Hyginus
Hyginus was a prominent land surveyor in Imperial Rome, renowned for his expertise during the reign of Emperor Trajan. His contributions to the field are evidenced through several surviving texts, including *Constitutio limitum*, *De condicionibus agrorum*, and *De generibus controversiarum*, all of which date to the first century CE. Hyginus should not be confused with other historical figures of similar names, such as Gaius Julius Hyginus, a librarian under Augustus, or Hyginus the mythographer, known for his work in genealogy.
During Hyginus’s time, surveyors, referred to as agrimensores or gromatici, were respected professionals whose techniques laid foundational principles for surveying that persisted throughout the medieval era and into the Renaissance. The relevance of Hyginus’s work was rediscovered in the 19th and early 20th centuries by classical scholars, highlighting the lasting impact of his contributions on the discipline. Overall, Hyginus stands out as a significant figure in the history of surveying, reflecting the advanced understanding and importance of land measurement in ancient Roman society.
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Hyginus
Related civilization: Imperial Rome
Major role/position: Land surveyor, author
Life
Nothing is known of Hyginus’s (huh-JI-nuhs) life except that he lived in Imperial Rome and served under the emperor Trajan. Along with his contemporary Sextus Julius Frontinus, he was the most accomplished land surveyor of his time. His surviving works include Constitutio limitum (first century c.e.), De condicionibus agrorum (first century c.e.), De generibus controversiarum (first century c.e.), De limitibus (first century c.e.), and perhaps De munitionibus castrorum (first century c.e., authorship disputed). He is not to be confused with the Palatine librarian Gaius Julius Hyginus, freedman of the emperor Augustus; Saint Hyginus, pope from c. 136 to c. 140 c.e.; or Hyginus the mythographer, author of Genealogiae (also known as Fabulae, probably second century c.e.).
Influence
Surveyors in ancient Rome were honored professionals. They were called either agrimensores (“field measurers”) or gromatici, after the groma, one of their main instruments. Techniques established by ancient Roman surveyors were part of the practical science of surveying throughout the medieval era and into the Renaissance. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the works of the agrimensores aroused considerable interest among European classical scholars and philologists such as Friedrich Blume, Karl Lachmann, Theodor Mommsen, Barthold Georg Niebuhr, Adolf Rudorff, and Carl Thulin.
Bibliography
Dilke, Oswald Ashton Wentworth. “Insights in the Corpus Agrimensorum into Surveying Methods and Mapping.” In Die römische Feldmesskunst, edited by Okko Behrends and Luigi Capogrossi Colognesi. Göttingen, Germany: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1992.
Dilke, Oswald Ashton Wentworth. The Roman Land Surveyors: An Introduction to the Agrimensores. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1971.