprianus77 and his
brother Opilio,78 the comes rerum privatarum Arator,79 and the comes patri-
monii Iulianus.80 Last but not least, the economic base of the family of Flavius
Anicius Probus Faustus Niger was located near the region of Como.81
Apart from these two main areas of senatorial landholding, further pos-
sessions could be found in: Apulia and Calabria, Bruttium-Lucania and Sicily
(Cassiodori), Picenum annoniarum (Liberius82), Venetia (Venantius Opilio83),
Dalmatia and Savia (Severinus84), and Gallia (Felix85). In general, the afore-
mentioned illustres were very powerful in their provinces due to the extent of
their properties. Their interest in the welfare of these properties can be seen
in their willingness to become provincial governors, although such offices were
below their social status.86 One very good example for this can again be found
in the family of the Cassiodori. Both the famous writer and his father exer-
cised the position of corrector Brutii et Lucaniae.87 Even the politically involved
Liberius was willing to take over the prefecture of Gallia and with this a life far
72 PLRE II, pp. 91f.
73 PLRE II, p. 217.
74 Schäfer, Der weströmische Senat, pp. 130f.
75 PLRE II, pp. 30ff.
76 PLRE II, p. 321.
77 PLRE II, pp. 332f.
78 PLRE II, p. 808.
79 PLRE II, pp. 126f.
80 PLRE II, pp. 640f.
81 Schäfer, Der weströmische Senat, pp. 133ff.
82 PLRE II, pp. 676ff.
83 PLRE II, pp. 808f.
84 PLRE II, p. 1001.
85 PLRE II, pp. 462f.
86 Schäfer, Der weströmische Senat, pp. 143ff.
87 For Cassiodorus’ biography see Jenal, “Cassiodorus Senator”.