Marcus Curtius
According to folklore, Marcus Curtius was a soldier who died in 362 BC. Died a sacrificial death. The background of the legend, which is briefly mentioned by Varro and told in more detail by Livius , is evidently the aitiological derivation of the name of Lacus Curtius , who was named after him by Marcus Curtius.
action
According to Livius, in 367 BC BC by a strong earthquake or by some other force a wide and deep gap in the middle of the forum was opened. With all the effort the gap could not be filled. Finally, augurs proclaimed that at that point one must sacrifice that on which the power of Rome depends most. Marcus Curtius, a soldier from a noble family, now said that this should be understood as the bravery and courage of a Roman soldier, and consecrated himself as a sacrifice in a devotion . He threw himself down with horse and weapons. The multitude of men and women threw gifts and fruits on him. As soon as this happened, the crevice closed. But then it opened again.
The place of this event was later called Lacus Curtius.
Livy makes it clear that he cannot assess the truth of the legend, but gives it back as an example of ancient Roman bravery, in line with the trend in books from the early days of Rome.
On the Lugeck in Vienna there was a circular hole in the middle of the square in early modern times, which was jokingly called the Marcus Curtius Hole .
literature
- Maria Berbara: Civic Self-Offering: Some Renaissance Representations of Marcus Curtius. In: Karl Enenkel, Jan L. de Jong, Jeanine de Landtsheer (eds.): Recreating Ancient History. Brill, Leiden u. a. 2001, pp. 147-166
- Carl-Ludwig Elvers: Curtius I 1. In: The New Pauly (DNP). Metzler, Stuttgart 1996-2015, ISBN 3-476-01470-3 .
- Edmund W. Braun: M. Curtius , in: Reallexikon zur Deutschen Kunstgeschichte , Vol. 3, 1953, Col. 881–891
