Albucius

or Albu'tius, a physician at Rome, who lived probably about the beginning or middle of the first century after Christ, and who is mentioned by Pliny (Plin. Nat. 29.5) as having gained by his practice the annual income of two hundred and fifty thousand sesterces (about 1953l. 2s. 6d.). This is considered by Pliny to be a very large sum, and may therefore give us some notion of the fortunes made by physicians at Rome about the beginning of the empire. [W.A.G]

or Albu'tius, finished his studies at Athens at the latter end of the second century B. C., and belonged to the Epicurean sect. He was well acquainted with Greek literature, or rather, says Cicero, was almost a Greek. (Brut. 35.) On account of his affecting on every occasion the Greek language and philosophy, he was satirized by Lucilius, whose lines upon him are preserved by Cicero (de Fin. 1.3); and Cicero himself speaks of him as a light-minded man. He accused, but unsuccessfully, Q. Mucius Scaevola, the augur, of maladministration (repetundae) in his province. (Brut. 26, De Orat. 2.70.) In B. C. 105 Albucius was praeter in Sardinia, and in consequence of some insignificant success which he had gained over some robbers, he celebrated a triumph in the province. On his return to Rome, he applied to the senate for the honour of a supplicatio, but this was refused, and he was accused in B. C. 103 of repetundae by C. Julius Caesar, and condemned. Cn. Pompeius Strabo had offered himself as the accuser, but he was not allowed to conduct the prosecution, because he had been the quaestor of Albucius. (De Prov. Cons. 7, in Pison. 38, Div. in Caecil. 19, de Off. 2.14.) After his condemnation, he retired to Athens and pursued the study of philosophy. (Tusc. 5.37.) He left behind him some orations, which had been read by Cicero. (Brut. 35.)

Varro (de Re Rust. 3.2.17) speaks of some satires by L. Albucius written in the style of Lucilius; he appears to be the same person as Titus.

[Silas.]