Overview

This volume provides a new translation of Books 57 and 58 of Cassius Dio's Roman History and the 'fragments' of these books preserved in later Byzantine epitomes, as well as the first English language commentary to examine them in their entirety. Dio's Roman History covers almost 1,000 years from the founding of Rome up to the early third century AD, with Books 57 and 58 focusing on the reign of the emperor Tiberius (AD 14-37): his account of this period is one of the most important to have survived from antiquity, not least as it preserves a historiographical tradition in some ways distinct from that of Tacitus and Suetonius. These books also reveal something of his authorial preoccupations and present a glimpse into the mind of the historian, and especially into his understanding of the mechanics of imperial government. The focus of the commentary is both historical and historiographical, in so far as it aims to illuminate not only issues arising from Dio's account of the Tiberian principate, but also to reveal the unity of his work and literary programme: a series of appendices complement the analysis by providing discussion of some of the key historical problems surrounding Dio and the reign of Tiberius. The translation (the first since the Loeb Classical Library edition of E. Cary) aims for both clarity and accuracy, and particular care has been taken to separate the various textual traditions that have been used to reconstruct the lost portions of Dio's text. An accompanying general introduction offers an accessible overview of Cassius Dio's approach to history based on the latest research in the field, and will be of particular use to graduate and undergraduate students coming to the text for the first time.

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9780198797890

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Reviews

It is difficult to imagine anything missing from this commentary, which is sure to become standard. * Caitlin Gillespie, The Classical Review *

Mallan clearly feels the need to defend, in his Preface, his belief that commentaries remain 'fundamentally useful' books that 'provide a way to access the mind of an ancient writer'. In his clear, readable translation ... and the careful, informative commentary, equally insightful on matters historical and historiographical, that is exactly what he has produced. But it has the additional bonus that, because of his commitment to taking seriously the manuscript tradition and thus Dio's later epitomisors, not just one but multiple minds are here laid bare. * James Corke-Webster, Greece & Rome * It is difficult to imagine anything missing from this commentary, which is sure to become standard. * Caitlin Gillespie, The Classical Review *

Mallan's excellent commentary on these two books brings a somewhat less familiar Tiberius to the fore, known yet viewed from a different angle. * Barbara Saylor Rodgers, Histos * Mallan clearly feels the need to defend, in his Preface, his belief that commentaries remain 'fundamentally useful' books that 'provide a way to access the mind of an ancient writer'. In his clear, readable translation ... and the careful, informative commentary, equally insightful on matters historical and historiographical, that is exactly what he has produced. But it has the additional bonus that, because of his commitment to taking seriously the manuscript tradition and thus Dio's later epitomisors, not just one but multiple minds are here laid bare. * James Corke-Webster, Greece & Rome * It is difficult to imagine anything missing from this commentary, which is sure to become standard. * Caitlin Gillespie, The Classical Review *

Author Information

C. T. Mallan is a Senior Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History at the University of Western Australia. He was educated at the University of Oxford and the University of Queensland and has held academic posts in both the UK and Australia. His academic work focuses on Roman imperial history and historiography.

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