Curatōres
Public officers of various kinds under the Roman Empire, several of whom were first
established by Augustus (
Suet. Aug. 37). The
most important of them were as follows:
1.
Curatōres Alvei et Ripārum et
Cloacārum, who had the charge of the navigation of the Tiber.
2.
Curatōres Annōnae, who purchased corn and oil
for the State, and sold it again at a small price among the poorer citizens. They were also
called
curatores emendi frumenti et olei, and
σιτῶναι and
ἐλαιῶναι. Their office belonged to
the
personalia munera; that is, it did not require any expenditure of a
person's private property, but the curatores received from the State a sufficient sum of
money to purchase the required amount (
Dig. 50, tit. 8, s. 9.5).
3.
Curatōres Aquārum. (See
Aquae Ductus.)
4.
Curatōres Calendarii, who had the care in municipal
towns of the
calendaria; that is, the books which contained the names
of the persons to whom public money, which was not wanted for the ordinary expenses of the
town, was lent on interest. The office belonged to the
personalia
munera.
5.
Curatōres Ludōrum, who had the care of the
public games as special commissioners. Persons of rank appear to have been usually appointed
to this office (
Tac. Ann. xi. 35; xiii. 22;
Calig. 27).
6.
Curatōres Opĕrum Publicōrum, who
had the care of all public buildings, such as the theatres, baths, aqueducts, etc., and
agreed with the contractors for all necessary repairs to them. Their duties under the
Republic were discharged by the aediles and the censors.
7.
Curatōres Regiōnum, who had the care of the
fourteen districts into which Rome was divided, and whose duty it was to prevent all disorder
and extortion in their respective districts. This office was first instituted by Augustus
(
Suet. Aug. 30). There were usually two
officers of this kind for each district. Alexander Severus, however, appears to have
appointed only one for each; but these were persons of consular rank, who were to have jurisdiction in conjunction with the
praefectus urbi
(Lamprid.
Alex. Sev. 33).
8.
Curatōres Reipublĭcae (with the name of the
community added), also called
logistae, who administered the landed
property of municipia. These were appointed by the emperors. Ulpian wrote a separate work,
De Officio Curatoris Reipublicae.
9.
Curatōres Tabulārum Publicārum,
three magistrates appointed by Tiberius in A.D. 16, to assist in keeping the public records.
10.
Curatōres Viārum. See
Via.
