M. FURIUS BIBACULUS

According to Jerome, Bibaculus was born B.C. 103, but, as he laughs at the old age of the grammarian Orbilius (114-c. 17 B.C. ), authorities put the date twenty years later. Jerome yr. Abr. 1914, ‘M. Furius poet a cognomen to Bibaculus Cremonae nascitur.’ Sueton. Gramm. 9, ‘[Orbilius] vixit prope ad centesimum aetatis annum, ami a iam pridem memoria, ut versus Bibaculi docet, “Orbilius ubinam est, litter arum oblivio?”’ Bibaculus wrote poems against the monarchical party; these are referred to as iambi by Quintilian, x. 1, 96. Tac. Ann. iv. 34, ‘Carmina Bibaculi et Catulli referta contumeliis Caesarum leguntur: sed ipse div us Iulius, ipse div us August us et tulere ist a et reliquere.’ Two epics, Aethiopis and Bellum Gallicum (on Iulius Caesar’s exploits), are probably referred to by Hor. Sat. i. 10, 36, ‘Turgid us Alpinus iugulat dum Memnona, dumque diff ing it Rheni luteum caput.’ Acron ad loc. , ‘Bibaculum quemdam poet am Gallum tang it.’ Cf. Hor. Sat. ii. 5, 40, ‘Seu pingui tent us omaso Furius hibernas can a nive conspuet Alpes.’ Acron ad loc. , ‘Furius Bibaculus in pragmatia bell i Gallici: Iuppiter hibernas,’ etc. It is probably from this epic that Macrob. Saturn. vi. 1, 31-4, quotes pa ages imitated by Virgil. So, ‘Furius in primo annal i “Interea Oceani linquens Aurora cubile.”’ (Cf. Virg. Aen. iv. 585.) Bibaculus also wrote a prose work Lucubrationes . (Pliny N.H. xxiv. praef.)