Gaius Aquillius Tuscus was consul of the Roman Republic in 487 BC together with Titus Sicinius Sabinus. Aquillius led the war against the Hernici. Not many details are known, but Dionysius of Halicarnassus records that he was awarded an ovation, a lesser form of triumph for his victory.
C. Ampolo has argued that Aquillius was of Etruscan origin, basing his argument in part on three wine pitchers of Etruscan origin, all bearing the name Avile Acvilnas (Latin, "Aulus Aquillius"). He has described the consul as an example of the horizontal social mobility that was common in the fifth and fourth centuries BC.
References
Ancient sources
- Livy, Roman History 2.40
- Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities, viii. 64, 65, 67
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1870). "Tuscus, C. Aquillius". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.
