Tertia Mucia 28

vol. XVI p.449-450

28) Tertia Mucia

(only Mucia Ascon. Scaur. 17, 15 ed. Kießling. Cic. fam. V 2, 6. Att. I 12, 3. Suet. Caes. 50, 1. Hieron. ad Iovinian. I 48. Μουκία Plut. Pomp. 42. Appian. bell. civ. V 69. 72. Cass. Dio XXXVII 49, 3. XLVIII 16, 3. LI 2, 5. Zonar. X 5; only Tertia Ascon. 17, 15 ed. Kießling). She was the daughter of Q. Mucius Scaevola, the consul of 95 BCE (Ascon. loc. cit. Hadas Sextus Pompeius 3, 2. 92, 148, above nr. 22); <10> her being called Tertia by Ascon. is not evidence for her having two older sisters (Drumann-Groebe IV² 560. Münzer Röm. Adelsparteien 351). Her extensive influence is explained by the fact that she was a sibling to the consul of the year 60 Q. Metellus Celer vol. III p.1209 nr. 86 and to the consul of 57 Qu. Metellus Nepos vol. III p.1216 nr. 96 (Cic. fam. V 2, 6 cum vestra sorore, ibid. 8 calling Metellus her frater, in Cass. Dio XXXVII 49, 3 calling Mucia the ἀδελφή of Metellus Celer). <20>

Shortly after the death of his wife Aemilia (Drumann-Groebe IV² 561), Pompey chose her as his third wife, and had three children with her: Gnaeus, Sextus, and Pompeia (Suet. Caes. 50, 1 tres liberos, without a number in Cass. Dio XXXVII 49, 3 Πομπήιος παῖδας ἐξ αὐτῆς ἔχων, similarly Ascon. 17, 15. 25; cf. Hadas 3). <30> The birth of the younger son Sextus Pompey belongs in the year 75 BCE (since he was 40 years old at the time of his death in 35 BCE, Appian. bell. civ. V 72 Πομπήιον τεσσαρακοστὸν ἔτος βιοῦντα; a critical discussion of this matter is in Hadas 3ff.), and accordingly the termination of their marriage was in around 80 BCE. During his long absence because of the war against pirates and Mithridates (Plut. Pomp. 42. Hieron. ad. Iovinian. I 48), <40> she was unfaithful to him (Suet. Caes. loc. cit. Plut. Pomp. loc. cit. Cass. Dio XXXVII 49, 3. Zonar. X 5. Ascon. Scaur.), and courted with Caesar, and - without being hostile to him himself, since he needed his political support (Drumann-Groebe IV² 561) - gemens Aegisthum appellare consuesset Pompey (Suet. Caes. 50, 1). Pompey divorced her because of this, even though he was reluctant to increase the number of his opponents at that point in time (Drumann-Groebe IV² 487), <50> immediately after he landed in Brundisium (Druman-Groebe IV² 487) around the end of the year 692 = 62 (Cic. Att. I 12, 3 places the divorce on 1st January 61 among events from the most recent past) from her (Suet. Caes. 50, 1. Plut. Pomp. 42. Cass. Dio XXXVII 49, 3. Zonar. X 5. Ascon. Scaur.) οὔτε τότε γράψας οὐ δ’ ὕστερον ἐφ’ οἷς ἀφῆκεν, ἐξειπών (Plut. Pomp. 42) and his measure was met with general approval (Cic. Att. I 12, 3 divortium Muciae vehementer probatur), <60> except for from her influential relatives (Cic. fam. V 1. 2, 6. Cass. Dio. XXXVII 49, 3).

After a short while, Mucia married M. Scaurus, Sulla’s step-son (Drumann-Groebe I² 23. IV² 487. 561), and bore him a son M. Aemilius Scaurus (vol. I p.589 nr. 141), hence Ascon. 17, 15 habebat filium liberorum Cn. Pompeii fratrem. Cass. Dio LI 2, 5 Μᾶρκός τις Σκαῦρος ἀδελφὸς τοῦ Σέξτου ὁμομήτριος ὤν Cass. Dio LVI 38, 2. Since Aemilius was an adult in 719 = 35 BCE (Appian. bell. civ. V 69), his birth belongs in the 6th decade of the 1st century BCE, and his mother’s second divorce belongs directly after her first.

In the year 715 = 39 BCE, at the request of the people, Mucia went to Sicily to Sex. Pompey, <10> in order to arrange a reconciliation between him and Octavian (Appian. bell. civ. V 69. 72. Cass. Dio XLVIII 16, 3). Despite the heavy blows dealt to her by fate which she sufferend over time, she lived to an old age, since she was still alive at the time of the battle of Actium, and was handled with care by Octavian (Cass. Dio LI 2, 5). Since Aemilius Scaurus was supposedly taken prisoner and put to death in the battle of Actium, after he was betrayed to Antony’s generals, <20> whose side [he] had taken, by his step-brother Sex. Pompey, Mucia stood up for him and managed to get Octavian to pardon him (Cass. Dio LI 2. LVI 38. Gardthausen Augustus I 394. Drumann-Groebe² I 23; vol. I p.590 nr. 142. Hadas 92, 148).

[Max Fluss.]