writer of maxims, flourished in the 1st century BC. He was a Syrian
who was brought as a slave to Italy
, but by his wit and talent he won the favor of his master, who freed and educated him.
His mimes, in which he acted himself, had a great success in the provincial towns of Italy and at the games given by Caesar
in 46 BC. Publilius was perhaps even more famous as an improviser, and received from Caesar himself the prize in a contest in which he vanquished all his competitors, including the celebrated Decimus Laberius
.
All that remains of his works is a collection of Sentences (Sententiae
), a series of moral
maxims in iambic
and trochaic verse
.
As men, we are all equal in the presence of death.
Inopi beneficium bis dat, qui dat celeriter.
To do two things at once is to do neither.
The anger of lovers renews the strength of love.
The loss which is unknown is no loss at all.
Honesta fama melior pecunia est.
He who helps the guilty, shares the crime.
Many receive advice, few profit by it.
While we stop to think, we often miss our opportunity.
Whatever you can lose, you should reckon of no account.