Asconius Pediānus
Quintus. A Roman grammarian and historian, probably
born at Patavium about the year A.D. 3. He lived latterly at Rome, where he enjoyed the favour
of men in high place. During the reigns of Claudius and Nero, having carefully studied the
literature of the Ciceronian age, and availing himself of state-papers then existing, he
composed for the use of his own sons his valuable historical commentaries on Cicero's
orations, of which only those on five orations (
In Pisonem, Pro Scauro, Pro Milone, Pro
Cornelio, In toga candida) are preserved, unfortunately in a very fragmentary
condition. The commentaries on the Verrine orations, which bear his name, belong probably to
the fourth century A.D. They treat chiefly of grammatical points. No other works by
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Ascopera, from an Ancient Painting. (Rich.)
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Asconius have survived. He died, after twelve years' blindness, about A.D. 88. The
editio princeps is that published at Venice in 1477. Text in the
editions of Cicero by C. G. Schütze and Orelli - Baiter. See Gräfenhan,
Gesch. d. klass. Philol. iv. 292.
