Quintus Curtius Rufus

Alexander de Grote te paard Titelpagina voor Quintus Curtius Rufus, Historia Alexandri Magni, 1664, RP-P-1996-227

Quintus Curtius Rufus was a Roman historian, likely living during the first century AD, whose life details are mostly obscure. He is primarily known for his work, Historiae Alexandri Magni, a biography of Alexander the Great. This work is an important source for the study of Alexander's life and the Hellenistic Period, despite questions about its accuracy and completeness.

Life

Very little is known about the life of Quintus Curtius Rufus. The exact dates of his birth and death are not recorded, and even his praenomen "Quintus" is a matter of scholarly inference rather than historical record. It is speculated that he held some minor senatorial rank due to the style and tone of his writing, which suggests familiarity with the Roman Senate and the higher echelons of Roman society. Some historians place him during the reign of Emperor Claudius (AD 41-54), while others argue for a later date, during the reign of Vespasian (AD 69-79), based on stylistic and linguistic analysis of his work.

Works

Quintus Curtius Rufus's Historiae Alexandri Magni is a ten-book history of Alexander the Great, covering the Macedonian king's life from his accession to his death. However, the work has reached us in an incomplete form; the beginning and end of the narrative are lost, and there are other lacunae in the text. Despite these gaps, Curtius's work provides a vivid, if somewhat romanticized, account of Alexander's campaigns, his battles, and his journey into Asia. It is one of the five main sources on Alexander's campaigns, alongside the works of Arrian, Diodorus Siculus, Plutarch, and Justin.

Curtius Rufus's narrative is notable for its emphasis on the psychological aspects of Alexander's character and his leadership. The historian provides detailed descriptions of the king's emotions, motivations, and the moral lessons to be learned from his actions. This approach has led some modern scholars to criticize the work for its lack of historical accuracy and its tendency towards moralization and drama. However, it remains a valuable source for understanding the legend of Alexander as it was perceived in the Roman world.

Legacy

The Historiae Alexandri Magni of Quintus Curtius Rufus has had a significant impact on the perception of Alexander the Great in Western literature and thought. During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, Curtius's work was widely read and admired for its literary qualities and its portrayal of Alexander as a model of leadership and virtue. It influenced the Alexander romances and contributed to the mythologizing of Alexander's character in European culture.

In modern scholarship, Curtius Rufus's work is studied both for its own merits as a historical source and for what it reveals about Roman attitudes towards history, leadership, and the figure of Alexander. Despite the criticisms of its historical reliability, the Historiae Alexandri Magni remains an important work for understanding the legacy of Alexander the Great and the historiographical traditions of the Roman Empire.