Avidia (mother of Lucius Verus) - Wikipedia Avidia (mother of Lucius Verus) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search 2nd century Roman noblewoman This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (May 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Anonymous. Portrait of Avidia. Ca. 136-138. New Haven, Connecticut, Yale University Art Gallery. Avidia (flourished 2nd century) was a well-connected noble Roman woman. She is among the lesser known members of the ruling Nerva–Antonine dynasty of the Roman Empire. Contents 1 Biography 2 Nerva–Antonine family tree 3 Sources 4 External links Biography[edit] Avidia was the daughter of the well-connected Roman Senator Gaius Avidius Nigrinus and his first wife, whose name is unknown. It is thought that Plautia was her stepmother. The Avidia was born and raised in Faventia (modern Faenza, Italy). Her family was distinguished, wealthy and well-connected. Her family were friends of the Greek historian Plutarch, Roman Senator Pliny the Younger, Roman Emperor Trajan and his family. Her family had strong links to Greece, as her paternal grandfather Gaius Avidius Nigrinus had served at an unknown date during the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian (81-96) as Proconsul of Achaea, a position in which her great uncle Titus Avidius Quietus had also served. Her family may have been related to the consul Gaius Petronius Pontius Nigrinus, who had served his consulship at the time that the Roman Emperor Tiberius had died in 37. Avidia's father was executed in 118 on orders from the Roman Senate, because he was one of four senators involved in a failed plot to overthrow the Roman Emperor Hadrian. Sometime after her father's execution, her mother or stepmother may have married another Roman senator. Before 130 Avidia married the powerful Roman Senator Lucius Aelius Caesar. Aelius was adopted by Roman Emperor Hadrian in 136 as his first heir. Avidia bore Aelius two sons and two daughters who were: Lucius Verus – born as Lucius Ceionius Commodus. He would rule as co-Roman Emperor with Marcus Aurelius from 161 until his death in 169. Lucius Verus would marry Lucilla, the second daughter of Marcus Aurelius and Faustina the Younger. Gaius Avidius Ceionius Commodus – he is known from an inscription found in Rome. Ceionia Fabia – she was 136 engaged to Marcus Aurelius. In 138, when Marcus Aurelius was adopted by Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius, Aurelius ended his engagement to Fabia. Aurelius became engaged to Antoninus Pius’ daughter Faustina the Younger, whom he later married. Ceionia Plautia In early 138, Aelius died, and Hadrian had adopted Antoninus Pius as his second son and heir. Antoninus was obliged to adopt Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus in turn. If Aelius had lived long enough to succeed Hadrian and rule as emperor, Avidia could have been an Empress of Rome. It is unknown whether Avidia remarried after the death of Aelius. Three existing portrait busts have been identified as Avidia because of physical similarities to the portrait busts of her son Lucius Verus. These busts have been dated to 136-138, when Aelius was the first adopted heir of Hadrian. When her son reigned as co-Roman Emperor with Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Verus dedicated two honorific inscriptions to his mother. These inscriptions have been found in Rome. The inscriptions honor her as the daughter of Gaius Avidius Nigrinus and the mother of Roman Emperor Lucius Verus. It is unknown whether Avidia lived long enough to see her son co-rule as emperor. Nerva–Antonine family tree[edit] v t e Nerva–Antonine family tree Q. Marcius Barea Soranus Q. Marcius Barea Sura Antonia Furnilla M. Cocceius Nerva Sergia Plautilla P. Aelius Hadrianus Titus (r. 79–81) Marcia Furnilla Marcia Trajanus Pater Nerva (r. 96–98) Ulpia[i] Aelius Hadrianus Marullinus Julia Flavia[ii] Marciana[iii] C. Salonius Matidius[iv] Trajan (r. 98–117) Plotina P. Acilius Attianus P. Aelius Afer[v] Paulina Major[vi] Lucius Mindius (2) Libo Rupilius Frugi (3) Matidia[vii] L. Vibius Sabinus (1)[viii] Paulina Minor[vi] L. Julius Ursus Servianus[ix] Matidia Minor[vii] Suetonius?[x] Sabina[iii] Hadrian[v][xi][vi] (r. 117–138) Antinous[xii] Julia Balbilla?[xiii] C. Fuscus Salinator I Julia Serviana Paulina M. Annius Verus[xiv] Rupilia Faustina[xv] Boionia Procilla Cn. Arrius Antoninus L. Ceionius Commodus Appia Severa C. Fuscus Salinator II L. Caesennius Paetus Arria Antonina Arria Fadilla[xvi] T. Aurelius Fulvus L. Caesennius Antoninus L. Commodus Plautia ignota[xvii] C. Avidius Nigrinus M. Annius Verus[xv] Domitia Calvilla[xviii] Fundania[xix] M. Annius Libo[xv] FAUSTINA[xvi] Antoninus Pius (r. 138–161)[xvi] L. Aelius Caesar[xvii] Avidia[xvii] Cornificia[xv] MARCUS AURELIUS (r. 161–180)[xx] FAUSTINA Minor[xx] C. Avidius Cassius[xxi] Aurelia Fadilla[xvi] LUCIUS VERUS (r. 161–169)[xvii] (1) Ceionia Fabia[xvii] Plautius Quintillus[xxii] Q. Servilius Pudens Ceionia Plautia[xvii] Cornificia Minor[xxiii] M. Petronius Sura COMMODUS (r. 177–192)[xx] Fadilla[xxiii] M. Annius Verus Caesar[xx] Ti. Claudius Pompeianus (2) Lucilla[xx] M. Plautius Quintillus[xvii] Junius Licinius Balbus Servilia Ceionia Petronius Antoninus L. Aurelius Agaclytus (2) Aurelia Sabina[xxiii] L. Antistius Burrus (1) Plautius Quintillus Plautia Servilla C. Furius Sabinus Timesitheus Antonia Gordiana Junius Licinius Balbus? Furia Sabina Tranquillina GORDIAN III (r. 238–244) (1) = 1st spouse (2) = 2nd spouse (3) = 3rd spouse   Reddish purple indicates emperor of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty   lighter purple indicates designated imperial heir of said dynasty who never reigned   grey indicates unsuccessful imperial aspirants   bluish purple indicates emperors of other dynasties dashed lines indicate adoption; dotted lines indicate love affairs/unmarried relationships small caps = posthumously deified (Augusti, Augustae, or other) Notes: Except where otherwise noted, the notes below indicate that an individual's parentage is as shown in the above family tree. ^ Sister of Trajan's father: Giacosa (1977), p. 7. ^ Giacosa (1977), p. 8. ^ a b Levick (2014), p. 161. ^ Husband of Ulpia Marciana: Levick (2014), p. 161. ^ a b Giacosa (1977), p. 7. ^ a b c DIR contributor (Herbert W. Benario, 2000), "Hadrian". ^ a b Giacosa (1977), p. 9. ^ Husband of Salonia Matidia: Levick (2014), p. 161. ^ Smith (1870), "Julius Servianus".[dead link] ^ Suetonius a possible lover of Sabina: One interpretation of HA Hadrianus 11:3 ^ Smith (1870), "Hadrian", pp. 319–322.[dead link] ^ Lover of Hadrian: Lambert (1984), p. 99 and passim; deification: Lamber (1984), pp. 2–5, etc. ^ Julia Balbilla a possible lover of Sabina: A. R. Birley (1997), Hadrian, the Restless Emperor, p. 251, cited in Levick (2014), p. 30, who is sceptical of this suggestion. ^ Husband of Rupilia Faustina: Levick (2014), p. 163. ^ a b c d Levick (2014), p. 163. ^ a b c d Levick (2014), p. 162. ^ a b c d e f g Levick (2014), p. 164. ^ Wife of M. Annius Verus: Giacosa (1977), p. 10. ^ Wife of M. Annius Libo: Levick (2014), p. 163. ^ a b c d e Giacosa (1977), p. 10. ^ The epitomator of Cassius Dio (72.22) gives the story that Faustina the Elder promised to marry Avidius Cassius. This is also echoed in HA "Marcus Aurelius" 24. ^ Husband of Ceionia Fabia: Levick (2014), p. 164. ^ a b c Levick (2014), p. 117. References: DIR contributors (2000). "De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and Their Families". Retrieved 2015-04-14. Giacosa, Giorgio (1977). Women of the Caesars: Their Lives and Portraits on Coins. Translated by R. Ross Holloway. Milan: Edizioni Arte e Moneta. ISBN 0-8390-0193-2. Lambert, Royston (1984). Beloved and God: The Story of Hadrian and Antinous. New York: Viking. ISBN 0-670-15708-2. Levick, Barbara (2014). Faustina I and II: Imperial Women of the Golden Age. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-537941-9. William Smith, ed. (1870). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Sources[edit] Cassio Dione e l'impero romano da Nerva ad Antonino Pio: alla luce dei nuovi by Guido Migliorati, 2003 – Italian Historical Secondary Source The Cambridge ancient history, Volume 11 By Alan K. Bowman, Peter Garnsey, Dominic Rathbone Limited preview - Edition: 2 - Item notes: v. 11 – 2000 Plutarch's Sertorius: A Historical Commentary. C. Konrad Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1994 Marcus Aurelius, by Anthony Richard Birley, Routledge, 2000 A dictionary of the Roman Empire By Matthew Bunson – 1995 http://www.roman-emperors.org/lverus.htm http://ancientrome.ru/art/artworken/img.htm?id=2762. https://web.archive.org/web/20110720122702/http://ecatalogue.art.yale.edu/detail.htm?objectId=7368 http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Historia_Augusta/Aelius*.html#2.8 http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Historia_Augusta/Lucius_Verus*.html External links[edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Avidia. Bust of Avidia Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Avidia_(mother_of_Lucius_Verus)&oldid=1011147853" Categories: 2nd-century Romans 2nd-century Roman women Avidii Nerva–Antonine dynasty Hidden categories: All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from October 2016 Articles with short description Short description is different from Wikidata Articles lacking in-text citations from May 2012 All articles lacking in-text citations Commons category link from Wikidata Navigation menu Personal tools Not logged in Talk Contributions Create account Log in Namespaces Article Talk Variants Views Read Edit View history More Search Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Donate Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Tools What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Cite this page Wikidata item Print/export Download as PDF Printable version In other projects Wikimedia Commons Languages Български Français مصرى Português Edit links This page was last edited on 9 March 2021, at 08:50 (UTC). 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