Submitted for award of PhD September 2006. - King's College London

Marcus Lamponius (App., B. C. 1.42. )
Gaius Vidacilius (App., B. C. 1.42. )
Herius Asinius (App., B. C. 1.42. )
Vettius Scaton (App., B. C. 1.42. )
The first Papius appears in Livy, vir nobilis potensque. 283. Papius appears as
the leader of the Samnite troops who occupied Nola, Stabiae, Minervium (that is
Surrentum) and Nuceria. 284 Mutilus, a Samnite general, wounded by Sulla, took
refuge in Aesernia. Sulla later destroyed his camp and moved on to attack the seat of
the council of the insurgents at Bovianum. 285
It is very likely that the Gaius Papius of
Appian's list and the Mutilus who appears in Appian's second passage as the leader
of the Samnite army, are both identical with the Gaius Papius Mutilus attested on the
coins. The gentilicium and cognomen of this general also appear in a number of other
accounts of the Social War. 286
The lists collected above from stones and tile stamps in tables la and lb,
contain 31 names where the gens-name is certain. Out of the 31 names, 9 belong to
the Staii and 6 to the Statii. So 29% of the magistrates bore the name Staius, and 19.3
% that of Statius. This indicates the importance of these two family groups in the
political life of the Pentri. Of course not all Staii and Statii belonged to the same
family. Probably, as at Rome, some genres had split into separate family groups. 287
We can, however conclude that over the roughly 120 years covered by our
283
Livy, 8.39.5; App., B. C. 1.41.
284
App., B. C. 1.42.
285
App., B. C. 1.51.
286
Licinian 36.10 Critini: Papius Mutilus, Livy Per. 69: Mutilus; Orosius 5.18.10. Greek sources
report the name with some corruption: Diod. Sic. 37.2.6 : F&ioc Arcio toc MötuAoc Diod. Sic.
37.2.7 Fat, MariAyD Plut. fort. Rom. 9.6. MoviALoc.
87