. ie seems to have lost the favour ofthe emperor, and after the latter year he retired 1entirely from public life. The cause of this ,estrangement ia enveloped in doubt. DioCassius attributes it to an intrigue carried onby Augustus with Terentia, Maecenass wife, butthe authority of Suetonius is better, and weshould probably accept his account of thematter, that Maecenas had revealed to his wife jthat the conspiracy of her brother Murena hadbeen discovered, and thus the conspirators werewarned. ThiB was regarded as an indiscretionwhic
. ie seems to have lost the favour ofthe emperor, and after the latter year he retired 1entirely from public life. The cause of this ,estrangement ia enveloped in doubt. DioCassius attributes it to an intrigue carried onby Augustus with Terentia, Maecenass wife, butthe authority of Suetonius is better, and weshould probably accept his account of thematter, that Maecenas had revealed to his wife jthat the conspiracy of her brother Murena hadbeen discovered, and thus the conspirators werewarned. ThiB was regarded as an indiscretionwhich forfeited confidence, and Maecenas wasnot made praefectus urbi when that office wasconstituted, in l(i, though in previous years hebad as minister of Augustus, done much thatwould have belonged to the post. (Suet. ); Dio Cass. liv. 19.) Maecenas died B,and wan buried on the Esquiline. He left no ,children, and he bequeathed his property toAugustus, who had continued or renewed his Ifriendship, though without official uppointments. I MAECIUS 51?. Bust of Maecenas —Maecenas bad amassed an enormous had purchased a tract of ground on theEsquiline hill, which had formerly served as aburial-place for the lower orders (Hor. Sat. , 7). Here he had planted a garden and builta house, remarkable for its loftiness, on accountof a tower by which it was surmounted, andfrom the top of which Nero is said to haveafterwards contemplated the burning of this residence he seems to have passed thegreater part of his time, and to have visitedthe country but seldom. His house was therendezvous of all thewits of Rome; andwhoever could contri-bute to the amusementof the company wasalways welcome to aseat at his table. Buthis really intimatefriends consisted ofthe greatest geniusesand most learned menof Rome ; and if it wasfrom his universal in-clination towards menof talent that he ob-tained the reputationof a literary patron, itwas by his friendshipfor such poets a
Size: 1203px × 2077px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookidclassicaldic, bookyear1894
